Search Results (249)

Background: Premenstrual symptoms are common among young women and may lead to repeated self-management and medication use. However, medication-related behaviors may vary across academic disciplines, and it remains unclear whether favorable medication-safety attitudes are reflected consistently in everyday behavior. Methods: This cross-sectional study evaluated medication-related, self-care, complementary, and healthcare-seeking behaviors among female undergraduate students reporting premenstrual symptoms at Çukurova University, Türkiye, between January and June 2024. Data from 479 students across five faculties were collected using a 53-item, study-specific questionnaire covering sociodemographic characteristics, symptom-management practices, healthcare-seeking behavior, medication use, self-medication, complementary and herbal product use, and medication-related attitudes. Associations between categorical variables were examined using Pearson’s chi-square test, with Cramer’s V reported as a measure of effect size. Results: Among participants, 88.1% reported regular menstrual cycles, and 30.5% reported previous education on premenstrual symptom management. Family members or friends were the most frequently reported source of advice (47.4%), followed by physicians (27.6%). Analgesics were commonly used (71.0%), 39.9% reported using medications already available at home, and 78.4% of medical students agreed that they used analgesics without physician recommendation. Herbal or aromatherapy-based approaches were reported by 29.9% of participants. Faculty-level differences were observed in medication-related behaviors, attitudes toward complementary approaches, and information-seeking patterns. Conclusions: Medical students reported more cautious attitudes toward herbal safety and informal information sources, although self-medication-related behaviors remained common. These findings support university-based health promotion strategies that emphasize practical medication-safety skills, appropriate healthcare seeking, evidence-based self-care, responsible use of complementary products, and critical evaluation of digital health information. Full article

Traditional quantitative instruments, such as the Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS), reliably measure readiness for interprofessional education (IPE), but often miss the complex socio-cultural nuances and cognitive friction of collaborative training. This mixed-methods study aimed to capture these deeper realities by integrating open-ended qualitative questions with the validated Spanish version of RIPLS. A total of 176 undergraduate medical and nursing students participated in a high-fidelity simulation training seminar. Data was analyzed using quantitative associations alongside deductive qualitative content analysis to identify perceived strengths and weaknesses. The results indicated that early clinical immersion and prior healthcare experience consolidated teamwork and communication as perceived strengths. On the other side, a younger age predicted structural weaknesses in role assumption and procedural skill. Also, medical students prioritized synchronized teamwork, whereas nursing students exhibited sensitivity to communication breakdowns. Integrating open-ended reflections with standardized quantitative scales successfully bridges the gap between attitudinal metrics and the authentic lived experiences of students, providing educators with granular insights to design highly responsive, profession-sensitive IPE curricula. Full article

Introduction: Chikungunya is an emerging mosquito-borne viral disease that has become a growing public health concern worldwide. Despite documented autochthonous outbreaks in Italy and the increasing spread of Aedes albopictus mosquitoes across Europe, little is known about awareness of chikungunya among future healthcare professionals. This study aimed to assess awareness of chikungunya and evaluate related knowledge, attitudes, and practices (KAPs) among nursing students at the University of Palermo, Italy. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in May 2026 among undergraduate nursing students enrolled at the University of Palermo. Data were collected through an anonymous self-administered online questionnaire investigating sociodemographic characteristics, awareness of chikungunya, sources of information, and KAP related to the disease. Associations between awareness and participant characteristics were assessed using chi-square tests and prevalence ratio analyses. Results: A total of 894 students participated (mean age: 22.33 ± 4.53 years; 72.3% female). Overall, only 22 students (2.46%) reported having previously heard of chikungunya. In a multivariable exploratory analysis, third-year students had a higher prevalence of previous awareness compared with first-year students (PR = 3.38; 95% CI: 1.10–10.36), whereas no statistically significant association was observed for age (PR = 1.07; 95% CI: 1.00–1.15). Mass media represented the main source of information (63.6%), followed by university lectures (22.7%). Among participants who reported previous awareness, responses suggested relatively good recognition of major clinical manifestations, although important gaps were observed regarding vector recognition and transmission pathways. Attitudes toward prevention were predominantly positive, and most participants reported adopting recommended mosquito-control practices. Conclusions: Awareness of chikungunya among nursing students was extremely low. Strengthening educational interventions on emerging vector-borne diseases within nursing curricula may improve preparedness, risk communication, and future public health responses. Full article

