General Practice - It's Just Sitting Down! Perceptions of a General Practice-focussed Curriculum: A Qualitative Study of First-year Medical Students

Crawford, L. (2023) General Practice - It's Just Sitting Down! Perceptions of a General Practice-focussed Curriculum: A Qualitative Study of First-year Medical Students. ADEGS 2023, Carnoustie, UK, 19-20 Jan 2023. (Unpublished)

Abstract

Reducing numbers of medical students are choosing GP as a career. To reverse the trend there has been extra funding for enhanced undergraduate GP curricula. The University of Glasgow Undergraduate Medical School developed an optional 4-year GP-focussed curriculum, the COMET (Community Orientated Medical Experience Track) programme which was promoted to students in 2019. A qualitative study of 1st year medical students, at University of Glasgow, conducted using two online focus groups with separate cohorts of students; those who applied to the COMET programme and those who did not. Discussions were structured using a topic theme guide and video-recorded using Zoom, with subsequent thematic analysis conducted following a constructivist grounded theory approach. The findings showed there were two main factors influencing the students’ decisions: perceptions of GP and impressions of the COMET programme. These two themes emerged from both groups of students. The prime factor was the students’ perceptions of GP, which revealed a consistent narrative of negative associations with GP. This influenced the non-COMET students in their decision not to apply, and this negativity was reiterated by the COMET students, who decided to apply despite these influences. Conclusion: There remains ingrained perceptions of GP, many of which are formed pre-medical school from multiple sources (media portrayal, public perceptions, personal experience).

• Item Type: Conference or Workshop Item
• Status: Unpublished
• Refereed: Yes
• Glasgow Author(s) Enlighten ID: Crawford, Dr Lynsay
• Authors: Crawford, L.
• College/School: College of Medical Veterinary and Life Sciences > School of Health & Wellbeing > General Practice and Primary Care