Maintaining patient-centredness in Australian medical students: Culture, curriculum and selection criteria (original) (raw)

Introduction: Previous studies have shown that patient-centredness may become eroded as students progress through medical training. The primary objective of this study was to explore the differences in patient-centred attitudes between first- and final-year students in the context of an Australian medical school. The secondary objective was to determine whether student factors such as age, gender, background (rural/urban), discipline of previous degree and specialty of interest were associated with patient-centred attitudes. Methods: This cross-sectional study surveyed 214 first-year and 141 final-year Australian medical students in 2016 and 2017 (total n = 355). Score on the Patient–Practitioner Orientation Scale (PPOS) was the main outcome measure. Results: Anonymous questionnaires were completed by 355 students (76.2%). Mean PPOS score was 4.51 (SD 0.46). Although there was no difference in mean PPOS between first-year and fourth-year students, female respondents were significant...