Background/Objectives: This study aims to determine university students’ knowledge and attitudes in Cyprus regarding human papillomavirus (HPV) and the HPV vaccine. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional study of 601 university students in Cyprus between March 2025 and June 2025 using quota-based convenience sampling. Undergraduate students in the faculties of Medicine, Nursing, Midwifery, and Engineering completed a detailed questionnaire assessing HPV and HPV vaccine knowledge and attitudes, as well as variables including gender, age, year of study, field of study, and self-reported racial/ethnic categories as operationalised in the survey, age at first sexual intercourse, sexual orientation, smoking, and history of number of sexual partners. The questionnaire assessed knowledge about HPV and the HPV vaccine, as well as attitudes and the self-reported reasons behind them. Results: Females and health-care students showed higher awareness of HPV and the HPV vaccine. Knowledge also increased with higher year of study and age. Among the variables examined, students aged over 24 had the highest vaccination rate. The most cited self-reported reasons for receiving the vaccine were to prevent cervical cancer and genital warts. Attitudes towards the HPV vaccine varied markedly across variables. Conclusions: HPV knowledge is directly related to preventive efforts, and young adults are key actors. Further research into attitudes towards the HPV vaccine and the reasons behind them may increase vaccination and decrease HPV-related cancers globally. Full article

Background: Healthcare systems contribute substantially to environmental pollution, making sustainability education an essential component of nursing curricula. Preparing nursing students to implement environmentally responsible practices is fundamental to sustainable healthcare delivery. This study evaluated the effectiveness of a structured educational training program on nursing students’ knowledge, attitudes, and self-reported behaviors regarding green hospital practices and sustainability in maternity care. Methods: A post-test-only quasi-experimental study was conducted among 240 undergraduate nursing students enrolled in the Obstetrics and Gynecological Nursing Department between October and December 2025. Participants were randomly assigned to either an intervention group (n = 120), which received a structured sustainability-focused educational training program covering sustainable healthcare principles, green hospital practices, healthcare waste management, resource conservation, environmentally responsible maternity care, and the role of nurses in promoting sustainability, or a control group (n = 120), which received the standard nursing curriculum. Outcomes were assessed using a validated structured questionnaire measuring sustainability-related knowledge, attitudes, and self-reported behaviors across environmental, social, and economic domains. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics, with statistical significance set at *p* < 0.05. Results: Students in the intervention group demonstrated significantly higher knowledge, attitude, and self-reported behavior scores than those in the control group across all sustainability domains (all *p* < 0.001). Conclusions: The structured educational training program significantly improved nursing students’ sustainability-related knowledge, attitudes, and self-reported behaviors. Integrating sustainability education into undergraduate nursing curricula may enhance students’ preparedness to implement environmentally responsible practices in maternity care. Further multicenter studies with longer follow-up are recommended to evaluate the long-term effectiveness of sustainability education. Full article

Background: Healthcare professionals play a key role in supporting breastfeeding, yet undergraduate breastfeeding education may be insufficient. This study assessed breastfeeding knowledge among final-year health sciences students in Southern Europe. Methods: We conducted a multicenter cross-sectional survey among final-year medical, nursing, and physiotherapy students from universities in Spain and Italy between January and June 2025. An ad hoc questionnaire, developed by an expert panel and content-validated using a modified Delphi process, assessed knowledge of breastfeeding benefits, lactation physiology, breastfeeding management, and international promotion policies. Descriptive statistics summarized responses. Results: A total of 342 students participated. Only 40.6% reported specific breastfeeding-related teaching during their studies, whereas 90.1% reported having participated in a course dedicated entirely to breastfeeding outside their regular coursework. Only 57.9% correctly identified WHO recommendations on breastfeeding duration, 67.6% recognized the importance of initiating breastfeeding immediately after birth, and fewer than half correctly identified on-demand feeding. Knowledge of lactation biology was variable, particularly regarding bioactive milk components. Awareness of promotion frameworks was limited: only 15.4% were familiar with the WHO/UNICEF Ten Steps to Successful Breastfeeding, and 48.8% recognized the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes. Self-perceived competence in counseling families was generally low. Conclusions: Final-year health sciences students in Spain and Italy demonstrate good awareness of the benefits of breastfeeding but show notable deficiencies in practical recommendations, lactation biology, and international promotion strategies. Standardized competency-based breastfeeding education should be strengthened within undergraduate health sciences curricula. Full article

