Fellaship: A Peer-Facilitated Social Support Group for Preclinical Medical Students

ABSTRACT

Background: Medical schools are recognizing the need for intervention to address burnout in medicine. One area of focus has been the need for a strong sense of community and peer support. 

Hypothesis:By the end of the Fellaship program, learners will be able to (1) report reduced burnout and improvement in social support among peers; (2) demonstrate improved academic performance and (3) recognize the value of peer-facilitated programming for an increased sense of community and inclusion.

Methods:‘Fellaship’, is a peer-facilitated social support group for preclinical medical students. Eleven meetings were hosted by students who prepared a meal representative of their family’s shared background and facilitated a group discussion; examples of chosen discussion topics were servant leadership, mental health, and time management. School funding was provided for each meal. Survey responses and USMLE Step 1 scores were reported by participants.

Results: Thirteen students attended the first meeting and 42 attended the last, with an average of 21.7 students per gathering. The average budget per meeting was $172.72. Survey results demonstrated that due to participation in Fellaship, students felt more connected to other students (82% strongly agree, 18% agree), felt a sense of community at school (88% strongly agree, 12% agree), able to reset after a difficult exam (94% strongly agree, 6% agree), and were energized to continue medical training (82% strongly agree, 18% agree) (n=17). Average USMLE Step 1 score of Fellaship participants was 246.8 (8.6) (n=13) compared to the class average of 234 (16) (n=132) (p<0.01).

Conclusions: Medical students who participated in Fellaship reported reduced feelings of burnout, improvement in social support, and better performance on the USMLE Step 1 exam by the end of the eighteen-month preclinical curriculum. Fellaship is a cost-effective and highly adaptable program, well-suited to adoption at other medical and graduate schools.