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- Page navigation anchor for The difference in the motivation for becoming general practitionersThe difference in the motivation for becoming general practitioners
This study’s impact is significant, considering GP education worldwide.1 The gap among different ethnicity regarding academic and practical performance has narrowed. Based on this research, ethnicity is not related to clinical performances based on objective clinical assessment, which can contribute to better care in general practice. This result may show the equality of academic and practical assessment in general practice medical education, driving more medical students to become general practitioners.
One of the vital factors contributing to this study’s results is the motivation to become general practitioners among medical students. Even now, academic assessments may be biased based on ethnicity and gender.2,3 They may overcome the difficulties of the biases by making efforts with high motivation. Their motivation and perception regarding becoming general practitioners should be assessed compared with the majority of medical students. The involvement of variables regarding motivation in research can clarify the reality of their performance.
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1. Siriwardena AN, Botan V, Williams N, et al. Performance of ethnic minority versus White doctors in the MRCGP assessment 2016-2021: a cross-sectional study. Br J Gen Pract 2023;73(729):e284-e293. DOI: 10.3399/BJGP.2022.0474.
2. Polanco-Santana JC, Storino A, Souza-Mota L, Gangadharan SP, Kent TS. Ethnic/Rac...Competing Interests: None declared. - Page navigation anchor for Ethnicity did not predict performance in GP licensing of doctors entering GP trainingEthnicity did not predict performance in GP licensing of doctors entering GP trainingWe thank Drs Bhatti and Nayar for responding to our study. They present no evidence to contradict our findings and, despite misunderstanding our analysis and interpretation, reach similar conclusions.Our study challenges their assertion, that ethnic minority trainees, in particular UK trained ethnic minority doctors in GP specialty training, fail MRCGP due to their ethnicity. We showed that this was not the case in our cohort.1 Their focus on racial discrimination in the workplace and during training implies the non-sequitur, that differential attainment must be de due to unfair discrimination by examiners and examinations, or educators in the case of workplace-based assessment. In doing so they denigrate the many ethnic minority doctors in speciality training who pass MRCGP, supported by educators.Increasing numbers of ethnic minority and overseas qualified doctors complete the MSRA, a computer marked assessment of clinical knowledge and judgement, and enter specialty training for general practice. They claim that we ‘do not seem to have been taken into account…differential attainment in the MRSA exam’, but this is exactly what we have done.Show More
The GMC report, ‘Tackling disadvantage in medical education’, which shows differential attainment in trainees in all specialties, by separately analysing characteristics such as ethnicity, gender and disability,2...Competing Interests: Aloysius Niroshan Siriwardena, Kim Emerson, Fiona Kameen, Lindsey Pope and Adrian Freeman received funding from the Royal College of General Practitioners for their roles in the MRCGP, and Nicki Williams received funding in her role at the General Practice National Recruitment Office. No other relationships or activities have influenced the submitted work. - Page navigation anchor for Performance of ethnic minority versus White doctors in the MRCGP assessment 2016–2021: a cross-sectional studyPerformance of ethnic minority versus White doctors in the MRCGP assessment 2016–2021: a cross-sectional study
In reviewing the performance of ethnic minority versus White doctors in MRCGP assessment from 2016-21, Siriwardena and colleagues conclude that ethnic background did not reduce the chance of passing GP licensing exams once sex, place of primary medical qualification (PMQ), declared disability and MSRA scores were accounted for.
This conclusion is not in keeping with the recent GMC report1 which found that UK graduates of black/black British heritage have lower pass rates in specialty exams (62%) than UK white (79%), Asian (68%) and mixed heritage trainees (74%). Having a non-white ethnic background may in itself be an over-simplification and further granularity of the data is required to reach any meaningful conclusions.
Furthermore there is differential attainment in the MRSA exam, “upstream” so to speak, which mirrors that seen in the GMC report. In the MRSA proportionally more Black and Muslim candidates do less well, findings similar to those in the MRCGP, whether UK non-UK graduates. The disparities in attainment due to ethnicity seen in the MRSA do not seem to have been taken into account in the paper.
The paper followed up GP trainees recruited in 2016 of which 23.2% were non-UK graduates. In 2022 this figure was 57% and the profile of our trainees has changed significantly over that time with increased numbers from a non-white background. In addition, Health Education England has introduced a number of init...
Show MoreCompeting Interests: None declared.