Background: Cyberchondria, characterized by excessive or repeated online searching for health-related information accompanied by heightened health concerns or distress, is an increasingly recognized behavioral phenomenon. Healthcare students represent an important population for investigation due to their frequent exposure to medical information and digital health resources. However, the extent of cyberchondria-related behaviors and their relationship with demographic and academic characteristics remain insufficiently explored in this population. Objectives: This study aimed to describe the level and distribution of cyberchondria-related behaviors and to explore whether selected demographic and academic characteristics were associated with CSS-12 scores among undergraduate female healthcare students from different academic programs at a Saudi university. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive correlational design was employed. A proportionate stratified non-probability convenience sample of 362 female students was recruited from six health-related colleges. Data were collected using the validated Cyberchondria Severity Scale (CSS-12), which measures four dimensions: excessiveness, distress, reassurance, and compulsion. Descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, and multiple linear regression were applied using SPSS version 29. Results: The overall CSS-12 mean score indicated a moderate level of cyberchondria-related behaviors (M = 32.46, SD = 5.80). At the dimensional level, Excessiveness recorded the highest mean score (M = 10.29, SD = 2.10), followed by Distress (M = 7.46, SD = 2.35), while Reassurance (M = 7.73, SD = 2.20) and Compulsion (M = 6.98, SD = 2.05) showed comparatively lower scores. Based on the sample-derived score distribution, 23.8% of participants were classified in the upper-score group, while 30.4% and 45.9% were classified in the middle- and lower-score groups, respectively. Correlation analysis revealed significant positive relationships among all CSS-12 dimensions (p < 0.001), with correlation coefficients ranging from weak to strong (r = 0.31–0.56). Multiple linear regression analysis showed that age, GPA, academic year, and academic program were not significantly associated with CSS-12 scores (p > 0.05), and the model explained a very small proportion of variance (R² = 0.006), indicating limited explanatory power. Conclusions: Cyberchondria-related behaviors were distributed across low, moderate, and high score categories among female healthcare students, with excessiveness emerging as the most prominent dimension. The findings demonstrate interrelationships among CSS-12 dimensions but no significant associations with demographic or academic variables. Overall, the results are descriptive and correlational in nature and indicate that the demographic and academic characteristics examined in this study did not meaningfully account for variation in cyberchondria-related behaviors. Psychological and behavioral factors not assessed in the present study warrant investigation in future research. Full article

Despite increasing global attention to reproductive health, significant knowledge gaps and misconceptions about abortion and contraception persist among young adults, including medical students. Understanding their knowledge and attitudes is crucial for developing effective educational strategies. This study aimed to assess the knowledge and attitudes regarding abortion and contraceptive methods among undergraduate Romanian health-professions students. A cross-sectional study was conducted between April and December 2024, using a validated, self-administered questionnaire distributed online. The final sample included 510 students from various medical fields. Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics and chi-square tests, with a p-value < 0.05 considered statistically significant. Most participants were female (77.45%), reflecting the feminization trend in medical education. Overall, 95.88% of respondents declared awareness of abortion, yet significant knowledge gaps remained, particularly regarding legal gestational limits for medical abortion. Notably, 66.47% identified infertility as a potential complication of abortion, though this did not differ significantly by gender. Regarding attitudes, students generally supported abortion in cases involving maternal health risks (74.12%) or sexual assault (79.22%), while acceptance decreased in socio-economic or personal contexts, especially among male students. Contraceptive knowledge was high for condoms (99.22%) and oral contraceptives (95.88%), with no significant gender differences for individual methods after correction for multiple comparisons. Importantly, 64.35% of male students believed that condoms reduce sexual pleasure, and 87.85% of female students expressed concern about the side effects of oral contraceptives. Furthermore, 60.59% of participants believed that access to abortion services in Romania is insufficient, and nearly 80% advocated for legal measures to improve accessibility. Male students were significantly more likely than female students to report not knowing what surgical abortion on demand is (16.52% vs. 2.53%; OR = 0.13, female vs. male, 95% CI 0.06–0.29, p < 0.0001), a gender gap that remained significant after correction for multiple comparisons. In multivariable linear regression, year of study was the strongest independent predictor of objective knowledge (β = 0.31, 95% CI 0.14–0.47, p < 0.001), and students enrolled in Dentistry/Pharmacy programs scored significantly lower than those in General Medicine (β = −0.83, 95% CI −1.32 to −0.34, p = 0.001), whereas gender and age were not independently associated with knowledge after adjustment (p = 0.581 and p = 0.519–0.794, respectively). The findings reveal substantial gaps in knowledge and persistent misconceptions about abortion and contraception among future healthcare providers, particularly regarding legal gestational limits. Gender differences were significant for attitudes toward abortion in non-medical contexts, but were not robust for most individual knowledge items once corrected for multiple comparisons. Targeted educational interventions are urgently needed to address misinformation, promote reproductive autonomy, and prepare future healthcare professionals to provide comprehensive, unbiased reproductive healthcare. Full article

