Promoting Preventive Medicine: Increasing Specialty Awareness, Knowledge, and Interest through Peer-to-Peer Education and Engagement

Medical students often lack sufficient awareness and understanding of preventive medicine. Students acknowledge the importance of training in prevention and public health, but there is low awareness of the specialty, with few medical students considering it as a career path. This study aimed to assess the lack of awareness and understanding of the specialty of public health and general preventive medicine among medical students as well as increase the number of students considering a career in the specialty. Participants completed a presurvey that assessed their current awareness, knowledge, and interest of the public health and general preventive medicine specialty. The intervention consisted of distributing the American College Prevention Medicine toolkit, video, and flyers, and a question and answer. A postintervention survey assessed changes and elicited the most appealing learning method. The study population included all medical students at the University of Maryland. The data were collected and analyzed in 2024. Pre and postintervention survey responses were compared using chi-square tests. All 3 outcomes (awareness, knowledge, and interest) improved significantly from preintervention (n=430) to postintervention (n=390) survey. Awareness increased from 48% to 100% (p<0.0001), knowledge increased from 18% to 96% (p<0.0001), and interest increased from 10% to 67% (p<0.0001). Flyers were identified as the most appealing method of information delivery (71% of respondents), followed by the American College Prevention Medicine toolkit (25%) and American College Prevention Medicine video (4%). There is an opportunity in medical schools to provide targeted education to increase medical students' awareness, understanding, and interest in the specialty. Public health and general preventive medicine remains under-recognized and underpromoted in medical schools. Educational outreach in medical schools may increase the number of future doctors pursuing careers in public health and general preventive medicine.