title: Attitudes towards general practice: a comparative cross-sectional survey of 1st and 5th year medical students.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Positive attitudes towards General Practice can be understood as a prerequisite for becoming a General Practitioner (GP) and for collaboration with GPs later on. This study aimed to assess attitudes of medical students at the beginning and the end of medical school.
  
  
  METHODS
  A total of 160 1(st) year students at Hannover Medical School were surveyed. Their attitudes were compared to those of 287 5th year students. Descriptive, bi- and multivariate analyses were performed to investigate influences of year of study and gender.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Year of study and gender both were associated with the attitudes towards General Practice. The interest in General Practice and patient-orientation (communication, care of older patients with chronic diseases) was higher in 1st year students compared to more advanced students. Female students valued such requirements more than male students, the differences in attitudes between the years of study being more pronounced in male students.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Despite some limitations caused by the cross-sectional design, the attitudes towards General Practice competencies changed to their disadvantage during medical school. This suggests a formative influence of the strategies used in medical education. Educational strategies, however, could be used to bring about a change of attitudes in the other direction.
authors.affiliation: Hannover Medical School, Institute of General Practice, Hannover, Germany. kruschinski.carsten@mh-hannover.de
authors.forename: Carsten
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Kruschinski
authors.forename: Birgitt
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Wiese
authors.forename: Eva
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Hummers-Pradier
mesh_terms: D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002321:Career Choice; D003299:Cooperative Behavior; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003479:Curriculum; D003625:Data Collection; D004501:Education, Medical; D005260:Female; D058006:General Practice / Q000193:education*; D005858:Germany; D006801:Humans; D033183:Interdisciplinary Communication; D008297:Male; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D055815:Young Adult