Mapping the Current State of Canadian Medical School Oncology Interest Groups

Abstract

Cancer is the leading cause of mortality in Canada. Undergraduate medical education therefore must ensure adequate oncology education for all physicians and inspire some to make oncology their career specialty, in an effort to ensure public care needs are met in the future. Medical student-led oncology interest groups (OIGs) are a subset of specialty interest groups that supplement formal didactic and clinical learning to increase exposure to oncology and access to mentors. We conducted a survey of OIG leaders to ascertain their goals, activities, barriers, future directions, and perceptions about employment prospects. OIG leaders from 12/17 Canadian medical schools responded. Medical oncology was the most represented specialty in OIGs. Half of OIGs had faculty mentors. Self-reported goals were to increase exposure to oncology disciplines (n = 12), assist students with career selection (n = 11) and finding mentors (n = 7), and enhance oncology education (n = 10). OIGs held on average 5 events per year (range 1–12). Reported barriers were finding time to plan events, declining student interest over academic year, and limited funding. Many OIGs showed interest in more standardized resources about oncology disciplines (n = 9), access to presentations (n = 10), more funding (n = 7), and collaboration (n = 7). Employment in many oncology specialties was perceived poorly, and the most important career selection considerations were ease of employment, practice location, and partner/family preference. Our survey highlights common goals, barriers, and perceptions in OIG medical student leaders across Canada and provides guidance for future interventions.

Appendix. Survey Questions

• 1. Which oncology specialties do you represent/hold events for? Select all that apply and use “Other” option to give any context as needed.

  • Surgical oncology

  • Radiation oncology

  • Medical oncology

  • Gyne oncology

  • Palliative care

  • Other

• 2. What type of events do you hold? Select all that apply. If other events, please elaborate in “Other”.

  • Introduction to specialty talks

  • Oncology booths at other events

  • Panel discussions

  • Hands-on workshops (e.g., using models, suturing, brachytherapy, etc.)

  • Oncology department visits/tours

  • Meeting oncology trainees

  • Other

• 3. How many events do you hold per year? (free text).

• 4. What is the average number of participants you have for your events? Please mention type of event and typical turnout (free text).

• 5. What are some benefits you see arising from your OIG activities? If others, please elaborate in “Other”.

  • Enhancing oncology education

  • Exposure to specialties

  • Career selection

  • Exposure to scholarships

  • Finding resident/staff mentors

  • Other

• 6. Do you engage in career networking? (e.g., putting interested students in touch with faculty/resident mentors). If so, please describe how you do it. (free text)

• 7. What is your approximate annual budget? What are your sources of funding and breakdown? (free text)

• 8. Do you have a faculty mentor? (Yes/no)

• 9. If you answered yes, what is your faculty mentor’s specialty? If no, write “n/a” (free text).

• 10. How do medical students find out about your group’s existence? How do they sign up? (free text).

• 11. Do you work with or share content with OIGs at other medical schools? *(Yes/no).

• 12. Which medical school OIG(s) are you sharing content with or are working with? (free text).

• 13. What are limiting factors for your interest group to hold more oncology events? Rank from most to least significant. *If there are other barriers you have experienced, you will be asked to list them in the next question (Likert scale between 1 and 5, 1 = not at all a barrier, 5 = a significant barrier, with the option of “I don’t know/not sure”).

  • Staff support to guide event planning

  • Financial resources

  • Booking space for events

  • Finding the time to plan events

  • Finding time slots to host events

  • Lack of interested speakers

• 14. Are there other barriers you have experienced that have not been mentioned? Briefly describe how would you rank them as well. If none, write “n/a” (free text).

• 15. In your experience or in that of your predecessors, what would you like to see change in your OIG?

  • More events

  • More funding

  • More medical faculty support

  • More collaboration with OIGs nationally

  • More resources about oncology specialties and topics (pamphlets, presentations, etc.)

  • Other

• 16. Would you be interested in having access to shared resources about oncology topics and specialties for use among all OIGs nationally? Select all that apply.

  • No, not interested

  • Pamphlets

  • Presentations on topics

  • Presentations on specialties

  • Other

• 17. Is your OIG aware of the Pam Catton Summer Studentship in Radiation Oncology? (Yes/no).

• 18. At your medical school, is exposure by way of clinical rotation in oncology… (check all that apply).

  • A mandatory part of core clinical clerkship rotations

  • An option as a selective during clinical clerkship rotations

• 19. What do you think is the average medical student’s perception of the current job market in the following specialties? (Likert scale between 1 and 5, 1 = poor, 5 = great, with the option of “I don’t know/not sure”).

  • Surgical oncology

  • Radiation oncology

  • Medical oncology

  • Gynecological oncology

  • Palliative care

• 20. What do you think is the average medical student’s perception of the job market in the following specialties in 5–7 years? (Likert scale between 1 and 5, 1 = poor, 5 = great, with the option of “I don’t know/not sure”).

  • Surgical oncology

  • Radiation oncology

  • Medical oncology

  • Gynecological oncology

  • Palliative care

• 21. How important are the following to the average medical student on whether to pursue a career in oncology? (Likert scale between 1 and 5, 1 = not at all important, 5 = very important, with the option of “I don’t know/not sure”).

• Practice location

• Flexible work hours

• Patient population

• City size

• Burden of call duties

• Spouse/partner/family preferences

• Ease of employment after training

• Level of autonomy

• Opportunities for career advancement

• Competitiveness of residencies

• Length of training

• Debt accumulation

• 22. Please give us any comments you would like to share or suggestions you have for us. (free text)