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Journal of Medical Education

Abstract

Purpose: International exchange programs are a popular topic of medical education research, but much of the existing literature has focused on the short-term impacts of exchanges between Western medical schools and their international counterparts. This study investigates the longer-term impacts on students of an exchange program between two Eastern medical schools. Method: The authors conducted interviews with 19 Taiwanese medical students who participated in the initial four cohorts of an exchange program with a Chinese medical school from 2010-2013. Using a grounded theory approach, qualitative framework analysis was applied to identify and categorize recurring themes in the interview transcripts. Results: Six themes emerged from the interviews: medical knowledge, personal development, career development, interpersonal relationships, systems-based practice and cultural sensitivity. Students reported improved awareness of the possibility for changes in their own healthcare system and also expressed the program's impact on their longer-term career development. Most students, however, reported no long-term retention of clinical knowledge or skills. Conclusion: Future exchange program-planning should take into account the findings of this study. For example, student's retention of clinical knowledge and skills could be improved through the introduction of topics not well-covered in the existing curriculum. Given the career development and systems-based practice were considered more significant long-term impacts of the program by students, future program-planning could consider how to enhance support to these non-curricular areas. In the future, additional cohorts could be studied so as to identify continued or new impacts of the exchange program.

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79

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87

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