Dissertation
Examining medical school stressors to inform curriculum development to strengthen medical students' preparedness for clinical practice: a phenomenological study
Doctor of Education (Ed.D.), Drexel University
Jun 2024
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.17918/00010565
Abstract
Nearly half of US medical students report experiencing stress within the first few months of training, with the highest stress experienced as they transition into the clinical learning environment. Medical students unprepared to address the stressors can have decreased academic performance, increased mental health concerns, engage in self-destructive behaviors, withdraw from school, and express suicidal ideation. Inadequate skills to cope and manage stress and stressors can persist through medical school into clinical practice as they complete their graduate medical education training and then into their roles as attending physicians. Medical schools recognize their responsibility to understand the stressors and provide formal curriculum interventions to develop skills that can help process the stress of clinical training and better prepare them for entry into clinical practice. This phenomenological research study aimed to examine existing medical school stressors and gain insight into how medical schools' curricula could help strengthen their medical students' preparedness for clinical practice. Recognizing that medical students may not have the appropriate insight about the stressors while actively training, data was collected through a qualitative research design using semi-structured interviews of recent graduates of an allopathic medical school in Pennsylvania. Research questions included: What experiences in medical school cause stress that may negatively affect medical students' training and preparedness for clinical practice? How do medical schools mitigate the causes of stress (stressors) on medical students during their training? Do medical students feel they are adequately prepared for clinical practice upon completion of medical school? What could medical schools do to help mitigate the stressors during training and strengthen medical students' preparedness for clinical practice?
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Details
- Title
- Examining medical school stressors to inform curriculum development to strengthen medical students' preparedness for clinical practice
- Creators
- Devon Marie Bremer
- Contributors
- Harriette Rasmussen (Advisor)
- Awarding Institution
- Drexel University
- Degree Awarded
- Doctor of Education (Ed.D.)
- Publisher
- Drexel University; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Number of pages
- xv, 173 pages
- Resource Type
- Dissertation
- Language
- English
- Academic Unit
- School of Education (1997-2026); Drexel University
- Other Identifier
- 991021890313304721