Background/Objectives: Smartphones used by medical students may serve as reservoirs for microbial contamination and contribute to the transmission of healthcare-associated microorganisms. This study aimed to determine the level of microbial contamination of smartphones, prevalence of methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus species (MRSS), and associated risk factors among undergraduate medical students in Klang Valley, Malaysia. Methods: An analytical cross-sectional study was conducted among students from three public and three private universities using convenience and snowball sampling. Demographic, behavioural, and environmental data were collected via an online questionnaire. Smartphone swabs were cultured to determine total viable count (TVC). MRSS were identified using enrichment and selective culture, Gram staining, 16S rRNA PCR-sequencing, and cefoxitin disc diffusion. Descriptive statistics, Fisher’s exact test, and multivariable binary logistic regression were performed. Results: A total of 148 smartphones were analysed. High microbial contamination (≥13 CFU per smartphone sampling unit, 75th percentile of TVC) was detected in 38 (25.7%) smartphones, while MRSS were recovered from 9 (6.1%) smartphones; all were methicillin-resistant coagulase-negative staphylococci: Staphylococcus epidermidis, Staphylococcus haemolyticus, and Staphylococcus ureilyticus. Male students (adjusted odds ratio [AOR] = 2.497, p = 0.025) and students from public universities (AOR = 2.730, p = 0.016) were more likely to have highly contaminated smartphones. MRSS contamination was associated with high microbial contamination (OR = 12.194, p = 0.001) and those living with elderly individuals (OR = 6.304, p = 0.013). Following the study, participants received their culture results, smartphone hygiene education through a dedicated website, and alcohol swabs as part of a health promotion initiative. Conclusions: This study highlights smartphones as potential fomites for the transmission of antimicrobial-resistant staphylococci. Integrating microbiological surveillance with targeted smartphone hygiene promotion may help reduce microbial contamination and the potential for transmission in healthcare training environments. Full article

In Brazil, the five-year undergraduate dental curriculum provides limited preparation for coping with death, bereavement, and emotionally demanding hospital environments, which may increase vulnerability to psychological burden among dentists working in oncology care. This cross-sectional study assessed anxiety, depression, and professional grief overload among dentists involved in multiprofessional oncology residency programs in Brazil and examined their associations with quality of life and professional characteristics. Fifty-two dentists completed validated measures of anxiety and depression (HADS), professional grief overload (ESPL), and quality of life (SF-36). The sample was predominantly female (69.2%), single (80.8%), and composed of residents (75.0%). Mild anxiety was observed in 28.9% of participants and moderate-to-severe anxiety in 32.7%, while 23.1% presented with mild depressive symptoms and 13.5% presented with moderate-to-severe depression. The mean Professional Grief Overload Scale score was 37.6 (SD = 9.8; IQR, 31.5–44.3). Higher levels of professional grief overload have been associated in previous studies with psychological distress, emotional exhaustion, and reduced quality of life among healthcare professionals. Anxiety and depression were strongly correlated (ρ = 0.71, p < 0.001), and anxiety showed a moderate correlation with professional grief overload (ρ = 0.55, p < 0.001). Higher levels of anxiety, depression, and professional grief overload were associated with poorer quality of life, particularly in vitality, social functioning, and mental health domains. Exploratory cluster analysis identified a subgroup characterized by greater psychological burden and substantially lower quality-of-life scores. These findings suggest that dentists working in oncology residency programs experience considerable psychological burden, highlighting the need for educational and institutional strategies focused on emotional preparedness, grief management, and mental health support within oncology care settings. Full article

