Family medicine and primary care: trends and student characteristics

Using data from a longitudinal study of medical students at Jefferson Medical College, the authors analyzed trends in senior student interest in primary care specialties between 1971 and 1975 and selected background characteristics and performance levels of students choosing family medicine compared with those in other specialties. The proportion of students interested in family medicine residencies increased from 6 to 17 percent in the study period. The academic performance of students selecting family medicine was equal to or better than that of those in all other specialties except internal medicine. Smaller proportions were interested in teaching and research than those in other specialties, and larger proportions intended to work in communities of 100,000 population or less.