Prevent and report: a qualitative inquiry of student and faculty recommendations for preventing and reporting learner mistreatment.

Abstract

Many medical schools in the United States (US) have employed policies and programming to prevent mistreatment and encourage students to report mistreatment events. Yet, there is little evidence showing a large-scale decrease in mistreatment behaviors overall, and, in many cases, mistreatment events go unreported. This study examines views from medical students and faculty for preventing mistreatment during medical training, as well as strategies for encouraging learners to report mistreatment events when they occur. We conducted in-depth interviews and focus groups with students and faculty (n = 25) and compared and contrasted perspectives. To prevent mistreatment, both students and faculty recommended institutional-level guidance and behavioral expectations during training, while faculty suggested educational programming focused on clarifying mistreatment definitions and cultivating awareness. To encourage reporting of mistreatment events, students and faculty emphasized: access to an array of reporting mechanisms, institutional processes for maintaining anonymity or confidentiality, and follow-up procedures to address reported mistreatment. Our results suggest that students' and faculty's role in medical education may shape their perceptions of strategies to prevent mistreatment. These results can inform the development and customization of interventions for preventing mistreatment and encouraging mistreatment reporting.