A Qualitative Study Using Thematic Analysis to Explore Medical Education post-Dobbs

Abstract

In June of 2022, the United States Supreme Court issued a decision in the case of Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, challenging the validity of the historical decision of Roe v. Wade, the landmark case from 1973 establishing a constitutional right to abortion and establishing a trimester-based framework regulating abortion. The Dobbs decision overturned the federal standards for abortion access, allowing states to set their own policies and create abortion laws without restriction. In response to this decision, many states have banned or severely restricted access to abortion. This study examined what that meant for medical education. Through interviews with fourth-year medical students and first-year residents, the study found that abortion restrictions reduced curriculum content, limited access to clinical sites, and created gaps in training that participants themselves recognized and worried about. The effects extended beyond procedure-specific skills, touching career decisions, specialty choices, and how participants thought about the doctors they were becoming.