Why would I choose a career in family medicine?

I would like to extend a heartful thanks to the authors of the study. Having just graduated from medical school, I feel that this study adequately and accurately reflects the main issues that medical students contend with when considering family medicine as a possible career choice.

I especially appreciate the articulation of the 'prestige' factor when deciding on family medicine. While there is the pressure to 'apply for something better', I feel that the TYPE of students that make up medical classes these days is drastically different from those that populated the classrooms even just a few years ago. Because the process of gaining admission to medical school is that much more competitive, this tends to select out pupils that THRIVE on competition, prestige, and high esteem, things that are well entrenched in the CaRMs process for subspecialty residencies.

I would propose, hypothetically, that the selection process somehow identify features that would predispose a medical student to choose generalist specialties overall; some resilient element that persists despite over-represented exposure to subspecialty rotations during the clinical years. Admittedly, this would be a difficult task to undertake, but if we start with more family medicine-friendly students, in addition to all the other curriculum changes that need to occur (having family medicine rotations in urban centers as well as rural centers, etc.) then perhaps more will make it out the other end.