SATISFACTION WITH THE TRAINING PROGRAM IN FAMILY MEDICINE: A SELF REPORT OF THE RESIDENTS IN CAN THO, VIETNAM

Abstract

Background: Family medicine is a broad specialty, requiring a diverse and appropriate training program.  At Can Tho UMP, the curriculum has been regularly reviewed and updated. Objectives: To determine the satisfaction rate of students with the training programs and analyze some related factors. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional description on the sample selected from 2 courses (starting in 2021 and 2022), with some modifications in list of subjects and increased time of practice, particularly at outpatient settings in the latter curriculum. The questionnaire consists of 12 items about satisfaction with the theoretical and practical teaching programs, which had high reliability (Cronbach alpha 0.967). The participants were asked to rate from 0-10 in accordance with their satisfaction levels.  Results: 72 residents participated in the study. The doctors’ average age was 35.6 (27-56). 63.9% were male, and 73.6% were married. There were 60% of residents who were from preventive doctors, and 62% working in primary care. There were 70.8% and 77.8% of residents who were highly satisfied with the theoretical teaching program and lecturers, and the practice program, respectively. The overall mean score of satisfaction was 8.4 (SD 0.89). Lower satisfaction correlated several personal factors including younger age group, fewer numbers of years after graduation and/or years in working, preventive medicine undergraduate training background, not primary care provider, and the curriculum prior renewal (p < 0.05). Conclusion: the training program should be considered to meet expectations of different groups of residents and maximize the duration of practice.