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International Medical Students’ Career Choice, Attitudes Toward Psychiatry, and Emigration to the United States

Examples From India and Zimbabwe

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Abstract

The selection residents who are international medical graduates can be facilitated by knowledge of the context of their training and experience in psychiatry; the career opportunities in the country from which they come; and their attitudes toward psychiatry, medicine, and the United States. This study examines some of these variables as well as the emigration plans of 209 Indian and 46 Zimbabwe medical students in their next to last year of medical school. Both groups tended to hold positive attitudes toward psychiatry and had good experiences with the field. Fifty-six percent of the Indian students indicated that they had at least thought about emigrating to the United States for postgraduate training, and 22% had definite plans. Only 25% of the Zimbabwe students had thought about U.S. emigration, and a mere 2% had plans. Indian, as well as other IMGs, will continue to be a presence in U.S. residency programs, and those who have a preresidency stay in the United States may come to know and appreciate psychiatry more as they become more familiar with the field and with American culture.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Psychiatry, Brookdale University Hospital and Medical Center, 1 Brookdale Plaza, Brooklyn, NY, 11212-3198, USA

    Nyapati R. Rao M.D. (Director of Psychiatry for Education and General Psychiatry Residency Training)

  2. New York City, USA

    Arthur E. Meinzer M.D. (private practice)

  3. New York University Medical Center, USA

    Myrl Manley M.D. (Director of Medical Student Education in Psychiatry)

  4. Department of Psychiatry, University of Zimbabwe School of Medicine, USA

    Iris Chagwedera M.D. (Chairman of the Department of Psychiatry)

Authors
  1. Nyapati R. Rao M.D.
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  2. Arthur E. Meinzer M.D.
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  3. Myrl Manley M.D.
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  4. Iris Chagwedera M.D.
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Rao, N.R., Meinzer, A.E., Manley, M. et al. International Medical Students’ Career Choice, Attitudes Toward Psychiatry, and Emigration to the United States. Acad Psychiatry 22, 117–126 (1998). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03341913

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF03341913

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