The Business of Healing: Medical Students’ Opinions on the Need for Formal Business Training in the Medical School Curriculum

Abstract

Mounting evidence suggests physicians struggle with the increasing corporatization of healthcare. Currently, most medical programs offer only an MBA program for students interested in business of medicine principles, resulting in more debt or independent information search. A brief survey of a sampling of U.S. first-through fourth-year medical students (MD/DO) revealed that 90% indicated having either “no,” “minimal,” or “basic” perceived knowledge in the field of the business of medicine; 21.5% of students indicated they were “somewhat likely” or “very likely” to pursue an MBA. Furthermore, 58.2% of respondents indicated they were “very likely” or “somewhat likely” to take a business and medicine course during medical school if offered. Despite the limitations of the study, the results indicate that medical students would be interested in a dedicated business and medicine course and believe it necessary to learn the basic principles of business.