Why do you want to become a Doctor: Motives in Minds of First Year MBBS Students at a Public Medical College

Authors

  • Muhammad Naeem Afzal
  • Abdul Sattar
  • Masood Ahmad
  • Manzoor Ahmad
  • Muhammad Shahzad Anwar
  • Zafar Ali Choudry

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.52206/jsmc.2019.9.1.%25p

Keywords:

MBBS students, motives, altruism

Abstract

Background: Medical profession is highly competitive career choice in Pakistan, but motives behind in minds of students
(altruistic, financial or other) have yet not been explored in Pakistan, especially in developing trends of financial based choices in society.
Objective: To look into the possible motives to become a doctor, in students who joined Khawaja Muhammad Safdar Medical
College, Sialkot as first year medical students in 2018
Material & Methods: This cross-sectional survey was conducted in Khawaja Muhammad Safdar Medical College, Sialkot) in
December 2017. The questionnaire aimed to ask their demographic details, their inspiration and motives to join medical education. The questionnaire was administered to 100 students entering the first year of medical college. Students were asked to mark four options (among 12 options given) they think more important motives to come in this profession. They were also given option to write any other motive important for them but not listed. Data were entered in SPSS version 20.0 and were presented as descriptive statistics.
Results: Total of 84, out of 100 students responded to the questionnaire with 70% females. Top four motives were to serve
humanity (95%), gain respect in society (71%), to fulfil parents' wishes (68%), to be beneficial to family (37%). There were 19 (23%) students who thought they were pushed by their parents to become doctor.
Conclusion: Altruism based and social motives are still the most powerful motives in minds of students. Parental wishes and
parental pressures to become doctor needs further exploration.

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Published

12-06-2019

How to Cite

1.
Afzal MN, Sattar A, Ahmad M, Ahmad M, Anwar MS, Choudry ZA. Why do you want to become a Doctor: Motives in Minds of First Year MBBS Students at a Public Medical College. J Saidu Med Coll [Internet]. 2019 Jun. 12 [cited 2026 Nov. 10];9(1). Available from: http://jsmc.pk/index.php/jsmc/article/view/177

Issue

Vol. 9 No. 1 (2019): Journal of Saidu Medical College

Section

Original Article

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