Document Detail


Ethical issues confronted by medical students during clinical rotations.
MedLine Citation:
PMID:  20636592     Owner:  NLM     Status:  MEDLINE    
Abstract/OtherAbstract:
OBJECTIVES: This study aimed to examine the most common and important ethical issues confronting medical students during clinical rotations so that ethics-related topics can be prioritised according to students' needs and this information used to develop a curriculum for the ethics course.
METHODS: In a cross-sectional approach, we reviewed the medical ethics-related cases recorded in the logbooks of all medical students (n=241) at Tehran University of Medical Sciences who attended the medical ethics course during October 2006 to July 2007. As part of a graded assignment, each student was required to record three encounters with ethics-related issues in his or her logbook. A total of 713 cases were assessed. Information related to the ethical issues and the conditions in which ethical issues arose was extracted and recorded by two experts, whose analysis showed agreement of kappa 0.77. In cases of discrepancy, both experts reviewed and discussed the record until they achieved agreement.
RESULTS: A total of 713 cases were analysed. The most common issues reported by students related to ethics in medical education (20.1%, n=143), professionalism (18.8%, n=134), confidentiality (7.6%, n=54), the doctor-patient relationship (7.3%, n=52), informed consent (7.0%, n=50) and the doctor-peer relationship (7.0%, n=50). After adjusting for length of rotation, the highest numbers of ethics-related incidents were reported from urology, general surgery, orthopaedics, internal medicine, neurology, and obstetrics and gynaecology wards.
CONCLUSIONS: The results of this study indicate that professionalism and related elements represent one of the most important areas of concern that need to be addressed when planning courses for medical students. The other significant area of concern is that of ethics in medical education, which, although the subject is not considered essential for medical practitioners, should be taught and respected so that student sensitivity to medical ethics is maintained and even increased.
Authors:
Nazila Nikravan Fard; Fariba Asghari; Azim Mirzazadeh
Publication Detail:
Type:  Journal Article; Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't    
Journal Detail:
Title:  Medical education     Volume:  44     ISSN:  1365-2923     ISO Abbreviation:  Med Educ     Publication Date:  2010 Jul 
Date Detail:
Created Date:  2010-07-19     Completed Date:  2010-12-10     Revised Date:  -    
Medline Journal Info:
Nlm Unique ID:  7605655     Medline TA:  Med Educ     Country:  England    
Other Details:
Languages:  eng     Pagination:  723-30     Citation Subset:  IM    
Affiliation:
Medical Ethics and History of Medicine Research Centre, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, and Department of Internal Medicine, Imam Khomeini Hospital Complex, Tehran, Iran.
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MeSH Terms
Descriptor/Qualifier:
Attitude of Health Personnel*
Clinical Clerkship / organization & administration
Cross-Sectional Studies
Education, Medical, Undergraduate / ethics*
Ethics, Medical*
Female
Humans
Informed Consent / ethics
Interprofessional Relations / ethics
Male
Personal Autonomy
Physician-Patient Relations / ethics
Professional Competence
Students, Medical / psychology*

From MEDLINE®/PubMed®, a database of the U.S. National Library of Medicine


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