Clinical experience of medical students with primary care career goals.

Two medical students with primary care career goals, in a medical school based at a university medical center, recorded demographic and medical problem information from their patients. They saw a total of 3,391 problems in 2,265 different patients, resulting in a clinical experience similar to that of students from a medical school not based at a university medical center and residents in two family medicine residency training sites. Almost 62.0 percent of problem contacts were seen outside of the medical center hospital, 66.7 percent on ambulatory patients, and 47.3 percent on non-credit rotations, reflecting the intensity of their personal motivation, the support of faculty with primary care backgrounds, and the flexibility of a clinical curriculum offering 50 percent electives. The study demonstrates that it is possible for students in a university medical center to obtain clinical experience with patient problems of the type encountered in the community.