Knowledge and Attitudes Among Medical Students Toward the Clinical Usage of e-Cigarettes: A Cross-Sectional Study in a University Hospital in Saudi Arabia
| Autor: | Ali Ahmed Alghamdi, Abdulrahman Hamed Albalawi, Ahmed Mabruk Almutairi, Abdullah Abdulwahab Aljuhani, Rawan A. Al-Ghamdi, Sami H. Alzahrani |
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| Rok vydání: | 2021 |
| Předmět: |
knowledge
medicine.medical_specialty Cross-sectional study medicine.medical_treatment education Saudi Arabia medical students e-cigarette Smoking history 03 medical and health sciences 0302 clinical medicine Cronbach's alpha medicine vaping 030212 general & internal medicine Original Research Risk Management and Healthcare Policy Harm reduction business.industry 030503 health policy & services Health Policy Public Health Environmental and Occupational Health University hospital smoking cessation therapeutic Family medicine Scale (social sciences) Smoking cessation 0305 other medical science business |
| Zdroj: | Risk Management and Healthcare Policy |
| ISSN: | 1179-1594 |
| Popis: | Sami H Alzahrani,1 Rawan A Alghamdi,2 Ahmed Mabruk Almutairi,3 Ali Ahmed Alghamdi,3 Abdullah Abdulwahab Aljuhani,3 Abdulrahman Hamed ALbalawi3 1Family Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; 2Ibn Sina National College for Medical Studies, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia; 3Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi ArabiaCorrespondence: Sami H AlzahraniFamily Medicine Department, Faculty of Medicine, King Abdulaziz University, PO Box 80205, Jeddah, 21589, Saudi ArabiaTel +966 9500004062Email drsamihz@gmail.comBackground: To assess knowledge and attitudes about e-smoking among undergraduate medical students, specifically focused on favorable view of therapeutic e-cigarette use for smoking cessation or harm reduction.Methods: This cross-sectional study included medical students at King Abdulaziz University, Saudi Arabia. A six-item subscale was used to explore knowledge and attitudes about the therapeutic use of e-cigarettes, measuring participants’ likelihood of favoring such use. A four-item questionnaire measured confidence and importance of being educated about smoking and e-smoking, in addition to sources of knowledge about e-cigarettes.Results: A total of 399 students participated. Smoking history included current smokers (19.8%) and ex-smokers (6.5%), while e-cigarettes were tried by 36.6% and are currently used by 11.5%. A minority (13.5%) believed that e-cigarettes are FDA-approved for smoking cessation, while approximately one-third believed e-smoking lowers cancer risks (31.1%) and could help with smoking cessation (31.1%). Further, 35.9% agreed or strongly agreed that e-cigarettes are better for patients than tobacco products, and 17.5% were likely to recommend e-smoking to their patients for smoking cessation. Reliability of the six-item scale showed Cronbach’s alpha = 0.676, which was enhanced to 0.746 after deletion of one item about addictiveness. Using the corrected five-item scale, 23.6% of the participants would favor therapeutic use of e-cigarettes.Conclusion: We observed several misconceptions about addictiveness and inadequate awareness about e-cigarettes’ harmful effects, leading to non-scientific opinions about its therapeutic use for harm reduction or in smoking cessation. Academic programs around this topic should be updated in accordance with majority expert recommendations.Keywords: e-cigarette, vaping, knowledge, therapeutic, smoking cessation, medical students, Saudi Arabia |
| Databáze: | OpenAIRE |
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