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Crying: Experiences and Attitudes of Third-Year Medical Students and Interns 

Authors: Anthony D. Sunga; Molly E. Collinsa; Alexander K. Smithb; Aimee M. Sandersc; Mariah A. Quinnd; Susan D. Blocke; Robert M. Arnoldc
Affiliations:   a Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
b Division of General Internal Medicine and Primary Care, Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
c Division of General Internal Medicine, University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
d Division of General Internal Medicine, Brigham and Women's Hospital, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
e Division of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care, Dana Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, Massachusetts, USA
DOI: 10.1080/10401330903014111
Publication Frequency: 4 issues per year
Published in: journal Teaching and Learning in Medicine, Volume 21, Issue 3 July 2009 , pages 180 - 187
Formats available: HTML (English) : PDF (English)
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Abstract

Background: The medical socialization process is emotionally stressful for trainees; anecdotally, crying is a frequent response. Purposes: To understand the experiences and attitudes related to crying among 3rd-year medical students and interns. Methods: Web-based survey distributed to all 3rd-year medical students and interns at two medical schools and affiliated internal medicine residency programs. Results: Participation rates were 208/307 (68%) students and 93/126 (74%) interns. Sixty-nine percent of students and 74% of interns self-reported crying for reasons related to medicine. For both, the most common cause was “burnout.” Although there were no significant differences in crying between students and interns (p =.38), twice as many women cried as men (93% vs. 44%, p <.001). Seventy-three percent of students and 68% of interns thought discussion of physicians' crying was inadequate. Conclusions: Crying is common among medical students and interns, especially women. Many consider it unprofessional to cry in front of patients and colleagues. Trainees want more discussions of crying.
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