92 UK Medical Students' Perceptions of Trauma and Orthopaedics as a Specialty, Career and Culture
J Woods- Surgery
Abstract
Aim
In 2022, Trauma and Orthopedics’ waiting lists grew to their largest for over a decade. Therefore, the specialty of T&O must ensure that no medical student is dissuaded from pursuing their interest in T&O because of perceptions of the specialty that cause them to doubt their ability to succeed in their career on non-meritocratic grounds. This study seeks to understand and characterise:The reasons why students are / are not attracted to a career in T&OThe perceived barriers and challenges to pursuing a career in T&O
Method
Medical students were invited to share their ambitions, experiences and concerns about challenges and barriers to a career in T&O online.
Results
18 students from multiple medical schools participated. 16 participants stated they were considering T&O as a future career; their reasons included positive placement experiences, diversity of working environments and caseload, innovation, and practical application of skills. The perceived barriers to medical students pursuing their interest in T&O included competition, work-life balance, male domination of the specialty and a hostile working environment.
Conclusions
T&O appeals to many medical students as an exciting career. Unfortunately, students have concerns about being held back by characteristics with no bearing on their performance. However, negative perceptions of the specialty may be remediable by publicising up-to-date competition ratios; raising the profile (including on social media) of female T&O surgeons as role models and mentors; and increasing awareness of support structures available to students and trainees.