ArticleMedical education2011
Ethical issues encountered by medical students during international health electives.
Article in Medical education, 2011. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 47 papers, 5 of them syntheses that pooled it.
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Who cites it
47 citing papers in PubMed, 5 syntheses or guidelines pooled it.
- Ethical Guidance for Medical Schools and Medical Students in High-Income Countries for Clinical Electives in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: A Systematic Review.Perspectives on medical education · 2026Pooled it
- Are you ready? A systematic review of pre-departure resources for global health electives.BMC medical education · 2019Pooled it
- The ethical experiences of trainees on short-term international trips: a systematic qualitative synthesis.BMC medical education · 2018Pooled it
- Impact of Global Health Electives on US Medical Residents: A Systematic Review.Annals of global health · 2018Pooled it
- The Emergence of Undergraduate Majors in Global Health: Systematic Review of Programs and Recommendations for Future Directions.The American journal of tropical medicine and hygiene · 2017Pooled it
- Improving the Ethical Permissibility of Medical Electives in Lower-Resource Settings.Developing world bioethics · 2026Article
- Clinical Ethics and Law Teaching: An Important Challenge for International Medical Education Partnerships.Medical science educator · 2025Article
- Medical students' experience and learning outcomes of overseas community involvement project: a qualitative study.BMC medical education · 2024Article
- Teaching Scottish medical students about global health in partnership with LMIC institutions. Does it change their views on volunteering in LMIC settings?BMC medical education · 2024Article
- A scoping review of the ethical impacts of international medical electives on local students and patient care.BMC medical ethics · 2024Article
- Medical Electives in Sub-Saharan Africa: A 15-Year Student/NGO-Driven Initiative.Journal of community health · 2022Article
- Medical students from German-speaking countries on abroad electives in Africa: destinations, motivations, trends and ethical dilemmas.Human resources for health · 2022Article
- Rethinking Global Health Education in Plastic Surgery Residency.Plastic and reconstructive surgery. Global open · 2021Article
- Experience of Indonesian medical students of ethical issues during their clinical clerkship in a rural setting.Journal of medical ethics and history of medicine · 2021Article
- Value and feasibility of South-South Medical Elective Exchanges in Africa.BMC medical education · 2020Article
- The international medical elective in Nepal: perspectives from local patients, host physicians and visiting students.International journal of medical education · 2019Article
- Extent, nature and consequences of performing outside scope of training in global health.Globalization and health · 2019Article
- Internationalization of Medical Education-Building a Program to Prepare Future Leaders in Healthcare.Medical science educator · 2019Article
- Establishing Competencies for a Global Health Workforce: Recommendations from the Association of Pacific Rim Universities.Annals of global health · 2019Article
- It's time to address sexual violence in academic global health.BMJ global health · 2019Article
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6 authors.
Funding
Abstract
contextMedical students increasingly wish to participate in international health electives (IHEs). The authors undertook to understand from the students' perspective the ethical challenges encountered on IHEs in low-resource settings and how students respond to these issues.
methodsSemi-structured interviews were conducted with 12 medical students upon their return from an IHE. A purposive sampling strategy was used. Inductive data analysis using a constant comparative technique generated initial codes which were later organised into higher-order themes.
resultsFive themes relating to ethical issues were identified: (i) uncertainty about how best to help; (ii) perceptions of Western medical students as different; (iii) moving beyond one's scope of practice; (iv) navigating different cultures of medicine, and (v) unilateral capacity building.
conclusionsInternational health electives are associated with a range of ethical issues for students. Students would benefit from formal pre-departure training, which should include an evaluation of their expectations of and motivations for participating in an IHE, careful selection of the IHE from amongst the opportunities available, learning about the local context of the IHE prior to departure, and the exploration and discussion of ethical and professionalism issues. Other factors that would benefit students include having an invested onsite colleague or supervisor, maintaining an ongoing connection with the home institution, and formal debriefing on conclusion of the IHE.
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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.