Background: Pharmacists, as healthcare professionals of public trust, operate within a complex legal environment involving multiple forms of professional liability, particularly civil and criminal liability. Although these forms of responsibility are formally regulated by statutory law, the practical distinction between them remains largely dependent on judicial interpretation and case-specific circumstances. Objective: The aim of this study was to assess the scale and nature of judicial proceedings involving pharmacists and to identify the most common factors leading to civil and criminal liability. Additionally, the study sought to highlight the largely under-recognized phenomenon of legal actions involving pharmacists and to determine which areas of pharmacy practice generate the greatest legal risk. Methods: The study employed a mixed-methods design combining qualitative case law analysis with descriptive quantitative assessment. A total of 146 judicial decisions involving pharmacists were reviewed, including 43 civil and 19 criminal cases constituting the principal subject of the analysis. The examined judgments were assessed with regard to factual background, legal qualification, judicial reasoning, applied legal provisions, and type of liability imposed. Cases were additionally categorized according to the nature of the violation and the protected legal interest affected. Results: A total of 146 judicial decisions involving pharmacists were identified and analyzed, including 43 civil cases and 19 criminal cases. The findings demonstrate that legal proceedings involving pharmacists are not isolated events but represent a recurring phenomenon within professional practice. Civil cases were dominated by disputes related to reimbursement claims, prescription processing, and regulatory compliance, accounting for over half of all analyzed civil proceedings. In contrast, criminal cases were less frequent but displayed substantial heterogeneity, including unlawful medicine distribution, reimbursement fraud, breaches of professional duties, and other criminal offences. Importantly, only a minority of cases involved direct patient harm, while the majority arose from administrative, organizational, and regulatory obligations associated with pharmacy practice. The analysis identified prescription reimbursement procedures, medicine dispensing regulations, and pharmacy management responsibilities as the principal sources of legal risk for pharmacists. Conclusions: Published case law demonstrates the recurrent presence and considerable diversity of legal proceedings involving pharmacists. Most cases do not arise from direct patient harm but rather from regulatory, administrative, and organizational obligations associated with pharmacy practice. Civil proceedings are predominantly linked to reimbursement and prescription-related disputes, whereas criminal cases are less common but more diverse in nature. The results highlight the need for greater legal awareness among pharmacists, enhanced risk-management education, and stronger integration of legal competencies into undergraduate and postgraduate pharmacy training. Increased recognition of legal risks may contribute to both professional protection and improved patient safety. Full article

Background: Entrepreneurship has become an essential competency for healthcare professionals because it promotes innovation, autonomy, and the development of sustainable healthcare services. Although entrepreneurship education has demonstrated positive effects on students’ entrepreneurial knowledge and competencies, evidence regarding its effectiveness among nursing interns remains limited. This study examined changes in nursing interns’ entrepreneurship awareness, entrepreneurial intention, and entrepreneurial characteristics following participation in a structured entrepreneurship training program. Methods: A quasi-experimental one-group pretest–posttest design with a two-month follow-up assessment was conducted among 168 nursing interns at the Faculty of Nursing, Cairo University. Participants completed three researcher-developed instruments assessing entrepreneurship awareness, entrepreneurial intention, and entrepreneurial characteristics. The intervention consisted of a structured entrepreneurship training program delivered through interactive educational strategies, including lectures, group discussions, brainstorming, case-based learning, and practical activities. Data were analyzed using repeated-measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) and Pearson correlation coefficients. Bonferroni-corrected pairwise comparisons were performed following significant overall repeated-measures effects. Results: Entrepreneurship awareness increased significantly across the three assessment periods, with scores increasing from 6.41 ± 3.16 at baseline to 16.99 ± 3.45 immediately after the intervention and remaining significantly higher at the two-month follow-up (14.42 ± 4.01; p < 0.001). Significant improvements were also observed in overall entrepreneurial characteristics (F = 158.08, p < 0.001, ${\eta }_p^2$ = 0.49), particularly perseverance, demand for efficiency and quality, commitment to work, information seeking, goal setting, and planning. In contrast, entrepreneurial intention did not change significantly across the three assessment periods (F = 1.22, p = 0.30, ${\eta }_p^2$ = 0.01). Entrepreneurship awareness was weakly and positively correlated with entrepreneurial intention across the assessment periods (r = 0.165–0.263, p < 0.05). Conclusions: Participation in the entrepreneurship training program was associated with significant improvements in entrepreneurship awareness and entrepreneurial characteristics among nursing interns, whereas entrepreneurial intention did not demonstrate a statistically significant change. Integrating entrepreneurship education into undergraduate nursing curricula may strengthen innovation-related competencies and prepare future nurses to develop sustainable healthcare initiatives. Future controlled longitudinal studies should investigate the psychological and contextual factors that may influence the development of entrepreneurial intention. Full article

