Evaluation of an Innovative Medical Student Course Integrating Medicine and Public Health.

Introduction: Educating medical students about the importance of integrating public health into their careers is challenging.

Methods: Medical student demographics, weekly written reflections, and course evaluations for a storytelling-based, public health-oriented elective were reviewed.

Results: Compared to students who did not enroll in the course, enrolled students were more likely to be female (71% vs 48%, P = 0.001). Student reflections revealed 2 major themes: (1) public health can be integrated into any specialty career; (2) career paths are often nonlinear. Students were highly satisfied with the course (mean 6.5, scale 1-7).

Discussion: Courses aiming to inspire medical students to integrate public health into their career should consider a similar storytelling approach.