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Labour upon labour: A best evidence medical education (BEME) meta-ethnography of underrepresented students' experiences of medical school.

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Title: Labour upon labour: A best evidence medical education (BEME) meta-ethnography of underrepresented students' experiences of medical school.
Authors: Cameron, Paula1 (AUTHOR) paula.cameron@dal.ca, Fletcher, Jordin2 (AUTHOR), Brown, Megan3 (AUTHOR), Parker, Robin4 (AUTHOR), Luong, Victoria1 (AUTHOR), Kits, Olga5 (AUTHOR), Burm, Sarah1 (AUTHOR), Ajjawi, Rola6 (AUTHOR), MacLeod, Anna1 (AUTHOR)
Source: Medical Teacher. Feb2026, Vol. 48 Issue 2, p202-217. 16p.
Subject Terms: *Minority students, *Medical education, *Psychological adaptation, *Experience, *Students, *Medical schools, *Psychology of medical students, Institutional racism, Social justice, Research funding, Stereotypes, Ethnology research, Presumptions (Law), Systematic reviews, MEDLINE, Racism, Financial stress, Psychological stress, Microaggressions
Abstract: Background: To date, advancing social justice in medical education has largely focused on recruitment and numerical representation of equity deserving groups. However, students recruited to diversify the profession often find themselves in an exclusionary environment that overlooks their multiple identities. The aim of this study was to illuminate underrepresented students' experiences of medical school to inform supports for these deserving students. Methods: This meta-ethnography followed the seven steps developed by Noblit and Hare. Databases were systematically searched for peer-reviewed qualitative articles published between 2000 and late 2024 that described underrepresented students' experiences of medical school. Participants' and authors' concepts were collected and synthesized to develop new overarching concepts. Results: Forty-nine qualitative studies met the inclusion criteria. Four overarching concepts were developed: working ten times harder; embodying the 'ideal' doctor; invisibility and hypervisibility; and survival strategies. Conclusions: This meta-ethnography deepens our understanding of historically excluded students' experiences of medical school. The default ideal of the (cis, white, wealthy, male, non-disabled) physician created an exclusionary environment that underrepresented students were forced to manage through additional cognitive, emotional, and embodied effort. This synthesis provides valuable strategies and considerations for medical educators and administrators committed to social justice initiatives grounded in underrepresented student voices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
Copyright of Medical Teacher is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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  Data: Labour upon labour: A best evidence medical education (BEME) meta-ethnography of underrepresented students' experiences of medical school.
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  Data: <searchLink fieldCode="JN" term="%22Medical+Teacher%22">Medical Teacher</searchLink>. Feb2026, Vol. 48 Issue 2, p202-217. 16p.
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  Data: *<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Minority+students%22">Minority students</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Medical+education%22">Medical education</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Psychological+adaptation%22">Psychological adaptation</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Experience%22">Experience</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Students%22">Students</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Medical+schools%22">Medical schools</searchLink><br />*<searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Psychology+of+medical+students%22">Psychology of medical students</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Institutional+racism%22">Institutional racism</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Social+justice%22">Social justice</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Research+funding%22">Research funding</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Stereotypes%22">Stereotypes</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Ethnology+research%22">Ethnology research</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Presumptions+%28Law%29%22">Presumptions (Law)</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Systematic+reviews%22">Systematic reviews</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22MEDLINE%22">MEDLINE</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Racism%22">Racism</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Financial+stress%22">Financial stress</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Psychological+stress%22">Psychological stress</searchLink><br /><searchLink fieldCode="DE" term="%22Microaggressions%22">Microaggressions</searchLink>
– Name: Abstract
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  Data: Background: To date, advancing social justice in medical education has largely focused on recruitment and numerical representation of equity deserving groups. However, students recruited to diversify the profession often find themselves in an exclusionary environment that overlooks their multiple identities. The aim of this study was to illuminate underrepresented students' experiences of medical school to inform supports for these deserving students. Methods: This meta-ethnography followed the seven steps developed by Noblit and Hare. Databases were systematically searched for peer-reviewed qualitative articles published between 2000 and late 2024 that described underrepresented students' experiences of medical school. Participants' and authors' concepts were collected and synthesized to develop new overarching concepts. Results: Forty-nine qualitative studies met the inclusion criteria. Four overarching concepts were developed: working ten times harder; embodying the 'ideal' doctor; invisibility and hypervisibility; and survival strategies. Conclusions: This meta-ethnography deepens our understanding of historically excluded students' experiences of medical school. The default ideal of the (cis, white, wealthy, male, non-disabled) physician created an exclusionary environment that underrepresented students were forced to manage through additional cognitive, emotional, and embodied effort. This synthesis provides valuable strategies and considerations for medical educators and administrators committed to social justice initiatives grounded in underrepresented student voices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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  Data: <i>Copyright of Medical Teacher is the property of Taylor & Francis Ltd and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract.</i> (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)
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RecordInfo BibRecord:
  BibEntity:
    Identifiers:
      – Type: doi
        Value: 10.1080/0142159X.2025.2540413
    Languages:
      – Code: eng
        Text: English
    PhysicalDescription:
      Pagination:
        PageCount: 16
        StartPage: 202
    Subjects:
      – SubjectFull: Minority students
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Medical education
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Psychological adaptation
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Experience
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Students
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Medical schools
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Psychology of medical students
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Institutional racism
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Social justice
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Research funding
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Stereotypes
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Ethnology research
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Presumptions (Law)
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      – SubjectFull: Systematic reviews
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: MEDLINE
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      – SubjectFull: Racism
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Financial stress
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Psychological stress
        Type: general
      – SubjectFull: Microaggressions
        Type: general
    Titles:
      – TitleFull: Labour upon labour: A best evidence medical education (BEME) meta-ethnography of underrepresented students' experiences of medical school.
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              M: 02
              Text: Feb2026
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              Y: 2026
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