Gender in Medical Education in Turkey: The Intern Perspective

Gender insensitivity (lack of gender awareness) in the physician's professional role and practice can lead to outcomes such as gender discrimination and gender-based harassment in various areas, such as medical education, career opportunities, and specialty selection. The purpose of this study was to reveal the place that the concept of gender occupies in medical education in Turkey by canvassing the opinions of final-year medical students regarding theories of gender roles and socialization, academic capitalism, and liberal feminism.

This study was a Cross-sectional survey. The study population consisted of 1739 interns in six medical faculties in four different geographical regions of Turkey. The reason behind the selection is having different socio-economic factors. Students were selected by simple random sampling technique. For determining it is jumped five students from the lists in faculties. For the validity and reliability of the 14 survey questions, 5 expert opinions were examined and the preliminary instrument was applied to 10 students. Chi-square test was used for comparative analysis.

The students who stated that their gender had not affected their educational lives during clinical training reported that it had adversely impacted their internships (p<0.001). More male students than female ones stated that male physicians were more confidence-inspiring and more industrious, that they managed better, and that they were more likely to recommend a male surgeon. A high number of students reported being undecided on the subjects of concepts or behaviors concerning gender/gender inequality.

We recommend greater focus on role modeling and purposeful teaching of gender concepts from the earliest stages of medical education, with particular concentration on gender culture within a process of change involving all hospital personnel in order to prevent gender discrimination.