Factors Influencing US Allopathic Medical Students to Choose Pathology as a Specialty
The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has highlighted the crucial role of pathologists in the health care system at a time of significant decline in the number of US medical students matching to pathology residency positions. To understand this decline, a national survey of fourth-year US allopathic medical stude...
| Main Authors: | , , , , , , , , , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2020-09-01
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| Series: | Academic Pathology |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1177/2374289520951924 |
| _version_ | 1811174007411572736 |
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| author | Cindy B. McCloskey MD Kristen Johnson PhD Mark Brissette MD Richard Conran MD, PhD, JD John Childs MD Melissa George DO Dita Gratzinger MD, PhD Victor G. Prieto MD, PhD Amyn M. Rojiani MD, PhD Irene Shyu MD Charles Timmons MD, PhD Robert Hoffman MD |
| author_facet | Cindy B. McCloskey MD Kristen Johnson PhD Mark Brissette MD Richard Conran MD, PhD, JD John Childs MD Melissa George DO Dita Gratzinger MD, PhD Victor G. Prieto MD, PhD Amyn M. Rojiani MD, PhD Irene Shyu MD Charles Timmons MD, PhD Robert Hoffman MD |
| author_sort | Cindy B. McCloskey MD |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | The SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has highlighted the crucial role of pathologists in the health care system at a time of significant decline in the number of US medical students matching to pathology residency positions. To understand this decline, a national survey of fourth-year US allopathic medical students was conducted to assess experiences, knowledge, and attitudes of pathology and factors that impact specialty choice. Participating in a separate pathology course did not increase the probability of choosing pathology. Experiences significantly associated with choosing pathology included clinical or research opportunities in pathology during the last 2 years of medical school, autopsy observation/participation, and participation in pathology interest groups. Many respondents felt they were not sufficiently exposed to pathology to consider it as a specialty. Those who considered pathology but did not choose it were less likely to report understanding the activities of pathologists and being recruited by pathology faculty and more likely to express a preference for more direct patient contact as compared to those entering pathology. In general, respondents agreed that pathology has a good work–life balance and a satisfying degree of intellectual challenge. On the other hand, respondents generally agreed that information on social media and perception of the pathology job market do not seem to be positive and few agreed that pathology is a highly regarded specialty. We identify steps to address these issues and increase the number of US medical students choosing pathology as a specialty crucial to the future of medicine and public health. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-10T17:57:09Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-49a31158b2d84a0ea1ca10b6f24e744e |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2374-2895 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-10T17:57:09Z |
| publishDate | 2020-09-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Academic Pathology |
| spelling | doaj.art-49a31158b2d84a0ea1ca10b6f24e744e2023-02-02T17:40:50ZengElsevierAcademic Pathology2374-28952020-09-01710.1177/2374289520951924Factors Influencing US Allopathic Medical Students to Choose Pathology as a SpecialtyCindy B. McCloskey MD0Kristen Johnson PhD1Mark Brissette MD2Richard Conran MD, PhD, JD3John Childs MD4Melissa George DO5Dita Gratzinger MD, PhD6Victor G. Prieto MD, PhD7Amyn M. Rojiani MD, PhD8Irene Shyu MD9Charles Timmons MD, PhD10Robert Hoffman MD11 Department of Pathology, University of Oklahoma Health Sciences Center, Oklahoma City, OK, USA College of American Pathologists, Northfield, IL, USA The Joint Pathology Center, Silver Spring, MD, USA Department of Pathology and Anatomy, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk, VA, USA Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine Services, Walter Reed National Military Medical Center, Bethesda, MD, USA Department of Pathology, Penn State Health Hershey Medical Center, Hershey, PA, USA Department of Pathology, Stanford University School of Medicine, CA, USA Department of Pathology, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX, USA Department of Pathology, Augusta University-Medical College of Georgia, GA, USA Department of Pathology, Virginia Commonwealth University, Richmond, VA, USA Department of Pathology, UT Southwestern Medical Center and Children’s Health, Dallas, TX, USA Department of Pathology, Microbiology and Immunology, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, Nashville, TN, USAThe SARS-CoV-2 pandemic has highlighted the crucial role of pathologists in the health care system at a time of significant decline in the number of US medical students matching to pathology residency positions. To understand this decline, a national survey of fourth-year US allopathic medical students was conducted to assess experiences, knowledge, and attitudes of pathology and factors that impact specialty choice. Participating in a separate pathology course did not increase the probability of choosing pathology. Experiences significantly associated with choosing pathology included clinical or research opportunities in pathology during the last 2 years of medical school, autopsy observation/participation, and participation in pathology interest groups. Many respondents felt they were not sufficiently exposed to pathology to consider it as a specialty. Those who considered pathology but did not choose it were less likely to report understanding the activities of pathologists and being recruited by pathology faculty and more likely to express a preference for more direct patient contact as compared to those entering pathology. In general, respondents agreed that pathology has a good work–life balance and a satisfying degree of intellectual challenge. On the other hand, respondents generally agreed that information on social media and perception of the pathology job market do not seem to be positive and few agreed that pathology is a highly regarded specialty. We identify steps to address these issues and increase the number of US medical students choosing pathology as a specialty crucial to the future of medicine and public health.https://doi.org/10.1177/2374289520951924 |
| spellingShingle | Cindy B. McCloskey MD Kristen Johnson PhD Mark Brissette MD Richard Conran MD, PhD, JD John Childs MD Melissa George DO Dita Gratzinger MD, PhD Victor G. Prieto MD, PhD Amyn M. Rojiani MD, PhD Irene Shyu MD Charles Timmons MD, PhD Robert Hoffman MD Factors Influencing US Allopathic Medical Students to Choose Pathology as a Specialty Academic Pathology |
| title | Factors Influencing US Allopathic Medical Students to Choose Pathology as a Specialty |
| title_full | Factors Influencing US Allopathic Medical Students to Choose Pathology as a Specialty |
| title_fullStr | Factors Influencing US Allopathic Medical Students to Choose Pathology as a Specialty |
| title_full_unstemmed | Factors Influencing US Allopathic Medical Students to Choose Pathology as a Specialty |
| title_short | Factors Influencing US Allopathic Medical Students to Choose Pathology as a Specialty |
| title_sort | factors influencing us allopathic medical students to choose pathology as a specialty |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1177/2374289520951924 |
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