Department of General Practice (General Internal Medicine), Peking Union Medical College Hospital (PUMCH), Chinese Academy of Medical Science (CAMS) and Peking Union Medical College (PUMC), Beijing, 100730, China.
BMC Fam Pract. 2021 Jan 11;22(1):18. doi: 10.1186/s12875-020-01364-x.
The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) has been a worldwide public health emergency that has put great pressure on medical workers and the medical system. General Practitioners (GPs) played an important role in controlling the epidemic, and GP trainees also took an active part in this approach. This study was to explore Chinese GP trainees' career perspectives after COVID-19.
We conducted a qualitative research study which included 12 GP trainees from three teaching hospitals in China. Semi-structured telephone interviews were conducted. Grounded theory and thematic analysis were used to code the data and identify categories and factors.
Eleven participants chose to continue a GP career after COVID-19, and nearly half of the participants strengthened their determination to dedicate themselves to this career. Only one participant decided to change the career choice because of interest in another specialty. Four main themes influencing GP trainees' perceptions of career development after COVID-19 emerged from the interviews: changes of GPs' work content in COVID-19, challenges of being a GP, psychological changes of the career, how to provide better primary care. Although some negative psychological changes existed, most of participants were inspired by role models and medical colleagues. They had more in-depth understanding of GPs' role and responsibility during COVID-19, and exhibited intensions for self-improvement in career development, especially in public health education and self-protection in preventing infectious diseases. In addition, the wide use of telemedicine provided a new work way for GP trainees. However, challenges, such as increased workloads, low income, lack of resources in primary medical institutions, and distrust of GPs are faced by trainees during the outbreak.
Overall, no substantial changes were seen in the career choice of GP trainees after COVID-19 outbreak. However, they were inspired and had an in-depth understanding about the GP's work and responsibility during an epidemic. Owing to the challenges faced by the GPs, measures are needed to improve the GP education and work environment in the training phase.
2019 年冠状病毒病（COVID-19）是一场全球性的公共卫生紧急事件，给医务人员和医疗系统带来了巨大压力。全科医生（GP）在控制疫情方面发挥了重要作用，GP 培训生也积极参与了这一措施。本研究旨在探讨 COVID-19 后中国 GP 培训生的职业前景。
我们进行了一项定性研究，包括来自中国三所教学医院的 12 名 GP 培训生。采用半结构式电话访谈进行。采用扎根理论和主题分析对数据进行编码，并确定类别和因素。
11 名参与者选择在 COVID-19 后继续从事 GP 职业，近一半的参与者加强了投身这一职业的决心。只有一名参与者因对另一个专业的兴趣而决定改变职业选择。从访谈中得出影响 GP 培训生 COVID-19 后职业发展观念的四个主要主题：COVID-19 期间 GP 工作内容的变化、成为 GP 的挑战、职业心理变化、如何提供更好的初级保健。尽管存在一些负面的心理变化，但大多数参与者受到榜样和医疗同事的启发。他们在 COVID-19 期间对 GP 的角色和责任有了更深入的了解，并表现出自我完善职业发展的意图，特别是在公共卫生教育和预防传染病自我保护方面。此外，远程医疗的广泛应用为 GP 培训生提供了新的工作方式。然而，培训生在疫情期间面临工作量增加、收入低、基层医疗机构资源匮乏以及对 GP 的不信任等挑战。
总体而言，COVID-19 爆发后，GP 培训生的职业选择没有发生重大变化。然而，他们受到启发，对疫情期间 GP 的工作和责任有了更深入的了解。由于 GP 面临的挑战，需要在培训阶段采取措施改善 GP 教育和工作环境。
