Unmet Learning Needs of Physicians in Specialty Training in Palliative Care: A Japanese Nationwide Study

Despite the urgent need for a quality training system in palliative care, learning needs among physicians in palliative care specialty training have not been systematically explored in Japan.

To clarify unmet learning needs among Japanese physicians in specialty training in palliative care and the potential solutions they favor to meet those needs.

A Japanese nationwide survey.

Participants were physicians in specialty training in palliative care. The questionnaire included unmet learning needs and potential solutions. Factor analysis was performed to identify underlying subscales of unmet needs.

In total, 253 of 735 institutions (34%) responded; of 284 physicians, 253 (89%) responded and 229 were eligible. The most prevalent unmet needs included the following: "to learn areas other than medicine" (89%), "to obtain research support from a data center" (87%), and "to learn ways to educate students and residents about palliative medicine" (87%). The potential solutions most participants favored to meet those needs included the following: "to develop a comprehensive training program" (74%), "to develop systems which reflect trainees' opinions on the improvement of training programs" (71%), and "to increase the number of training institutions" (69%).

Physicians in palliative care specialty training had markedly unmet needs regarding training on comprehensive contents, education, and research support; they considered increasing the number of comprehensive quality training programs as a potential solution. Our findings may help physicians in palliative care training, faculty physicians, training programs, academic societies, and the government to develop collaborative efforts to fulfill the unmet needs of trainees.