A first-year primary care experience for first-year medical students: Is it a positive experience?

A one-week primary care externship in which students observe a community-based physician in practice was instituted in 1991 as part of the first-year curriculum for medical students at the University of Kentucky. This study examined changes in students' understanding of primary care and what being a physician involves through self-report by the students. The study also evaluated the satisfaction of students and physicians with the externship. Students' completed questionnaires before and after the experience, and preceptors completed a questionnaire after the experience. Quantitative and qualitative data were analyzed. Students' understanding of primary care and what being a physician involved increased significantly as a result of the externship. Both students and physicians rated the experience favorably.