Medical students' reflection on the family planning services at primary health clinics in Malaysia

CONTEXT: Family planning is crucial for everyone within the reproductive age to promote the health and welfare of every member of the family. For the medical students, it is essential to have core knowledge, understanding of family planning concept, and competency in communication skills with the patients. The final-year medical students are posted in Maternal and Child Health Clinics for 3 weeks to gain the knowledge and practical experiences on the primary healthcare in the community.

AIMS: The aim of this study was to explore the experiences of final-year medical students on family planning services offered at community clinics in Malaysia.

SETTINGS AND DESIGN: This was qualitative study.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS: This qualitative study used the data of the students' reflection written in the case reports on family planning. Coding, identification of subthemes, and themes were done by two researchers independently using RQDA software.

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: Thematic analysis.

RESULTS: Final-year medical students who had exposure to the clinical services at primary care clinic, regarding Malay word (Klinik Kesihatan) gained the learning opportunities during family planning session such as learning by observation, clerking, and counseling the patients, understanding the barriers to utilizing services and learning for their self-improvement. These learning opportunities lead to developing the positive attitudes on their learning experiences and the positive attitudes toward the concept and services of family planning.

CONCLUSIONS: To have the better understanding of family planning services and provide the better care to the community in the future, the clinical exposure at the primary care clinics should be promoted for medical students in Malaysia.