A contemporary review of LGBTQ+ healthcare teaching in the UK medical curriculum

The British Student Doctor Journal Pub Date : 2022-12-01 DOI:10.18573/bsdj.317

Alice Barber, Alexander Flach, E. Pattinson

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引用次数: 1

Abstract

Background: Changing societal views and the increasing prevalence of online education has created an environment ideal for the evolution and change of the medical curriculum. One area in need of improvement is LGBTQ+ health care teaching. Current literature demonstrates that LGBTQ+ individuals have higher levels of poor mental and physical health than heterosexual, cis-gender individuals (6). Therefore, it is key that the medical curriculum is made more inclusive of the LGBTQ+ population to ensure future doctors can provide inclusive care. This review aimed to examine the current literature on LGBTQ+ health care teaching in UK medical curricula, identify potential barriers to change, and explore efforts to improve the LGBTQ+ health care teaching in the UK. Methods: Literature searches were carried out using the PRISMA framework. The databases used were PubMed, Ovid, Embase, AMED, Global Health and Scopus. The searches were carried out in July 2021. Results: 15 relevant papers were reviewed. Three main themes were identified, 1) medical students (or medical schools) believed current education on LGBTQ+ health care was insufficient, 2) students reported wanting more in-depth practical education on LGBTQ+ health, 3) the potential impact of a lack of LGBTQ+ health care education on clinicians’ confidence and ability to treat LGBTQ+ patients. Discussion: LGBTQ+ health care is lacking in the UK medical curriculum which has the potential to negatively impact patients. The teaching that is present is firstly inconsistent which leads to disparities and unreliability for LGBTQ+ patients. It is also heavily focused on sexual health which can lead to damaging stereotypes. Despite there being barriers to improving LGBTQ+ health care education, we present practical suggestions to overcome these. Further research should explore in greater depth the level of knowledge of medical students on LGBTQ+ health care, and their perceptions of curriculum improvements, in order to establish a basis for future curriculum change.

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英国医学课程中LGBTQ+保健教学的当代回顾

背景:不断变化的社会观念和在线教育的日益普及为医学课程的演变和变革创造了理想的环境。需要改进的一个领域是LGBTQ+的医疗保健教学。目前的文献表明，LGBTQ+个体的心理和身体健康状况较差的程度高于异性恋、顺性个体(6)。因此，医学课程更加包容LGBTQ+人群是关键，以确保未来的医生能够提供包容性的护理。本综述旨在对英国医学课程中LGBTQ+卫生保健教学的现有文献进行梳理，找出潜在的变革障碍，并探讨如何改善英国LGBTQ+卫生保健教学。方法:采用PRISMA框架进行文献检索。使用的数据库有PubMed、Ovid、Embase、AMED、Global Health和Scopus。搜索于2021年7月进行。结果:共审阅相关论文15篇。研究确定了三个主要主题，1)医学生(或医学院)认为当前LGBTQ+卫生保健教育不足，2)学生表示希望对LGBTQ+健康进行更深入的实践教育，3)缺乏LGBTQ+卫生保健教育对临床医生治疗LGBTQ+患者的信心和能力的潜在影响。讨论:英国医学课程缺乏LGBTQ+医疗保健，这可能会对患者产生负面影响。目前的教学首先是不一致的，这导致了LGBTQ+患者的差异和不可靠性。它还严重关注性健康，这可能导致有害的陈规定型观念。尽管改善LGBTQ+医疗保健教育存在障碍，但我们提出了克服这些障碍的实用建议。进一步的研究应更深入地探讨医学生对LGBTQ+医疗保健的知识水平，以及他们对课程改进的看法，为未来的课程改革奠定基础。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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The British Student Doctor Journal

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