Why Ophthalmology: A Cross-Sectional Study of the Motivating Factors Influencing the Choice of Ophthalmology as a Career Among Medical Students in Saudi Arabia.

BACKGROUND

Choosing a future career is a frightening and anxious decision for medical students; understanding any factor that influences making such a decision will be helpful for the medical students to reach it with satisfaction.

AIM

The aim of this study was to determine the factors that would influence the choice of ophthalmology as a future career among medical students in multi-medical colleges in Saudi Arabia.

METHODS

This cross-sectional study was conducted for pre-clinical and clinical medical students from February 2021 to May 2021 in multi-medical colleges in Saudi Arabia. The questionnaire used was from previously published research, and it was modified and validated by a board-certified ophthalmologist.

RESULTS

A total of 6.1% of all medical students considered ophthalmology as their first choice as a future career; factors that influenced choosing ophthalmology were personal interest, satisfaction from improving patient quality of vision, good patient prognosis, and the appeal of being an ophthalmologist; these factors showed a highly significant difference in comparison to other factors.

CONCLUSION

Several factors are explored for choosing ophthalmology as a future specialty; understanding these factors can help medical students determine their choices for a future career.