Experiences of medical students and doctors with dyslexia: A systematic review.

Introduction: Dyslexia can be defined as a neurodevelopmental learning difficulty characterised by issues with phonological awareness, affecting performance and progression within medical education. There is a need to identify how to provide effective support for medical students and postgraduate do...

Full description

Bibliographic Details
Published in:Medical Education Vol. 59; no. 8; pp. 797 - 812
Main Authors: Tarafdar, Suhail Amin, Seoudi, Noha, Luo, Ruoyin, Winston, Kalman
Format: research systematic review tables/charts Journal Article
Published: Wiley-Blackwell Aug2025
Online Access:View this record in EBSCOhost
fields @attributes:
  recordID: 1
pdfLink:
plink: https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=186526919&site=ehost-live
header:
  @attributes:
    shortDbName: ccm
    uiTerm: 186526919
    longDbName: CINAHL Complete
    uiTag: AN
  controlInfo:
    bkinfo:
    dissinfo:
    jinfo:
      jid:
        03080110
        ESF
      jtl: Medical Education
      issn: 03080110
      maglogo: Y
    pubinfo:
      dt: Aug2025
      vid: 59
      iid: 8
      pid: 480
      pub: Wiley-Blackwell
      place: Malden, Massachusetts
    artinfo:
      ui:
        186526919
        183798744
        186526919
        186526919
        10.1111/medu.15615
        186526919
      ppf: 797
      ppct: 15
      formats:
        fmt:
          – @attributes:
              type: T
          – @attributes:
              type: C
          – @attributes:
              type: P
      tig:
        atl: Experiences of medical students and doctors with dyslexia: A systematic review.
      aug:
        au:
          Tarafdar, Suhail Amin
          Seoudi, Noha
          Luo, Ruoyin
          Winston, Kalman
        affil: College of Medicine and Dentistry, outreach centre of Ulster University, Birmingham, UK
      sug:
        subj:
          Dyslexia Complications
          Physicians Psychosocial Factors
          Students, Medical Psychosocial Factors
          Students, Undergraduate Psychosocial Factors
          Education, Masters
          Education, Doctoral
          Human
          Systematic Review
          United States
          Narratives
          Stigma
          Writing
          Reading
          Peer Group
          Support Groups
          Student Experiences
          Word Lists
          Thematic Analysis
          Strategic Planning
      ab: Introduction: Dyslexia can be defined as a neurodevelopmental learning difficulty characterised by issues with phonological awareness, affecting performance and progression within medical education. There is a need to identify how to provide effective support for medical students and postgraduate doctors with dyslexia. The aim of this systematic review was to explore the experiences of, and identify strategies for, undergraduate medical students and postgraduate medical doctors with dyslexia within existing literature. Methods: A search strategy was undertaken on databases relevant to medical education. Included studies concerned either medical students or postgraduate medical doctors with dyslexia. A quality appraisal was undertaken and narrative synthesis employed to produce a final report. Results: Thirty‐one articles were included in the final synthesis, with seven deemed high‐risk of bias. Four overarching themes were identified. There are largely negative experiences, such as stigma, reported. Furthermore, dyslexia can impact assessment performance, with reasonable adjustments effective for written examinations. Moreover, strategies employed to reduce difficulties include peer support, organisational inclusivity and interactive educational methodologies. Additionally, dyslexia impacts the career trajectory of doctors. Discussion: Training programmes should promote an inclusive environment through raised awareness and provision of reasonable adjustments. A range of potential strategies have been identified to improve the educational experiences of students with dyslexia, but these should be flexible according to individual needs. Further research is warranted within postgraduate medical training and experiences in the United States. This review paper outlines the experiences of medical students and postgraduate doctors with dyslexia, outlining several important implications for medical training.
      pubtype: Academic Journal
      doctype:
        research
        systematic review
        tables/charts
        Journal Article
      ougenre: Article
    language: English
    refInfo:
    holdings:
      @attributes:
        islocal: N