A multinational perspective on "lifestyle" and other perceptions of contemporary medical students about general surgery

OBJECTIVE: The aim of this multinational study was to measure and describe the perceptions of medical students toward general surgery as a career choice with a particular emphasis on "lifestyle." BACKGROUND: Past studies from individual countries have considered the perceptions of medical students toward general surgery. No multinational study to compare the perceptions of medical students from different geographic and socioeconomic regions toward general surgery, has been broadly disseminated. METHODS: A survey about student perceptions of a general surgery career was distributed to 9 medical schools in 8 countries. Two-way analysis of variance was performed on the basis of country, level of economic development [Human Development Index (HDI)], and sex. RESULTS: A total of 841 respondents were included in the study with a response rate of 60%. The overall rate of interest toward general surgery as a career choice was 24%. We noted differences in the reasons behind why medical students choose general surgery between very high HDI countries and medium/high HDI countries. In contrast, the most important reason for not choosing general surgery was found to be due to perceptions of an unpleasant lifestyle. The negative influence of "lifestyle" persisted across all countries, both sexes, and all levels of socioeconomic development. CONCLUSIONS: The negative influence of lifestyle is the most important reason why contemporary medical students from different parts of the world choose not to pursue general surgery. Strategies to counteract the perceived unfriendly nature of the lifestyle are essential to increase the interest of contemporary medical students toward general surgery.