Impact of Abortion-Related Values on Future Clinical Decision Making Among Students at a U.S. College of Osteopathic Medicine: A Cross-Sectional Survey Study (Preprint)
Year: 2026
Type: preprint
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: BACKGROUND State abortion laws have been in flux since the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision. Therefore, it is important to anticipate how the future physician workforce will navigate abortion-related care. Osteopathic medical students are understudied despite comprising a growing share of the healthcare workforce in the United States. OBJECTIVE To measure personal abortion-related values among osteopathic medical students at a Western U.S. College of Osteopathic Medicine and evaluate the impact of these values on their perceptions of future clinical decision-making across diverse clinical scenarios. METHODS A cross-sectional, anonymous survey was distributed to all osteopathic medical students (N=1,285) from September – November 2022. Measures included demographics, a 6-point abortion attitudes “spectrum score”, and responses to standardized first- and second-trimester abortion clinical scenarios. Analyses included descriptive statistics, chi-square, and multivariable ordinal logistic regression. RESULTS Of the 1,285 eligible students, 247 responded (19.2%). The majority were female (56.5%), Democrat (46.9%), and religious (49.2%). Most students expressed supportive stances on abortion and chose to “provide” the abortion in 65% of first trimester and 59% of second-trimester scenarios. Spectrum scores were strongly associated with gender, political affiliation, and religiosity (all P <.001). Students with moderate spectrum scores showed the greatest uncertainty, particularly in second-trimester cases. CONCLUSIONS Medical students may be approaching abortion-related care through a patient-centered lens rather than through a religious or political framework. Medical education across the U.S. must provide case-based abortion-related education sufficient to build students’ clinical decision-making confidence.
Language: English
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7134265979