UNUSUAL NUMBER OF STUDENTS SEEKING MEDICAL FIELDS.
UNPRECEDENTED NUMBER OF STUDENTS SEEK EDUCATION IN MEDICAL FIELDS
POSTMEDIA IS TAKING AN IN-DEPTH LOOK AT THE SOCIAL, INSTITUTIONAL AND ECONOMIC ISSUES THE PANDEMIC HAS BROUGHT TO LIGHT — AND, MORE IMPORTANTLY, HOW WE CAN SOLVE THEM.
Nick Taylor began medical school in 2018 having no idea that upon graduation he’d be on the front lines of the world’s largest health-care crisis in more than a century.
Last March, the second-year University of Alberta (U of A) student was preparing to finish the classroom portion of his education and start his clinical studies in the health-care system.
Then, Alberta’s first case of COVID-19 was reported. Students were transitioned to online learning, non-essential businesses were closed and everyone who could was told to stay home.
A few months later, Taylor was battling the pandemic as part of his hands-on education.
“It’s been pretty crazy. In the sense that it’s both really difficult, but it’s also kind of a very rare and interesting, unique, fortunate learning opportunity for us,” said Taylor. “It’s tough, because obviously, it’s a pandemic, and it’s difficult for everybody, especially health care providers.”
COVID-19 has tested humanity. Doctors, nurses and others on the front line have been working long hours, fighting burnout and bearing witness to citizens dying at incredible rates, all while facing the risk of contracting the virus.
While it’s not a stretch to imagine the pandemic scaring away those pondering a career in the health sector, there are signs it is having the opposite effect.
Across North America, medical schools, including the U of A, are seeing an unprecedented surge in applications for the 2021-22 academic year.
“We’re consistent with across the country and across North America, with what has been observed this cycle, which is a 20-per-cent increase in the number of applications,” said Sita Gourishankar, assistant dean of admissions for undergraduate medical education at the U of A.
South of the border, the Association of American Medical Colleges (AAMC) has reported a similar increase. Applications to medical schools in the U.S. have risen by 18 per cent.
“This large of an increase is unprecedented when considering that the number of applicants has been rising by an average of 2.5 per cent over the past 20 years,” said Dr. Geoffrey York, senior director of student affairs and programs with AAMC.
In Ontario, medical schools have received 10.9 per cent more applications compared to last year. Ontario nursing programs have seen an even bigger boost of 17.5 per cent.
Deanna Underwood, a spokeswoman for the Ontario University Application Centre, said the number of nursing applications could continue to rise as deadlines vary across schools and some have not passed.
It is difficult to say why students are applying at record rates.
“Some students may have been motivated by seeing heroic doctors on the front lines of the COVID-19 pandemic. Some aspects of the application process also became easier as some medical schools extended their deadlines,” said York. “We survey incoming medical school students every year and will learn more
next fall about why this year’s applicants decided to apply.”
Dr. Leila Harrison, senior associate dean for admissions and student affairs for Washington State University (WSU), echoed York, saying that while there is no conclusive research behind the upswing, there are indicators pointing towards the pandemic contributing to the rise.
She referred to what she called the “Fauci Effect,” where the heightened presence of health officials such as Dr. Anthony Fauci, the United States’ top public health official, could be spurring the increase in applications.
“It’s just the idea that potentially seeing Dr. Fauci, all the impact he’s made in his expertise in this pandemic, that maybe has inspired hopeful doctors to say, ‘You know what, I’m gonna go for it this cycle.’”
Gourishankar believes the heightened interest is also linked to the spotlight the media has placed on health care workers, and the positives and negatives of the system.
“They see these individuals as people that have, you know, skill sets and things to not only save lives, but also are people that are willing to sacrifice for the greater good,” said Gourishankar.
The pandemic has also forced medical schools to adapt their entry processes. After applications have been sent, select students receive invitations to
attend interviews. Schools then send out acceptance letters.
This year, U of A is conducting all of its interviews virtually.
“These are individuals who are normally applying to 10, 12 medical schools across the country and potentially in North America,” said Gourishankar. “In this situation, we’re able to do it where they are in their home.”
Gourishankar expects virtual interviews to continue to be an option after the pandemic. The flexibility to interview from anywhere could be an incentive when students consider their options, and could result in medical schools continuing to see application numbers above pre-pandemic levels.
Sarah Veber, a prospective student from Newfoundland, was selected for interviews at three schools, two of them out of province. She said interviewing from home, rather than flying to each school, helped financially and logistically.
“There were some challenges related to the online interview and I definitely interact much better, I would say, in person. For example, in reading body language, that sort of thing, so those were sort of unique challenges, but everyone was in the same boat.”
Veber, with two degrees in music, said medical school has always been part of her long-term plan and the pandemic gave her time to complete her Medical
College Admission Test and applications. It also piqued her interest in joining the front line.
“It interests me, I guess, being able to be in that field and help people out,” said Veber. “During COVID when people are sitting in isolation, sometimes I feel kind of helpless or useless in the sense that I can’t be out doing something.”
The increase in young people showing an interest in health care professions couldn’t come at a better time, as some doctors fear an exodus following the pandemic due to stress and burnout.
Dr. Kate Bisby, a family physician who recently moved to Vancouver Island from Calgary, said she worries communities across Canada will have fewer primary care doctors as a result.
“I think there’s a lot of doctors right now who are looking at different careers,” said Bisby. “To see your patients die and you know what’s going to happen is a really hard thing for any health care worker to have to continue to put up with.”
A study released in the United States in September by the Primary Care Collaborative (PCC) showed 19 per cent of physicians surveyed believed a doctor in their clinic had, or was planning to, retire early as a result of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. However, a study released in February showed that while the effect of burnout was increasing among family doctors, none involved in the survey were planning to retire early because of it.
Last June, a study published by the Cambridge University Press Public Health Emergency Collection found that a large number of emergency medicine physicians in Canada had at least one symptom of burnout prior to COVID-19. A separate study, which looked at past health emergencies, found that burnout among doctors increases during a pandemic.
Those findings are echoed by a 2018 Canadian Medical Association (CMA) report that showed while 81 per cent of physicians reported a high emotional well-being, 26 per cent reported “high emotional exhaustion.” Thirtyfour per cent of respondents screened positive for depression.
The three-year-old study provides the most recent data from the national organization regarding physician burnout.
“We are very concerned about the impact this pandemic is having on our health workforce — an impact that will be felt for years to come,” said CMA president Dr. Ann Collins. “It is therefore important that we have serious conversations about our healthcare system, so that we improve access to care while ensuring the well-being of those who deliver care to Canadians.”
After months of working in the field amid the COVID-19 pandemic, Taylor said he is aware of the risk of burnout, but he has been able to prevent it so far.
“We all presumably went into medicine in the first place (to) make a difference and make a positive impact in our communities and, you know, advocate for vulnerable people who weren’t always able to advocate for themselves. And so I’m still super excited to be able to do that. And the pandemic really doesn’t change anything about that.”