Bristol Medical School, University of Bristol, Bristol, United Kingdom.
Department of Clinical Neurosciences, School of Clinical Medicine, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom.
JMIR Res Protoc. 2024 Jul 26;13:e55155. doi: 10.2196/55155.
The UK medical education system faces a complex landscape of specialty training choices and heightened competition. The Factors Affecting Specialty Training Preference Among UK Medical Students (FAST) study addresses the need to understand the factors influencing UK medical students' specialty choices, against a backdrop of increasing challenges in health care workforce planning.
The primary objectives of the FAST study are to explore UK medical students' preferred specialties and the factors that influence these choices. Secondary objectives are to evaluate students' confidence in securing their chosen specialty, to understand how demographic and academic backgrounds affect their decisions, and to examine how specialty preferences and confidence levels vary across different UK medical schools.
A cross-sectional survey design will be used to collect data from UK medical students. The survey, comprising 17 questions, uses Likert scales, multiple-choice formats, and free-text entry to capture nuanced insights into specialty choice factors. The methodology, adapted from the Ascertaining the Career Intentions of UK Medical Students (AIMS) study, incorporates adjustments based on literature review, clinical staff feedback, and pilot group insights. This approach ensures comprehensive and nondirective questioning. Data analysis will include descriptive statistics to establish basic patterns, ANOVA for group comparisons, logistic regression for outcome modeling, and discrete choice models for specialty preference analysis.
The study was launched nationally on December 4, 2023. Data collection is anticipated to end on March 1, 2024, with data analysis beginning thereafter. The results are expected to be available later in 2024.
The FAST study represents an important step in understanding the factors influencing UK medical students' career pathways. By integrating diverse student perspectives across year groups and medical schools, this study seeks to provide critical insights into the dynamics of specialty, or residency, selection. The findings are anticipated to inform both policy and educational strategies, aiming to align training opportunities with the evolving needs and aspirations of the future medical workforce. Ultimately, the insights gained may guide initiatives to balance specialty distribution, improve career guidance, and improve overall student satisfaction within the National Health Service, contributing to a more stable and effective health care system.
INTERNATIONAL REGISTERED REPORT IDENTIFIER (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/55155.
英国医学教育系统面临着复杂的专业培训选择和竞争加剧的局面。《英国医学生专业培训偏好因素研究》（FAST）旨在了解影响英国医学生专业选择的因素，因为医疗保健劳动力规划面临的挑战越来越大。
FAST 研究的主要目的是探索英国医学生的首选专业以及影响这些选择的因素。次要目的是评估学生获得所选专业的信心，了解人口统计学和学术背景如何影响他们的决策，以及检查专业偏好和信心水平在不同英国医学院之间的差异。
将使用横断面调查设计从英国医学生中收集数据。该调查由 17 个问题组成，使用李克特量表、多项选择格式和自由文本输入，以捕捉专业选择因素的细微见解。该方法改编自《确定英国医学生职业意向研究》（AIMS），根据文献回顾、临床工作人员反馈和试点小组的见解进行了调整。这种方法确保了全面和非定向的提问。数据分析将包括描述性统计以确定基本模式、方差分析进行组比较、逻辑回归进行结果建模以及离散选择模型进行专业偏好分析。
该研究于 2023 年 12 月 4 日在全国范围内启动。预计数据收集将于 2024 年 3 月 1 日结束，此后将开始进行数据分析。结果预计将于 2024 年晚些时候公布。
FAST 研究代表了了解影响英国医学生职业道路因素的重要一步。通过整合不同年级和医学院的学生多样性观点，该研究旨在深入了解专业或居住选择的动态。研究结果预计将为政策和教育策略提供重要信息，旨在使培训机会与未来医疗劳动力的不断变化的需求和愿望保持一致。最终，这些见解可能会指导平衡专业分布、改善职业指导和提高国家卫生服务体系内学生整体满意度的举措，有助于建立更稳定和有效的医疗保健系统。
国际注册报告标识符（IRRID）：DERR1-10.2196/55155。
