Bridging the Gap: Exploring Factors Influencing Medical Students' Interest in Cardiac Surgery in Africa

Abstract

Background

Cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) remain a leading cause of morbidity and mortality worldwide, with Sub-Saharan Africa (SSA) facing a severe shortage of cardiac surgeons (0.12 per million people) and limited access to cardiac surgical care. This study explores the career aspirations of African medical students and examines the factors influencing their interest in pursuing various career paths and cardiac surgery in particular.

Methods

A cross-sectional study was conducted among 807 medical students from various African medical schools. Data were collected using a validated online questionnaire available in English, French, and Arabic. Sociodemographic characteristics, career aspirations, specialty preferences, and factors influencing career choices were analyzed using descriptive and bivariate statistical methods.

Results

The mean age of participants was 22.79 ± 2.99 years, with a nearly equal gender distribution (51.2% male, 48.8% female). Surgery was the most preferred specialty (34.3%), cardiac surgery was chosen by 11.8% of participants, and 0.5% chose cardiothoracic surgery. The inclusion of cardiac surgery in the curriculum (p = 0.046) and exposure to cardiac patients (p = 0.034) positively influenced career interest. However, the presence of functional cardiac surgery units in teaching hospitals was negatively associated with pursuing the specialty (p = 0.032). Additionally, hospital-based exposure to cardiac surgery significantly reduced interest in cardiac surgery (p < 0.001) as specialty choice. A majority (71.4%) intended to pursue postgraduate studies abroad, citing limited local opportunities.

Conclusion

The level of interest in cardiac surgery among African medical students highlights the need for targeted interventions, including curriculum reforms, improved training environments, and structured mentorship programs to translate this interest into cardiac surgical workforce. Strengthening local postgraduate training capacity and addressing systemic barriers are crucial steps in building a sustainable cardiac surgery workforce in Africa, ultimately helping to reduce the burden of cardiovascular diseases across the continent.

Keywords

medical students - cardiac surgery - cardiothoracic surgery - Africa

Data Availability Statement

The datasets analyzed in this study are available from the authors upon reasonable request.

Contributors' Statement

S.F.: conceptualization, data curation, formal analysis, investigation, methodology, project administration, visualization, writing—original draft, writing—review and editing; V.O.F.-L.: project administration, data curation, investigation, methodology, writing—original draft, writing—review and editing; A.B.S.A.: conceptualization, data curation, investigation, writing—original draft; A.H.A.: conceptualization, data curation, investigation, writing—original draft; A.C.: data curation, investigation, writing—original draft; E.M.: data curation, investigation, writing—original draft; E.C.P.: data curation, investigation, writing—original draft; A.M.: data curation, investigation, writing—original draft; M.S.A.E.: data curation, investigation, writing—original draft; A.F.D.: data curation, investigation, writing—original draft; K.P.: data curation, investigation; S.A.L.: data curation, investigation, writing—original draft; M.v.d.H.: data curation, investigation, writing—original draft; C.P.: supervision, methodology, writing—review and editing.

Ethical Approval

Although ethical approval for this study was not obtained due to its multijurisdictional nature, the study followed the Helsinki principles. Informed consent was obtained from all participants. No personally identifying information was collected from study participants.

Publication History

Received: 04 June 2025

Accepted: 15 October 2025

Article published online:
31 October 2025

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