Jesús Alonso, student tutor, and Mariam De la Poza, Family professor at the University of Barcelona.
Medicine students ‘touch’ all specialties throughout their university career, although tutors and professors demand more contents of Family Medicine during the first years of university. They also ask that Family practices be done during the early years of the career, since this ‘deficit’ means that many of the students do not end up “falling in love” with the specialty. According to the educational sources consulted by Medical Writingit is after the rotary when the students begin to like “much more” the specialty.
“At first the students they don’t have a good concept of what the specialty is. When they arrive the first day they are not fully motivated, but after spending two months with us they see our reality, how we work, the direct and close contact we have with the patient, and all of this makes them like Family Medicine more” , emphasizes Mariam De la PozaProfessor of Family Medicine at the University of Barcelona and President of the Spanish Society of General and Family Physicians of Catalonia (SEMG Catalonia). In this university center, students do not enter the specialty until the sixth and last year of the degree, which means that students have to wait until the last moment of the degree to be able to enjoy two months of dedication to Family Medicine.
A situation that in the Catalan university occurs year after year, since De la Poza herself emphasizes that the first five years of the degree students see the rest of the specialties, leaving Family for the last year. “There should be a previous contact”, settles the teacher. In turn, she emphasizes that future Family doctors choose their specialty for “passion”, after “seeing and living” the day-to-day life of his fellow doctors.
From Madrid they also claim more content of this specialty during the university process and that it be promoted “much more”. Jesus AlonsoPresident of SEMG Madrid and tutor of students who want to dedicate themselves to the specialty, points to the “underrepresentation” of the medical branch in the faculties. “It is essential that students know about it, among other things, because a significant percentage of those who are going to graduate will end up being family doctors, with more or less vocation”, he warns.
Primary overload, a determining factor
The difficult situation that the Primary Care In many of the regions of Spain it is a determining factor for many of the students who have to choose a specialty. The overload of work does not make the specialty the most comfortable and attractive for some of them, which causes them to end up discarding it.
However, according to the teachers and tutors with whom he has spoken Medical WritingIt is difficult to find students who want to dedicate themselves to the specialty before working on it in the rotary. Generally, students tend to have a “range of possibilities”, among which is Familia, but it is not his first option, emphasizes Jesús Alonso. “They are living directly what is happening with Primary Care, because they consult with us. And the situation means that, among your options, subtract points Family,” he says.
“They are worried about our situation,” agrees De la Poza, although he is confident that the problems that the company currently has can be solved. healthcare gateway Spanish. However, from her experience in the classroom, she points out that students are more concerned with finishing and earning their major than with anything else.
Brain drain
In addition to the overload and the extra hours that first-level care professionals have to work, the Economic factor is one of the main determining factors for choosing Family. And it is that in exchange for some “terrible and unfortunate” conditions, students are not willing to join the staff of the specialty, argues Alonso. “It’s not that they don’t like Family Medicine, what they don’t like is the way it works. Real Primary Care is prevented from being carried out and they have the feeling that minimal time spent with patients. That is not exactly Family Medicine, and that is why many reconsider doing the specialty”, settles the president of SEMG Madrid.
However, and despite these circumstances, there are students who decide to immerse themselves in the first level of care, but they open the door to work in other communities Spanish or even in other countries, since those who have the vocation to dedicate themselves to the Family will continue working in that area, reconsidering another type of “work opportunity”: “Yes, it is true that sometimes they reconsider the fact of going abroad to work, because the working and economic conditions are much better than in Spain”, affirms Alonso.
A fact that is heard more and more in the corridors of the faculties. “There are students who choose not to take the MIR here and go to other countries to do the specialty”, adds De la Poza. “From my experience and from what is heard, I think that it is still a minority who choose that path but we are hearing more and more,” the professor emphasizes.
The information published in Redacción Médica contains affirmations, data and statements from official institutions and health professionals. However, if you have any questions related to your health, consult your corresponding health specialist.