Opinions towards Medical Students’ Self-Care and Substance Use Dilemmas—A Future Concern despite a Positive Generational Effect?
Abstract
:1. Introduction
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- do members of the public, qualified doctors and medical students have different opinions regarding medical student self-care/substance use dilemmas?
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- are respondents influenced by the seniority of the student protagonist (i.e., do respondents have different behavior expectations depending on whether a medical student is junior or senior in their course)?
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- does gender or age of the respondent influence their opinions on medical students’ behaviors?
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- are medical students’ opinions on self-care dilemmas influenced by what stage they are in their course?
2. Materials and Methods
2.1. Design, Ethics, Setting and Participants
2.2. Survey Instrument
2.3. Data and Statistical Analysis
3. Results
3.1. How Do Medical Students View Student Self-Care/Substance Use Dilemmas?
3.2. Do Demographic Factors Influence Opinions on the Acceptability of Self-Care/Substance Misuse Dilemmas?
4. Discussion
4.1. Demographic Groups’ Opinions Regarding the Medical Students’ Self-Care/Substance Use Dilemmas
4.2. The Implications of Respondents’ Gender or Age Influencing Their Opinions on Medical Students’ Self-Care Behaviors
4.2.1. Gender
4.2.2. Age
4.3. The Possible Consequences of Medical Students Viewing Self-Care Behaviors Differently as They Transition through Medical School
5. Conclusions
- Medical students have significantly different opinions towards alcohol/substance use than doctors or members of the public;
- Opinions on medical student substance use suggest that generational influences rather than health professional cultural norms determine the acceptability of behaviours;
- Student respondents in the latter stages of their medical course were significantly more likely to consider either stimulant drug use or taking cannabis as being acceptable;
- In comparison with other international studies, Australian medical students were more likely to consider it acceptable to use stimulant drugs to assist with study;
- Medical students and doctors appear to have gender neutral norms for alcohol intoxication.
Supplementary Materials
Author Contributions
Funding
Institutional Review Board Statement
Informed Consent Statement
Data Availability Statement
Acknowledgments
Conflicts of Interest
References
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Theme | Contextual Variable | Scenario [Alternative Version with Contextual Variable] |
---|---|---|
Seeking assistance | N/A | A medical student rushes to an emergency bell on the ward. They are the first responder and commence effective CPR. Despite the arrival and assistance of the Medical Emergency Team the patient dies. The student is distressed by recurring thoughts of the event, which affect their sleep. When these symptoms continue, the student seeks assistance from Student Support Services. This student’s behavior is: |
Alcohol misuse | Medical student seniority | The Medical School is informed that a first year [final year] medical student has been charged with drunk and disorderly conduct after an altercation at a night club. This student’s behavior is: |
Using illicit drugs to assist with study | Medical student seniority | During exam time a first year [final year] medical student buys stimulant drugs online that are usually only available on prescription, and uses them in order to stay awake and study. This student’s behavior is: |
Using cannabis to treat anxiety | Medical student seniority | A first year [final year] medical student in an undergraduate entry medical course fails all of their end of year examinations at the first attempt. The student had not applied for any special consideration, but subsequently admits that their ability to study had been affected by anxiety and they had used cannabis daily to provide relief over the past 2 months. This student’s behavior is: |
Demographic Group (Total Number) | Gender | |
---|---|---|
Male Participants (%) | Female Participants (%) | |
Public (503) | 147 (29.2) | 349 (69.4) |
Medical doctors (809) | 200 (24.7) | 599 (74) |
Medical students (2602) | 1105 (42.8) | 1439 (55.8) |
Demographic Group (Total number) | Age a | |
≤35 years of age (%) | >35 years of age (%) | |
