A survey of senior medical students' attitudes and awareness toward teaching and participation in a formal clinical teaching elective: a Canadian perspective.
BACKGROUND
To prepare for careers in medicine, medical trainees must develop clinical teaching skills. It is unclear if Canadian medical students need or want to develop such skills. We sought to assess Canadian students' perceptions of clinical teaching, and their desire to pursue clinical teaching skills development via a clinical teaching elective (CTE) in their final year of medical school.


METHODS
We designed a descriptive cross-sectional study of Canadian senior medical students, using an online survey to gauge teaching experience, career goals, perceived areas of confidence, and interest in a CTE.


RESULTS
Students at 13 of 17 Canadian medical schools were invited to participate in the survey (4154 students). We collected 321 responses (7.8%). Most (75%) respondents expressed confidence in giving presentations, but fewer were confident providing bedside teaching (47%), teaching sensitive issues (42%), and presenting at journal clubs (42%). A total of 240 respondents (75%) expressed interest in participating in a CTE. The majority (61%) favored a two week elective, and preferred topics included bedside teaching (85%), teaching physical examination skills (71%), moderation of small group learning (63%), and mentorship in medicine (60%).


CONCLUSIONS
Our study demonstrates that a large number of Canadian medical students are interested in teaching in a clinical setting, but lack confidence in skills specific to clinical teaching. Our respondents signaled interest in participating in an elective in clinical teaching, particularly if it is offered in a two-week format.
a Medical Student, Faculty of Medicine , University of Ottawa , Ottawa , Canada.
J D
JD
Matthew Hughes
b Department of Family Medicine, Faculty of Medicine , University of Ottawa , Ottawa , Canada.
Elise
E
Azzi
c Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine , University of Ottawa , Ottawa , Canada.
Gregory Walter
GW
Rose
d Department of Innovation in Medical Education, Division of Clinical and Functional Anatomy, Faculty of Medicine , University of Ottawa , Ottawa , Canada.
Christopher J
CJ
Ramnanan
e The Ottawa Hospital, General Campus , Ottawa , Ontario , Canada.
Karima
K
Khamisa
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002170:Canada; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D004504:Education, Medical, Undergraduate / Q000458:organization & administration*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D010379:Peer Group; D011361:Professional Competence; D020377:Self Efficacy; D013337:Students, Medical / Q000523:psychology*; D013663:Teaching / Q000458:organization & administration* / Q000592:standards; D055815:Young Adult
Curriculum; clinical teaching; electives; near-peer teaching; undergraduate medical education