Rural background and clinical rural rotations during medical training: effect on practice location

Area of Science:

• Medical Education
• Rural Health Disparities
• Physician Workforce Distribution

Background:

• Providing healthcare in rural Canada presents significant challenges.
• Understanding factors influencing family medicine residents' practice location decisions is crucial for addressing rural healthcare needs.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate the factors affecting family medicine residents' decisions regarding practice location.
• To determine if a resident's background or exposure to rural practice influences their choice of practice location.

Main Methods:

• A cross-sectional mail survey was conducted with 159 physicians who graduated from Queen's University's Family Medicine Program between 1977 and 1991.
• Outcome variables included practice location size (rural vs. nonrural) post-training and at the time of the survey (1993).
• Predictor variables included age, sex, years in practice, rural exposure during training, and hometown size.

Main Results:

• Physicians raised in rural communities were 2.3 times more likely to choose rural practice immediately after graduation.
• These physicians were also 2.5 times more likely to remain in rural practice at the time of the survey.
• Exposure to rural practice during undergraduate or residency training did not show an association with choosing rural practice.

Conclusions:

• Physicians with rural roots are significantly more likely to establish practices in rural Canada.
• Hometown background is a key determinant for rural practice location, more so than training exposure.