Classroom Instruction: Medical Students’ Attitudes Toward LGBTQI+ Patients

Abstract

ABSTRACT The Association of American Medical Colleges declared it essential that medical students receive instruction on the health needs of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, questioning, and intersex (LGBTQI+) individuals. The integration of LGBTQI+ health and instruction in medical curricula, however, is scant. A pre-post confidential survey study was completed by first-year medical students (N = 103; 85% response rate) in the context of classroom instruction. The California State University Northbridge instrument assessed students’ perspectives on LGBTQI+ Patient-Care, Comfort with LGBTQI+ Patient Interactions, Gender and Sexuality, Civil Rights, and LGBTQI+ Education. Post-instruction, students reported a significant increase in understanding of bisexuality (p = .02), being transgender (p = .006), and LGBTQI+ couples’ adoption rights (p = .003). The findings support the incorporation of LGBTQI+ instruction into medical curricula and suggest that educators may consider consulting pre-intervention data before teaching LGBTQI+ health content, which would allow material to be tailored toward learner-specific needs.