Factors Influencing Medical Students' Choice Regarding Anaesthesiology as a Future Career at King Abdulaziz University Hospital Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Aims: Our study aimed to identify whether anesthesiology is a desired specialty among medical students at King Abdulaziz University and what factors may have influenced or hindered their decision. Study Design: Cross‑sectional study. Study Setting: At King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia between June 8th, 2019 till June 25th, 2019. Methodology: An online questionnaire was distributed to all 700 5th and 6th year medical students at King Abdulaziz University Hospital and they were asked to fill it anonymously. Pre-clinical medical students (2nd, 3rd and 4th years) were excluded due to their lack of exposure to the field of anesthesiology. The estimated sample size was a random 248 medical students of KAUH. Results: Our results showed that the most preferred specialties were Internal medicine (37.9%), followed by surgery (35.5%), then family medicine (27%). While the field of anesthesiology was chosen by 14.5% of the participants. However, in response to a separate question, 79.8% of the respondents have not considered it as their future career. Many considered Doctor-patient relationship to have the greatest influence (81.7%), followed by controllable lifestyle (80%), while income 71% and prestige 63.2% were less influential factors for those career decisions. Conclusion: It is essential to show medical students that anesthesiologists do interact with patients and increase their interaction with influential individuals in this field since they are capable of positively adjusting their viewpoints.