What is an appropriate social scenario for staff and students at an Australian Rural Clinical School? A survey of 4th and 5th year medical student’s resident in rural Tasmania

Introduction: The degree of comfort that medical students have in different social settings with staff and faculty has not been documented. Methods: We undertook in 2012 a survey of 53 fourth and fifth year medical students at the University of Tasmanian Rural Clinical School to determine the incidence of previous inappropriate social invitations/interactions and perceptions of comfort to 5 different hypothetical social scenarios of different appropriateness. Results: Two students had received what they considered to be an inappropriate invitation. Most students were comfortable with communal public social situations. However, in an overt “date” scenario 8 students were either completely at ease with or comfortable. Eighteen students although uncomfortable with this scenario would still attend and only 14 students would decline the invitation. Conclusion: There needs to be increased awareness that certain social interactions between health professionals when there is significant difference in hierarchy may not always be appropriate