ArticleBMC medical education2026
Career choice and interdisciplinary education in forensic pathology: a cross-sectional study.
Article in BMC medical education, 2026. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Not yet cited in PubMed.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
0 citing papers in PubMed.
No citing paper in PubMed yet.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundEarly engagement in medical education is critical to influencing career choice. Exacerbated by a rapidly accelerating specialization timeline, there is currently a national workforce shortage of forensic pathologists. This cross-sectional study explores the widespread challenges of recruiting and retaining trainees through a broad educational lens, addressing interdisciplinary factors associated with workforce pathways over time, academic affiliations, and underrecognized collaborative opportunities in medical examiner and coroner (ME/C) education programs. The purpose of this study is to perform a needs assessment of learners interested in forensic pathology and ME/C education programs in the United States.
methodsTwo different surveys were developed for this study and distributed to (1) forensic pathologists and individuals pursuing a career in forensic pathology, and (2) ME/C education programs. Measures included factors associated with interest in forensic pathology and characteristics of ME/C education programs in the United States. Associations were analyzed using Pearson’s chi-square and Kendall’s tau-b.
resultsThe sample included 313 participants and 163 ME/C education programs. Interest in forensic pathology emerged during residency (27%), medical school (26%), and high school (24%), with increases occurring earlier in the education timeline from non-traditional pre-medical majors, careers, and medical subspecialties. Impactful career choice factors included rotations during medical school/residency and the influence of professors/mentors. ME/C education programs predominately targeted medical students (92%) and residents (76%) by providing opportunities for autopsy observation. Although 48% of medical schools are affiliated with an ME/C office, only 5% of ME/C offices are facilitating these experiences. There is no association between the number of affiliation agreements held by ME/C education programs and forensic pathologist output. Interdisciplinary exposure during rotations is primarily limited to job shadowing with death investigators. Quantity of workload (65%), staffing (52%), and office space (52%) are the greatest barriers experienced by ME/C education programs.
conclusionsThis study underscores the critical need for interdisciplinary collaboration and sustainable, innovative educational approaches to strategically engage future forensic pathologists. Proposed strategies include (1) facilitating rotations to a diverse student and interprofessional population; (2) increasing community engagement; (3) strengthening clinical and academic affiliations; and (4) empowering ME/C education programs with resources and support. CLINICAL TRIAL NUMBER: Not applicable.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
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.