A pilot survey of medical students' perspectives on their educational exposure to palliative care in two Canadian universities.
BACKGROUND
Graduating medical students from the class of 1999 from McGill University and the University of Alberta completed a self-administered, anonymous, pilot survey to determine students' perspectives on how their educational experience in common palliative care topics contrasted with their educational experience in the diagnosis and management of hypertension, non palliative aspects of breast cancer, and patients dying of acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS).


METHODS
A Likert scale ranging from "excellent," scored 1, "very poor," scored 5, was used. Students also estimated the number of hours they spent, during their training, in operating rooms, on home visits to terminally ill patients, and in interprofessional teaching.


RESULTS
Sixty of 114 (53%) students from McGill University, and 53 of 110 (48%) students from the University of Alberta responded to the survey. The mean ratings of education experience in the various topics for both universities combined were as follows: hypertension, 2.03; breast cancer, 2.33; cancer pain, 3.42; communicating with dying patients, 3.32; and caring for patients with AIDS, 4.15. The average number of hours spent in the operating room, on home visits to terminally patients, and in interprofessional teaching for both universities combined were 155 hours, 4.2 hours, and 16 hours, respectively. Of the responding students from both universities 83% favored increased palliative care teaching.


CONCLUSIONS
Despite the disproportionate number of hours spent in operating rooms compared to palliative care community exposure, only two students, one from each university, favored shortening surgical rotations to allow for increased time for palliative care education. Recommendations, including increasing palliative care education during clinical clerkships, are provided to improve medical students' perceptions of their educational experiences in palliative care education.
Tertiary Palliative Care Unit, Grey Nuns Hospital, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada. doneschu@cha.ab.ca
Doreen
D
Oneschuk
N
N
MacDonald
Sean
S
Bagshaw
N
N
Mayo
H
H
Jung
J
J
Hanson
D000163:Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome / Q000401:mortality; D001943:Breast Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy; D002170:Canada; D003479:Curriculum; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D006973:Hypertension / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000628:therapy; D008297:Male; D010166:Palliative Care; D010865:Pilot Projects; D013337:Students, Medical