Seeking motivation for selecting Medical Profession as a Career Choice

Strength of motivation of 1st year dental students of a dental institution: A cross-sectional study

Objective

The study aims to evaluate the motivation levels of dental students, with an emphasis on first-year BDS students, by utilizing the Strength of Motivation for Medical School (SMMS) questionnaire.

Methods

It was a descriptive cross-sectional quantitative study targeting 89 first-year BDS students enrolled at Lahore Medical and Dental College from 5th June to 18th August 2023. The Strength of Motivation for Medical School (SMMS) questionnaire was given to the participants after ethical board approval. Data analysis was done through SPSS version 26. The SMMS score was presented as the means standard deviation and an independent t-test was used to find the difference between the groups. The maximum score possible is 80 and the minimum is 16. The higher the score, the greater the strength of motivation.

Results

In this study, a total of 89 first-year BDS students completed motivation questionnaires, with 34.8% males and 65.2% females. The average age was 19.92 ± 3.13. The overall Strength of Motivation Score (SMMS) averaged 45.53 ± 6.82. Results indicated 9% low, 89.9% moderate, and 1.1% strong motivation. Females had a slightly higher mean SMMS (45.93 ± 6.88) than males (44.80 ± 6.76), but the difference was deemed insignificant (p = 0.462) via independent t-test.

Conclusion

Motivation is vital to achieving excellence in academic pursuits. Nevertheless, there isn't a single criterion that can be utilized to assess success and motivation. Our primary focus must be on every possible outcome of success, not just the scoring criteria.

Predictors of College Academic Achievement for Medical Students: The Case of Gondar University, College of Medicine and Health Sciences, Ethiopia

Background

In Ethiopia, the University Entrance Exam (UEE) score is the only criteria for selecting prospective medical students entering the university system, disregarding their career choice motivation.

Methods

A cross-sectional study design was conducted to identify medical students career choice motivation and predictors of college academic achievement at Gondar university, Ethiopia. The study was conducted on 222 medical students enrolled at Gondar University in 2016. A self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data on study participants demographic characteristics, career choice motivation, and informed career choice. Data on the UEE score and student's college academic achievement were collected from the university registrar. Descriptive statistics and regression analysis were used to analyze the data.

Results

Desire to help others as a medical doctor and prevent and cure diseases were mentioned as the first important career choice reasons by 147 (68.2%) and 135 (64.0%) study participants, respectively. The results of regression analysis showed that the UEE score was significantly associated with pre-clinical cumulative GPA (R2=.327, p<.05) and 5th year cumulative GPA (R2=.244, p<.05) respectively. The stepwise multiple regression revealed that UEE score, having prior knowledge about medical profession, positive experience in the medical school, and intrinsic career choice motivation significantly predicted 5th year cumulative GPA (p<.05). The high beta weight of 0.254 and 0.202 confirmed the strongest prediction to come from prior knowledge about the medical profession and positive experience in medical school, respectively.

Conclusion and Recommendation

The UEE score is a significant predictor for medical students' academic achievement, but it should not be the sole admission criterion. We suggest that comprehensive admissions criteria covering both cognitive and non-cognitive factors, as well as informed career choice, be developed to select the best applicants in the future.

Do Moral Judgments in Moral Dilemmas Make One More Inclined to Choose a Medical Degree?

The role of moral intuitions and moral judgments has become increasingly prominent in educational and academic choices. The present research aims to examine if the moral judgments elicited in sacrificial trolley dilemmas have a distinct pattern for the decisions made by junior medical students, in comparison to those of senior high school students. We work with this sample because it represents the population out of which medical students are recruited in the case of Bucharest, Romania. Our findings show that moral judgments are indeed a significant predictor for a respondent's status as medical students. This result, albeit with limitations, bears multiple practical implications, from developing empirically informed medical ethics courses in medical schools to evidence-based policy designs which consider factors such as morality alongside financial outcomes and incentives.

Midwifery Now: Narratives about Motivations for Career Choice

The objective of this study was to analyse nursing students’ motivation to choose the midwifery career. This is a cross-sectional study with a qualitatively driven mixed-methods approach. The settings are three higher education institutions located in Portugal. The study was conducted between September 2019 and November 2021, with the participation of 74 midwifery master’s students, through convenience sampling. The data were collected through the LimeSurvey software and were subsequently analysed in the SPSS and IRaMuTeQ software programs. The emerging thematic areas were as follows: (1) building a professional identity and (2) knowledge construction. From these two thematic areas, six classes emerged that revealed commitment to the profession. It is in Class 6 that the ancestral essence of the profession lies, revealing the meanings of competence and care perpetuation linked to gender. Midwifery is a first-line profession, and the career choice reflects a commitment to support the mother/newborn dyad in view of the inevitability of human care for the preservation of the species. Midwives with a Socratic inspiration are the model for the profession. Given the development of professional identity, it can be interesting to have an educational curriculum where human values are reinforced. A woman-centred birth environment and birth territory are elementary for midwifery education.

To be or not to be an Obstetrician / Gynaecologist

Objectives

This qualitative study aimed to explore motivational sources of physicians, at the time of selection and while pursuing ObGyn career. Secondary aim was to explore challenges and strategies adapted by these physicians to overcome these challenges.

Methods

This is qualitative study with constrictive worldview. ObGyn residents and consultants of Aga Khan University, Karachi, were interviewed from July 2017 till Jan 2019, after ethical approval, using purposeful maximum variation sampling. Analysis were conducted by identifying keywords and phrases, these unedited verbatim with no assumptions provided basis for codes, which then clustered as trends. Emerging findings were discussed among authors and themes were finalized with consensus. Conclusion was formulated by linking these themes.

Results

Four themes emerged were, 'grounds for selecting ObGyn as career', 'Motivational Factors', 'Demotivating Factors' and 'Strategies to Cope with Challenges'. Results showed that aptitude and passion not only have pivotal role in career selection but also helped in pursuance. Personal fulfilment and hands-on experience satisfy emotional needs, while family and friends supported participants in maintaining work-life balance and in over-coming challenges.

Conclusions

Considering personal preference and aptitude at the time of career selection helps in endurance and keep motivations high, while challenges in pursuance can be overcome by strong support system.