ABSTRACT
Host community perspectives remain poorly understood, and programme voices have rarely been heard by the global health community, let alone integrated into developing placements. To help address this issue, interviews were conducted with preceptors of Canadian medical trainees, administrators of programmes and coordinators of international activities in facilities hosting Canadian medical trainees from all Canadian medical schools. Although genuine pleasure in taking Canadian trainees was apparent, with benefits seen not just to the trainees themselves but local trainees, programmes and global health generally, several concerns, related to the training of students, expectations of sending institutions, and issues of reciprocity, tempered such enthusiasm. The pilot project gives a baseline in order to guide collaborative research on the impact of electives and planning incorporating Global South host preceptors, programmes and communities and to suggest practices that would be more ethical and beneficial to all.
