Bound in Breadth: Linking a Rural Health Pathway to Family Medicine Careers.

INTRODUCTION

Studies show that rural health experiences are a major factor in medical students choosing family medicine as a specialty. Interviews of graduates of the Massachusetts Area Health Education Center's (MassAHEC) Rural Health Scholars (RHS) program at the University of Massachusetts Chan Medical School aimed to identify key factors of rural health education that impact family medicine specialty choice.

METHODS

A qualitative study of RHS graduates who either planned to or had matched into family medicine was conducted through thematic analysis of coded transcripts from individual interviews, leading to the identification of themes surrounding reasons for and influences on specialty choice.

RESULTS

Analysis of interview responses identified three major aspects of the rural health program that participants described as influencing their specialty choice: broad scope of practice, community orientation, and caring for underserved populations. These were often put in perspective as similarities between family medicine and rural health careers.

CONCLUSION

This study identifies factors that graduates who chose family medicine described as influencing their choice of specialty, which may help programs emphasize aspects that will strengthen the family medicine workforce.