title: International Health Experiences in Family Medicine Residency Training.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  International health experiences (IHEs) have been associated with improved clinical skills, altruistic attitudes, cross-cultural sensitivity, and exposure to community medicine for residents and medical students. Although an increasing number of family medicine residencies offer IHEs, there are currently no standardized competencies or guidelines for developing IHEs. The aim of this study was to examine the content of IHEs in order to provide an overview of the current landscape of global health training in family medicine residency programs.
  
  
  METHODS
  Residency programs self-identifying as offering IHEs on the American Medical Association's (AMA) FREIDA Online website were emailed an electronic survey with questions regarding IHE characteristics, resident selection criteria, faculty support, motivations for participation, challenges to implementation, and funding.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Of the 153 programs that responded, 84% still offered IHEs. Most IHEs are 3--4 weeks (71.1%) and are funded by the resident (74.2%). Faculty from the resident's department or institution generally provide supervision (76.6%) and have undergone some type of specialized training in global health (65.6%). Being in good academic standing was the most important eligibility criteria for residents participating in an IHE (86.7%), and funding was reported as the most challenging aspect (62.5%) of offering IHEs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  IHEs are increasing in number and receiving more funding, but the experiences are variable among residency programs. While most program directors believe residents participate in IHEs to gain exposure with underserved populations, only a small percentage (5.5%) include a commitment to community service as part of a requirement for participation in an IHE.
authors.affiliation: Department of Family Medicine, Medical University of South Carolina.
authors.forename: Maribeth
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Porter
authors.forename: Lisa
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Mims
authors.forename: Chad
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Garven
authors.forename: Jennifer
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Gavin
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Carek
authors.forename: Vanessa
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Diaz
mesh_terms: D002983:Clinical Competence; D003479:Curriculum; D005194:Family Practice / Q000193:education*; D014943:Global Health / Q000191:economics / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D038622:Internationality; D007396:Internship and Residency / Q000639:trends*; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States