Public (503) | 164 (32.8) | 336 (67.2) |
Medical doctors (809) | 390 (48.4) | 416 (51.6) |
Demographic Group (Total number) | Students’ stage in the medical course a | |
‘Junior’ | ‘Senior’ | |
Students’ stage in course a (2602) | 1214 (50.6) | 1184 (49.4) |
Scenario | Contextual Variable | Public n/N (%) b | Doctors n/N (%) b | Students (n/N) % b | Global Test (Students vs. Public vs. Doctors) p-Value c | Pairwise Comparison between Demographic Groups p-Value d |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Combined Total Response a | ||||||
Seeking assistance | N/A | 440/450 (97.8) | 729/731 (99.7) | 2243/2256 (99.4) | 0.001 | Public vs. Students < 0.001 Public vs. Doctors = 0.002 |
Alcohol misuse | Junior student | 35/244 (14.3) | 67/361 (18.6) | 133/1130 (11.8) | ||
Senior student | 35/205 (17.1) | 45/365 (12.3) | 96/1126 (8.5) | |||
Combined a | 70/449 (15.6) | 112/726 (15.4) | 229/2256 (10.2) | <0.001 | Students vs. Public < 0.001 Students vs. Doctors < 0.001 | |
Using illicit drugs to assist with study | Junior student | 19/231 (8.2) | 26/330 (7.9) | 136/1131 (12.0) | ||
Senior student | 28/218 (12.8) | 36/393 (9.2) | 138/1114 (12.4) | |||
Combined a | 47/449 (10.5) | 62/723 (8.6) | 276/2258 (12.2) | 0.022 | ||
Using cannabis to treat anxiety | Junior student | 24/223 (10.8) | 70/348 (20.1) | 206/1099 (18.7) | ||
Senior student | 33/224 (14.7) | 45/370 (12.2) | 236/1143 (20.6) | |||
Combined a | 57/447 (12.8) | 115/718 (16.0) | 442/2242 (19.7) | <0.001 | Students vs. Public < 0.001 Students vs. Doctors = 0.027 |
Substance | Demographic Group | Respondents’ Gender Male n/N (%) vs. Female n/N (%); aOR (95% CI); [p-Value] b | Respondents’ Age ≤aOR (95% CI); [p-Value] b | Medical Student Respondents’ Seniority a Junior n/N (%) vs. Senior n/N (%); aOR (95% CI); [p-Value] b |
---|---|---|---|---|
Alcohol | Public | 28/129 (21.7) vs. 40/316 (12.7); 1.88 (1.1–3.22); [0.021] | 29/147 (19.7) vs. 41/302 (13.6); 1.52 (0.89–2.6); [0.123] | |
Doctors | 26/177 (14.7) vs. 86/542 (15.9); 0.98 (0.61–1.59); [0.943] | 65/349 (18.6) vs. 47/377 (12.5); 1.63 (1.08–2.46); [0.02] | ||
Students | 94/958 (9.8) vs. 133/1285 (10.4); 0.92 (0.7–1.22); [0.56] | 84/1092 (7.7) vs. 145/1172 (12.4); 1.68 (1.27–2.23); [<0.001] | ||
Stimulants | Public | 26/128 (20.3) vs. 21/317 (6.6); 3.58 (1.91–6.69); [<0.001] | 25/147 (17) vs. 22/302 (7.3); 2.62 (1.4–4.89); [0.003] | |
Doctors | 22/177 (12.4) vs. 40/539 (7.4); 1.88 (1.08–3.29); [0.026] | 34/347 (9.8) vs. 28/376 (7.4); 1.47 (0.86–2.49); [0.157] | ||
Students | 160/945 (16.9) vs. 110/1278 (8.6); 2.12 (1.63–2.75); [<0.001] | 108/1078 (10) vs. 166/1167 (14.2); 1.44 (1.11–1.87); [0.007] | ||
Cannabis | Public | 31/127 (24.4) vs. 24/316 (7.6); 3.92 (2.18–7.05); [<0.001] | 29/147 (19.7) vs. 28/300 (9.3); 2.39 (1.33–4.31); [0.004] | |
Doctors | 33/177 (18.6) vs. 82/534 (15.4); 1.39 (0.89–2.19); [0.152] | 69/346 (19.9) vs. 46/372 (12.4); 1.85 (1.23–2.79); [0.003] | ||
Students | 216/951 (22.7) vs. 224/1278 (17.5); 1.37 (1.11–1.69); [0.004] | 192/1076 (17.8) vs. 250/1166 (21.4); 1.24 (1.00–1.53); [0.05] |
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McGurgan, P.; Calvert, K.; Nathan, E.; Celenza, A.; Jorm, C. Opinions towards Medical Students’ Self-Care and Substance Use Dilemmas—A Future Concern despite a Positive Generational Effect? Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2022, 19, 13289. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192013289
McGurgan P, Calvert K, Nathan E, Celenza A, Jorm C. Opinions towards Medical Students’ Self-Care and Substance Use Dilemmas—A Future Concern despite a Positive Generational Effect? International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health. 2022; 19(20):13289. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192013289
Chicago/Turabian StyleMcGurgan, Paul, Katrina Calvert, Elizabeth Nathan, Antonio Celenza, and Christine Jorm. 2022. "Opinions towards Medical Students’ Self-Care and Substance Use Dilemmas—A Future Concern despite a Positive Generational Effect?" International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 19, no. 20: 13289. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192013289
APA StyleMcGurgan, P., Calvert, K., Nathan, E., Celenza, A., & Jorm, C. (2022). Opinions towards Medical Students’ Self-Care and Substance Use Dilemmas—A Future Concern despite a Positive Generational Effect? International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 19(20), 13289. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph192013289