Patient Preferences Regarding Undergraduate Medical Student Participation in Clinical Care: A Multicenter Cross-Sectional Study in Syria.

Abstract

Purpose: Direct patient involvement is essential to undergraduate clinical education, yet evidence on patient willingness, consent experiences, and context-specific preferences in Syria is limited. This study characterized patient preferences regarding undergraduate medical student participation in clinical care and examined factors associated with willingness to allow participation.

Patients and methods: A multicenter cross-sectional study was conducted from December 2025 to February 2026 among 746 adult inpatients and outpatients recruited consecutively within selected teaching, Ministry of Health public, and private hospitals across several Syrian governorates. A structured Arabic questionnaire assessed previous exposure, willingness, acceptable activities and procedures, consent, confidentiality, and attitudes toward student involvement. Hospital-sector comparisons used Pearson chi-square tests with Benjamini-Hochberg false-discovery-rate adjustment across 53 comparisons. Multivariable logistic regression examined age, sex, hospital type, educational level, and previous exposure.

Results: The median age was 41 years (IQR 25.75-54), and 64.2% were female. Observation and participation were accepted by 94.0% and 86.1%, respectively. A professional supervisor was endorsed as a condition for participation by 72.1%; supervised discussion was accepted by 93.3%, whereas rectal examination was accepted by 25.3%. Several hospital-sector differences remained significant after false-discovery-rate correction. In the adjusted model, older age (aOR 1.34 per 10-year increase, 95% CI 1.14-1.57) and previous exposure to a medical student (aOR 3.02, 95% CI 1.93-4.72) were associated with greater willingness. Educational level was associated overall (p=0.001), whereas sex and hospital type were not independently associated.

Conclusions: In this multicenter convenience sample, willingness to permit undergraduate medical student involvement was high but lower for sensitive, invasive, and cross-gender interactions. Clear consent, appropriate supervision, privacy safeguards, and attention to patient preferences may support patient-centered clinical teaching.