Rush University Medical Center, Chicago, IL
Annika Samuelson , Matthew B. Schabath , Edith P. Mitchell , Cherry Au
Background: Health disparities in lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/questioning (LGBTQ+), or sexual and gender minorities (SGMs), patients are a known in health care. SGMs have higher cancer risk but lower rates of screenings, resulting in a higher likelihood of late-stage disease. Relevant gaps in medical school curricula regarding SGMs must be addressed to prevent these disparities. The purpose of this study is to evaluate medical students’ (MS) clinical cultural awareness in cancer care of SGM patients. Methods: This study was a cross-sectional survey distributed to medical degree students actively enrolled at a large urban academic center. This survey was adapted from a study by Schabath et. Al. The survey had 38 questions on demographics, attitudes, and knowledge of SGM topics. Questions were scored on a Likert scale from ‘strongly disagree’ to ‘strongly agree’ with ‘don’t know’ and ‘prefer not to answer’ as options. Results are reported using descriptive statistics. Results: There were 238 responses. Most respondents were white (63.9%), cis-gender female (57.6%), and heterosexual (78.6%). Distribution according to year are as follows: MS1 36.6%, MS2 14.7%, MS3 27.3%, and MS4 19.3%. Attitudes are listed in the table below. Four of the seven questions on knowledge had “Don’t Know” as the most common response. Notably, 47.1% of respondents did not know if screening gay/bisexual men with anal pap is associated with increased life expectancy. Students were interested in learning guidelines regarding SGM cancer screening and considerations for patients who are on hormone therapy. Conclusions: While most medical students are comfortable treating LGBTQ+ patients, most are not confident in their knowledge. This difference is most profound in knowledge of transgender patients. Schools must consider longitudinal education in SGM topics to improve student knowledge to produce confident and competent providers. Participants Responses to Attitude Items.
Question | Strongly Agree, n (%) | Agree, n (%) | Neutral, n (%) | Disagree, n (%) | Strongly Disagree, n (%) | Don’t know, n (%) | Prefer not to answer, n (%) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
I am comfortable treating LGB patients | 132 (55.5) | 85 (35.7) | 11 (4.6) | 4 (1.7) | 0 (0.0) | 4 (1.7) | 0 (0.0) |
I am confident in my knowledge of the health needs of LGB patients | 31 (13.0) | 95 (39.9) | 54 (22.7) | 42 (17.6) | 10 (4.2) | 4 (1.7) | 0 (0.0) |
I am comfortable treating transgender patients. | 86 (36.1) | 102 (42.9) | 24 (10.1) | 15 (6.3) | 3 (1.3) | 5 (2.1) | 1 (0.4) |
I am confident in my knowledge of health needs of transgender patients. | 8 (3.4) | 60 (25.2) | 70 (29.4) | 77 (32.4) | 16 (6.7) | 4 (1.7) | 1 (0.4) |
I would be interested in education regarding the unique health needs of LGBTQ patients | 159 (66.8) | 58 (24.4) | 11 (4.6) | 4 (1.7) | 3 (1.3) | 0 (0.0) | 1 (0.4) |
I would be willing to be listed as an LGBTQ-friendly provider | 165 (69.3) | 50 (21.0) | 15 (6.3) | 1 (0.4) | 0 (0.0) | 5 (2.1) | 0 (0.0) |
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