Stakeholder views on family medicine education program applied in public health internship education

The development of primary health care services is related with undergraduate medical education. In this study, we aimed to determine stakeholder opinions about the family medicine education program within the scope of 6th Grade Public Health Internship at Ege University Faculty of Medicine. This descriptive study was planned phenomenologically according to qualitative data and supported by quantitative data. It was executed between June 2018 and August 2019. Two focus group interviews were conducted with 10 interns and 10 in-depth interviews were conducted with 10 academicians and 8 family physicians providing maximum diversity. The qualitative data obtained from the interviews were examined by content analysis. The data supported by direct quotations are presented in the findings section. The framework was discussed in four main groups: Objectives, content of program, learning process, assessment. Prominent codes within the scope of the objectives theme are; clear and comprehensible objectives, suitability to needs, and achievement of objectives. In the theme of content of program; the scope of the lectures and suitability of content to the needs, stand out. In the theme of learning process; participation in the course, the relationships in the field and the contribution of the field organization, the accessibility and contribution of the consultant, the volume of the medical application file and the suitability to the needs and the factors that affect the process, stand out. In the theme of measurement and evaluation; verbal and written feedback, file evaluation, presentations and attendance codes came to the fore. Although there was an extensive consensus about the objectives, it is possible to identify the mentors as "open to make efforts for the renewal and development of the objectives" in terms of the suitability of the objectives to the needs and meeting the objectives. In terms of the scope of the program, the students have predominantly criticized the repetition of the content. The students' expectations are mostly oriented towards practical methods rather than theoretical loading. The stakeholders are in a consensus in terms of the duration of the theoretical lessons. The follow-up of participation to theoretical lessons continues without problems, however all stakeholders express problems in participation to field training. It is important that the adequacy criteria are known and applied equally and clearly by all stakeholders. Mentors and family physicians emphasize that their work load is an important barrier in their participation to the training, while the medical specialty entrance exam has a similar impact on students.