THERAPEUTIC ABORTION IN UNDERGRADUATE MEDICAL SCHOOL CURRICULA: A SYSTEMATIC REVIEW OF THE LITERATURE

Objectives Therapeutic abortion is a very common medical procedure. Ongoing access depends on the availability of future providers. Medical students should therefore receive education about this topic during their undergraduate medical training. We conducted a systematic review of the literature regarding abortion curricula at Canadian medical schools, and medical students’ knowledge and attitudes towards abortion. To our knowledge, this is the first formal review of this topic Methods An electronic search of Medline, Embase, Cochrane Library,Conference Proceedings Index, and Google Scholar was conducted. Included articles evaluated undergraduate medical education on abortion, or medical students’ knowledge or attitudes on abortion. Results Of 872 results, 37 were eligible for inclusion. Studies from Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Norway were included. Largely, medical students receive little training on abortion and have inadequate knowledge. Key findings include that Canadian medical schools on average provide less than one hour of education on abortion, and over one-third have no dedicated curriculum. Though most medical students support access to abortion, a minority plan to include abortion in their future practices. Some students hold potentially harmful misconceptions; for example, some believe that adolescents require parental consent to have an abortion. Both knowledge and interest in providing abortion increased after classroom or clinical exposure. Most studies were limited by being single-centre and survey-based. Conclusions Undergraduate medical schools provide limited education on therapeutic abortion. Given the extensive gaps, we recommend curriculum reforms, implementation of national standards, development of online learning resources, and increased clinical and mentorship opportunities for medical students. Therapeutic abortion is a very common medical procedure. Ongoing access depends on the availability of future providers. Medical students should therefore receive education about this topic during their undergraduate medical training. We conducted a systematic review of the literature regarding abortion curricula at Canadian medical schools, and medical students’ knowledge and attitudes towards abortion. To our knowledge, this is the first formal review of this topic An electronic search of Medline, Embase, Cochrane Library,Conference Proceedings Index, and Google Scholar was conducted. Included articles evaluated undergraduate medical education on abortion, or medical students’ knowledge or attitudes on abortion. Of 872 results, 37 were eligible for inclusion. Studies from Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Norway were included. Largely, medical students receive little training on abortion and have inadequate knowledge. Key findings include that Canadian medical schools on average provide less than one hour of education on abortion, and over one-third have no dedicated curriculum. Though most medical students support access to abortion, a minority plan to include abortion in their future practices. Some students hold potentially harmful misconceptions; for example, some believe that adolescents require parental consent to have an abortion. Both knowledge and interest in providing abortion increased after classroom or clinical exposure. Most studies were limited by being single-centre and survey-based. Undergraduate medical schools provide limited education on therapeutic abortion. Given the extensive gaps, we recommend curriculum reforms, implementation of national standards, development of online learning resources, and increased clinical and mentorship opportunities for medical students.