Granek Leeat, Mizrakli Yuval, Ariad Samuel, Jotkowitz Alan, Geffen David B
Department of Public Health, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, P.O. Box 653, 84101, Beer Sheva, Israel.
Clinical Research Center, Soroka University Medical Center, Faculty of Health Sciences, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva, Israel.
J Cancer Educ. 2017 Sep;32(3):640-646. doi: 10.1007/s13187-015-0972-3.
Although only some medical students will choose cancer as their specialty, it is essential that all students have a basic understanding of cancer and its treatment. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the impact of an introductory clinical oncology course on first-year international medical students. Evaluation of the course involved a quantitative survey designed for this study that was given pre- and post-course completion. Participants included 29 first-year international medical students. Students reported that the course affected them emotionally more than they anticipated it would prior to beginning the course. By the end of the course, students felt more comfortable focusing on how to live with cancer, felt less afraid of dealing with death, and were better able to cope with uncomfortable emotional situations. The course had no significant effect on students' interest in specializing in oncology in the future. Our study provides evidence that an introductory oncology course can increase student comfort with issues related to living with cancer, with confronting and dealing with death and dying, and with coping with uncomfortable emotional situations as related to cancer care. In anticipation of growing shortages in oncology specialists in the coming years, the ability of an early course in oncology to attract more students to the field is of interest. Future research should examine ethnic and cultural differences in uptake of the clinical oncology courses across continents and should use direct observation in addition to self-report in evaluating outcomes.
虽然只有部分医学生会选择肿瘤学作为其专业，但所有学生对癌症及其治疗方法有基本的了解是至关重要的。本研究的目的是评估临床肿瘤学入门课程对一年级国际医学生的影响。对该课程的评估涉及为本研究设计的一项定量调查，该调查在课程开始前和结束后进行。参与者包括29名一年级国际医学生。学生们报告称，该课程对他们的情感影响比他们在开始课程之前预期的要大。到课程结束时，学生们在关注如何与癌症共存方面感觉更自在，对处理死亡的恐惧减少，并且更有能力应对令人不适的情感状况。该课程对学生未来从事肿瘤学专业的兴趣没有显著影响。我们的研究提供了证据，表明肿瘤学入门课程可以提高学生在与癌症共存、面对和处理死亡与临终问题以及应对与癌症护理相关的令人不适的情感状况等问题上的舒适度。鉴于预计未来几年肿瘤学专家将日益短缺，肿瘤学早期课程吸引更多学生进入该领域的能力值得关注。未来的研究应考察各大洲在接受临床肿瘤学课程方面的种族和文化差异，并且在评估结果时除了自我报告外还应采用直接观察法。
