TY  - JOUR
AU  - Babiker, Samar
AU  - Ogunmwonyi, Innocent
AU  - Georgi, Maria W
AU  - Tan, Lawrence
AU  - Haque, Sharmi
AU  - Mullins, William
AU  - Singh, Prisca
AU  - Ang, Nadya
AU  - Fu, Howell
AU  - Patel, Krunal
AU  - Khera, Jevan
AU  - Fricker, Monty
AU  - Fleming, Simon
AU  - Giwa-Brown, Lolade
AU  - A Brennan, Peter
AU  - Irune, Ekpemi
AU  - Vig, Stella
AU  - Nathan, Arjun
PY  - 2023
DA  - 2023/6/16
TI  - Variation in Experiences and Attainment in Surgery Between Ethnicities of UK Medical Students and Doctors (ATTAIN): Protocol for a Cross-Sectional Study
JO  - JMIR Res Protoc
SP  - e40545
VL  - 12
KW  - diversity in surgery
KW  - Black and Minority Ethnic
KW  - BME in surgery
KW  - differential attainment
KW  - diversity
KW  - surgery
KW  - health care system
KW  - surgical training
KW  - disparity
KW  - ethnic disparity
KW  - ethnicity
KW  - medical student
KW  - doctor
KW  - training experience
KW  - surgical placements
KW  - physician
KW  - health care provider
KW  - experience
KW  - perception
KW  - cross-sectional
KW  - doctor in training
KW  - resident
KW  - fellow
KW  - fellowship
KW  - questionnaire
KW  - survey
KW  - Everyday Discrimination Scale
KW  - Maslach Burnout Inventory
KW  - Higher Education
KW  - ethnicities
AB  - Background: The unequal distribution of academic and professional outcomes between different minority groups is a pervasive issue in many fields, including surgery. The implications of differential attainment remain significant, not only for the individuals affected but also for the wider health care system. An inclusive health care system is crucial in meeting the needs of an increasingly diverse patient population, thereby leading to better outcomes. One barrier to diversifying the workforce is the differential attainment in educational outcomes between Black and Minority Ethnic (BME) and White medical students and doctors in the United Kingdom.BME trainees are known to have lower performance rates in medical examinations, including undergraduate and postgraduate exams, Annual Review of Competence Progression, as well as training and consultant job applications. Studies have shown that BME candidates have a higher likelihood of failing both parts of the Membership of the Royal Colleges of Surgeons exams and are 10% less likely to be considered suitable for core surgical training.Several contributing factors have been identified; however, there has been limited evidence investigating surgical training experiences and their relationship to differential attainment. To understand the nature of differential attainment in surgery and to develop effective strategies to address it, it is essential to examine the underlying causes and contributing factors.The Variation in Experiences and Attainment in Surgery Between Ethnicities of UK Medical Students and Doctors (ATTAIN) study aims to describe and compare the factors and outcomes of attainment between different ethnicities of doctors and medical students. Objective: The primary aim will be to compare the effect of experiences and perceptions of surgical education of students and doctors of different ethnicities. Methods: This protocol describes a nationwide cross-sectional study of medical students and nonconsultant grade doctors in the United Kingdom. Participants will complete a web-based questionnaire collecting data on experiences and perceptions of surgical placements as well as self-reported academic attainment data. A comprehensive data collection strategy will be used to collect a representative sample of the population. A set of surrogate markers relevant to surgical training will be used to establish a primary outcome to determine variations in attainment. Regression analyses will be used to identify potential causes for the variation in attainment. Results: Data collected between February 2022 and September 2022 yielded 1603 respondents. Data analysis is yet to be competed. The protocol was approved by the University College London Research Ethics Committee on September 16, 2021 (ethics approval reference 19071/004). The findings will be disseminated through peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations. Conclusions: Drawing upon the conclusions of this study, we aim to make recommendations on educational policy reforms. Additionally, the creation of a large, comprehensive data set can be used for further research. International Registered Report Identifier (IRRID): DERR1-10.2196/40545 
SN  - 1929-0748
UR  - https://www.researchprotocols.org/2023/1/e40545
UR  - https://doi.org/10.2196/40545
UR  - http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/37327055
DO  - 10.2196/40545
ID  - info:doi/10.2196/40545
ER  -