Vocational guidance and perception of vocation in family medicine residents

Abstract

Introduction: The Family Physician plays a key role within the health care system. To choose a medical specialty, one must possess self-awareness and a clear understanding of academic and professional opportunities. In Mexico, physicians who choose Family Medicine generally achieve the lowest admission scores in the selection process and often had previously applied to other specialties.

Objective: To examine the vocational orientation of Family Medicine residents in Mexicali during 2023 and their perception of satisfaction regarding their specialty choice.

Method: A qualitative study with a phenomenological design was conducted. In-depth interviews were carried out with 14 Family Medicine residents (aged 28-38 years), half of whom were local and half from other regions.

Results: The residents’ previous work experience ranged from 1 to 6 years, and they had made between one and three attempts to enter a specialty program. The other specialties to which they had applied included anesthesiology, pediatrics, gynecology, forensic medicine, occupational medicine, and surgery. Admission scores ranged from 46 to 63 points. Ten residents reported relying solely on their training scholarship as their main source of income, while four also received family support. Vocational orientation was found to depend on various intrinsic and extrinsic factors. Residents expressed personal satisfaction with their choice, although professionally they felt their expectations were not fully met.

Conclusions: The findings indicate that the choice of Family Medicine as a specialty among most residents is primarily associated with limited access to more competitive specialties. Internal and external motivational factors influenced all participants. While residents reported personal satisfaction with their choice, they also experienced professional dissatisfaction due to unmet expectations. These results suggest that structural aspects of medical training, such as the availability of residency positions, competition among specialties, and the social and professional recognition of Family Medicine, directly influence the final decision to pursue this specialty.