Pediatric Conditions Encountered by Medical Students

Abstract

Background: It is challenging to design a pediatric curriculum for medical students with their varying clinical experiences. We sought to describe the patterns of conditions the undergraduate students were exposed to in our peripheral pediatric settings of an Australian medical school.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional observational anonymized survey of pediatric students, covering 29 presenting conditions encountered over 2018 - 2019. An encounter was defined as one in which the student either took a history with or without performing a physical examination or observed a clinician doing so.

Results: Of 239 surveys, 70 (29%) were returned completed. All these students reported seeing a child with fever and a child with breathing difficulties; over 90% saw a child with vomiting and/or diarrhea, or a rash, or a premature neonate. Over 80% saw a child with obesity, a heart murmur, irritability, abnormal development or behavior, failure to thrive or a neonate with respiratory distress. A child protection encounter was reported by 67%. Fewer than 30% saw a child with an abdominal or groin mass, or an ingestion. Three students reported seeing all conditions.

Conclusions: The clinical experiences generally matched the pattern of pediatric pathology in our peripheral settings. However, exposure to all the key conditions seems unrealistic for most students. It is likely that less common presentations such will not be seen by most pediatric students. Academics need effective teaching strategies to optimize learning of these important yet uncommon conditions.

Int J Clin Pediatr. 2022;11(3):85-91
doi: https://doi.org/10.14740/ijcp501