Street Medics: An innovative learning opportunity for UK medical students in a primary care outreach setting

ABSTRACT

It is well known that recruitment into general practice (GP) is low, particularly in deprived areas. Undergraduate medical students are encouraged to learn about health inequalities.

However, teaching on this area has been perceived by some as uninspiring. Innovative teaching opportunities can engage students but more research is needed regarding exposure to deprived inner-city settings. Street Medics is an extra-curricular, educational initiative which enables students to join GPs doing street-outreach work. The aim of the study was to understand what motivates undergraduate medical students to engage with Street Medics and the impact of the experience. Focus group data were collected and thematically analysed. Motivating factor themes: appetite to explore; previous exposure including observation of perceived sub-optimal care to marginalised patients; perceived lack of exposure personally and in undergraduate teaching. Experience and impact themes: increased understanding of social determinants of health; change in perception; influence on career intentions; desire to incorporate into curriculum. Opportunities like Street Medics can supplement the undergraduate curriculum and not only challenge students’ perceptions of marginalised patients but also ignite their enthusiasm for pursuing GP. By understanding the factors driving students’ engagement in innovative educational opportunities, effective methods can be shared across undergraduate courses.

KEYWORDS:

• Primary care
• undergraduate teaching
• health inequalities
• experiential learning
• marginalised patients
• innovative teaching

Acknowledgments

Sincere thanks to the participants in this study and to the staff at the University of Leeds and Bevan Healthcare for their assistance.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Ethical Approval

This study was approved by the School of Medicine Research Ethics Committee at the University of Leeds. The ethics approval reference number was MREC 18-028.

Additional information

Funding

This study was conducted as part of a Leadership Fellowship in Health Inequalities at the Academic Unit of Primary Care, University of Leeds. The fellowship is part of the Future Leaders Programme, Health Education England, Yorkshire and the Humber.