Are residents more comfortable than faculty members when addressing sociocultural diversity in medicine?
OBJECTIVE
Sociocultural medicine is a growing curricular area in medical education. Because faculty members and residents will teach these curricula and model these skills in patient care, it is important to assess their attitudes toward diversity. This study examined faculty members' and residents' attitudes toward sociocultural issues in medicine.


METHODS
In November 2000, 198 physicians from the Department of Pediatrics at the University of Michigan Medical School completed a questionnaire on demographics and sociocultural attitudes in medicine while they attended a department-wide retreat on cultural competency. A factor analysis of the sociocultural attitudes measure yielded five dimensions accounting for 70% of the variance. These factors included sexual orientation, diversity in professional functions, discussing race/ethnicity in teaching forums, clinical skills, and alternative medicine.


RESULTS
Significant differences were found between faculty members and residents for sexual orientation issues (t = 2.76, p <.01) and alternative medicine (t = 2.84, p <.01), with residents endorsing greater comfort in these areas of patient care. When controlling for demographic/background variables, group differences disappeared. Past exposure to multiculturalism emerged as a significant predictor for both sociocultural attitude dimensions.


CONCLUSIONS
Findings suggested while residents felt more comfortable than faculty members did with sexual orientation and alternative medicine issues in medicine, attitudes may have been related more to previous diversity education than to seniority of the physician. Integrating diversity education within departments and across the medical education continuum likely benefits all physicians. In the area of sociocultural medicine, both faculty members and residents can offer perspectives valuable to medical students, colleagues, and the larger medical community.
Tang
Tricia S
TS
Department of Medical Education, University of Michigan Medical School, G1206 Towsley Center, Box 0201, Ann Arbor, MI 48109, USA. tangts@umich.edu
Bozynski
Mary Ellen A
ME
Mitchell
Joyce M
JM
Haftel
Hilary M
HM
Vanston
Sarah A
SA
Anderson
Robert M
RM
D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards; D000529:Complementary Therapies; D018864:Cultural Diversity; D005163:Factor Analysis, Statistical; D005180:Faculty, Medical / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D005260:Female; D007722:Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*; D008297:Male; D008824:Michigan; D008875:Middle Aged; D012725:Sexual Behavior; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires