Medical education has largely only been accessible to students selected by accredited medical schools. However, most medical students have historically come from physician families. For example, in the United States “75% of medical students have come from families in the top two quintiles for income” (American Association of Medical Colleges, n.d.) and many of these students have physicians in their families (Shipley, 2023). The issue of a high proportion of medical students belonging to physician and high-income families is also a problem of equity and inclusion in Canada and other countries around the world since medical literacy matters for health outcomes.
However, the Internet, search engines, and the emergence of artificial intelligence have made medical and health information widely available. Moreover, the public can now weigh in on different medical publications, policies, and news, through the use of social media, forums, surveys, and other engagement methods. Accessibility to medical conversations and diverse perspectives have contributed to greater democratization of medical knowledge. This has been beneficial to many patients who are becoming more involved and informed about their healthcare (Jacot, 2024). Moreover patients are able to collaborate and co-construct medical research and education in ways that are informed by lived experience, and advance patient goals.
Yet, on the other hand, advanced university degrees and professional credentials are becoming devalued, and trust in science is markedly lower than before the COVID-19 pandemic (Tyson, 2024). As a result, health professionals have influenced policy so that governments invest in fighting misinformation with science communication (Public Health Agency of Canada, 2021) while engaging certain equity-deserving communities (Canadian Association of Science Centres, 2025), instead of supporting medical literacy or expanding access to medical schools.
While patients, students, and the public gain more awareness about medical interventions and research practices, physicians have increasingly lost autonomy as clinics and private practices become consolidated into larger systems and networks (Robertson, 2024). Fewer physicians see medicine as a lifelong calling, and more are leaving clinical practice earlier in their careers (Miller, 2025). This is a global phenomenon, with as many as 10,000 doctors resigning collectively in South Korea for example (Wikimedia Foundation, 2025). Quality of care and access to medical professionals is declining (NNSL Media, 2025), leaving patients to fend for themselves or fall through gaps, and further eroding trust in the healthcare system.
In the context of failing healthcare systems, the World Health Organization has recommended self-care as a path to achieving universal health coverage (World Health Organization, 2024). To meet the need for accessible medical and health information, plain language is recommended by health authorities (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2024). However, many patients and the public have an appetite to address patient equity and improve their own health outcomes through self-care by acquiring more knowledge, literacy skills, and acumen to access and evaluate information for themselves.
Through its 2018 five-year strategic plan, the United States government (Executive Office of the President, O. of S. and T. P., 2018) recognized that Americans require lifelong access to STEM education to be successful in modern society. In 2022, the White House added an additional M to the STEM acronym to include medical fields (Stanford, 2022). Furthermore, a national strategy was announced at the 2024 White House Summit on STEMM Equity and Excellence “to help 20 million people from historically excluded and marginalized communities enter, contribute to, and thrive in science, technology, engineering, mathematics, and medical (STEMM) fields (American Institute of Physics, 2024). However, the Trump administration has eliminated many science and education initiatives in 2025, and it is unclear whether the United States will continue to support STEMM equity.
The Canadian Context
The need for medical literacy education is especially pronounced and apparent to many patients and the public in Canada. This is because medical school admissions are severely restricted in Canada by quotas, designed to prevent excess numbers of doctors from graduating into healthcare system that is mainly publicly funded (Hopper, 2023) and obstructing access to medical education. Moreover, foreign doctors in Canada face many barriers to licensing despite a chronic doctor shortage (Chugtai & Lee, 2025). In 2025, a Canadian report confirmed that existing health professions training capacity contributes to a significant gap in the healthcare workforce that “if no action is taken, will worsen over ten years”, (Health Canada, 2025). Meanwhile, elite healthcare professionals in Canada maintain a medical gatekeeping culture, acting as stewards of “precious” public health resources, contributing to frustration for many patients trying to access medical services and professionals. Although the issues of restricted medical school admissions and doctor shortages are not unique, attachment and protectionism related to the public healthcare system and fear of privatization have contributed to complacency in the training of medical professionals in Canada. Change is necessary.
References:
American Institute of Physics. (2024, May 23). STEMM Opportunity Alliance releases national strategy at White House Summit to diversify and expand STEMM workforce by 2050 [Press Release]. https://ww2.aip.org/aip/stemm-opportunity-alliance-releases-national- strategy
Association of American Medical Colleges. (n.d.). Being first doesn’t have to mean you’re last: Supporting first-generation medical students on their journey to doctor. AAMC Students & Residents. https://students-residents.aamc.org/applying-medical-school/being-first- doesn-t-have-mean-you-re-last-supporting-first-generation-medical-students-their- journey
Canadian Association of Science Centres. (n.d.). ScienceUpFirst. CASC members X ScienceUpFirst. https://canadiansciencecentres.ca/scienceupfirst/
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2024, October 16). What is health literacy?. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. https://www.cdc.gov/health- literacy/php/about/index.html
Chugtai, W., & Lee, V. (2025, January 17). Canada has a doctor shortage, but thousands of foreign-trained physicians already here still face barriers. CBC News. https://www.cbc.ca/news/health/international-doctors-canada-barriers-1.7428598
Executive Office of the President, O. of S. and T. P. (2018). Charting a course for success: America’s strategy for STEM education. A report by the committee on STEM education of the National Science & Technology Council. In Executive Office of the President. https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED590474
Health Canada. (2025, January 30). Caring for Canadians: Canada’s future health workforce – the Canadian health workforce education, training and distribution study. Government of Canada. https://www.canada.ca/en/health-canada/services/health-care-system/health- human-resources/workforce-education-training-distribution-study.html
Hopper, T. (2023, February 6). Why Canada intentionally limits its supply of doctors. National Post. https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/canada-limits-doctors
Jacot, A. (2024, October 7). Medical information websites: Does it help or hurt patient care?. Medical Professionals Reference. https://www.empr.com/features/medical-information- websites/
Miller, K. (2025, February 3). “their lives are awful”: More doctors are quitting medicine, citing Burnout and workplace issues. Boston Globe. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2025/02/03/business/doctors-quitting-medicine- burnout/
NNSL Media. (2025, January 14). Quality healthcare, declining access as Canada falls behind other countries. NNSL Media. https://www.nnsl.com/news/quality- healthcare-declining-access-as-canada-falls-behind-other-countries-7758200
Public Health Agency of Canada. (2021, May 12). Government of Canada funds two new projects to encourage vaccine uptake in Canada. Canada.ca. https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/news/2021/04/government-of-canada- funds-two-new-projects-to-encourage-vaccine-uptake-in-canada.html
Robertson, R. (2024, September 19). Is healthcare consolidation fueling the Physician Burnout Crisis?. MedpageToday. https://www.medpagetoday.com/special- reports/features/112042
Shipley, C. H. and J. (2023, April 3). Opinion: Nepotism’s deep roots in medical education. Medical News. https://www.medpagetoday.com/opinion/second-opinions/103839
Stanford, L. (2022, December 13). The Biden administration’s new STEM initiative: What will it mean for K-12 schools? Education Week. https://www.edweek.org/teaching-learning/the- biden-administrations-new-stem-initiative-what-will-it-mean-for-k-12-schools/2022/12
Tyson, A. (2024, November 14). Public trust in scientists and views on their role in policymaking. Pew Research Center. https://www.pewresearch.org/science/2024/11/14/public-trust-in-scientists-and- views-on-their-role-in-policymaking/
World Health Organization. (2024, April 26). Self-care for health and well-being. World Health Organization. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/self-care- health-interventions
2024 South Korean medical crisis. (2025, January 28). In Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2024_South_Korean_medical_crisis#
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This article was written by Joan Lee Tu, the founder of MedULingo.com.
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