Building intercultural competency: student perceptions of diversity education within an undergraduate medical curriculum

Abstract Background Providing interculturally competent care is essential for clinicians. Intercultural competency (ICC) focuses on having the ability to navigate and adapt care to each individual and being aware of one's own assumptions rather than just having the knowledge of specific cultures [1–4]. ICC encourages reflection and constant dynamic learning to collaborate and communicate with patients. The General Medical Council (GMC) states that medical schools ‘should provide students with an understanding of how to provide effective treatment to a diverse, twenty-first century population [5]. Currently at Imperial College School of Medicine (ICSM), teaching focused on ICC is delivered from the first year using various teaching strategies such as tutorials and guided online learning sessions. Our aim is to understand early undergraduate students’ perceptions of their learning of interculturally competent care. Methods This qualitative study utilised semi-structured focus group discussions with Year 1 and 2 medical students from ICSM. A total of 13 students took part. The questions focused on students' perceptions of the content of teaching, preferred teaching methods, and students' motivation for developing ICC. The transcribed anonymised focus group discussions then underwent thematic analysis. Results Analysis revealed two key themes in teaching ICC: the teaching content and making teaching authentic. Students recognised that they have learned about the needs of patients from diverse backgrounds in topics such as dermatology and LGBTQ + healthcare. However, if epidemiological data is used, it must be contextualised to avoid generalisation. The learning methods preferred include small group teaching and hearing patient voices throughout teaching. Clinical placements were noted to be the setting in which students learned most about the impact of interculturally competent care. Students would also appreciate teaching on understanding unconscious biases and advocating for patients in their position. The motivation for developing ICC stems from its relevance to clinical practice, through examples and the potential for assessment on the subject. Conclusion Overall, students felt that ICC teaching should be embedded throughout the core curriculum and that the clinical relevance should be highlighted. Additionally, current learning and assessment material should be reviewed, and ICC teaching should be facilitated by specifically trained tutors. This study reinforces the importance of introducing ICC teaching early in medical training and provides suggestions for improvement to further refine ICC-focused learning resources for undergraduate students.