Background: Geriatric dentistry prepares dentists to care for an aging population. Yet, its integration into undergraduate curricula remains inconsistent. Objectives: To map evidence on the barriers to and facilitators of the implementation and development of undergraduate geriatric dental education. Methods: A scoping review was conducted using systematic searches of PubMed, Scopus, and Embase for English-language original research articles published from 1 January 2016 onward. Two reviewers screened titles, abstracts, and full texts independently against eligibility criteria. Studies were included if they examined barriers and/or facilitators related to undergraduate geriatric dental education. Data were extracted independently and synthesized descriptively to identify themes and evidence gaps. No critical appraisal was performed. Results: This review identified 1376 studies and included 11 studies, including seven cross-sectional and four cohort studies. Barriers clustered into three themes: structural and workforce-related barriers (resource constraints and a lack of equipped/trained staff), curricular and regulatory barriers (overcrowded curricula and a lack of curriculum guidelines), and interprofessional and attitudinal barriers (limited interprofessional collaboration and negative attitudes among students and teaching staff towards older adults). Facilitators were grouped into three themes: pedagogical and experiential learning strategies (didactic teaching, clinical training, extramural exposure, simulation-based training, and communication training), curricular and policy enablers (integrated curricula and national guidelines), and institutional and faculty support (staff support). Conclusions: This review identifies the multifaceted, modifiable educational, institutional, and policy factors that influence the implementation and development of geriatric dental education. By consolidating the existing evidence, this review provides a foundation for curriculum development and policy planning to prepare graduates to deliver age-responsive oral healthcare. Full article

Although high-quality healthcare requires both technical expertise and soft skills, the precise connections between emotional intelligence (EI), interpersonal skills (IS), and communication skills (CS) remain insufficiently explored. This lack of research creates an educational gap in training students to effectively manage clinical anxiety. This study aims to analyze the predictive and mediational role of IS between EI and CS in healthcare undergraduates. A quantitative, cross-sectional study was conducted with 816 Spanish undergraduate healthcare students recruited between October and December 2024. The inclusion criteria required participants to be actively enrolled in a healthcare degree and provide written informed consent. Data from four standardized self-reports were analyzed using Structural Equation Modeling (SEM) estimated via Unweighted Least Squares (ULS) to account for non-normal data distributions. The structural model showed that EI positively predicted IS (β = 0.69) and directly predicted CS (β = 0.35). Crucially, IS strongly predicted CS (β = 0.69), acting as a key psychological mediator. Together, EI and IS explained 91% of the variance in communication skills (R² = 0.91). These findings imply that interpersonal skills structurally translate internal emotional regulation into effective outward communication. For educators and professionals, this underscores the need for healthcare training to move beyond basic communication protocols to integrate formal emotional intelligence and social skills programs to enhance clinical patient safety and prevent student burnout. Full article

Background: Oral cancer remains a major global health concern, with increasing incidence and mortality, especially in developing countries. Public awareness is crucial for early detection and improved outcomes. Objective: To assess oral cancer awareness, recognition of risk factors and early signs, screening behavior, and care-seeking preferences among patients attending a university dental hospital in Türkiye. Methods: This cross-sectional, facility-based survey included 1360 volunteer patients who attended the Faculty of Dentistry between January and December 2025. Consecutive sampling was used to include all eligible and consenting individuals. A structured questionnaire assessed participants’ sociodemographic characteristics, oral cancer awareness, knowledge of symptoms and risk factors, screening history, and lifestyle habits. Data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics 26.0 (IBM Corp., Armonk, NY, USA). Descriptive statistics, chi-square tests, and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed. Statistical significance was set at p < 0.05. Main outcomes and measures: The primary outcome was oral cancer awareness (measured by the question “Have you ever heard of oral cancer?”). Secondary outcomes included knowledge of risk factors and early clinical signs, screening history, preferred healthcare contact for suspected oral cancer, and lifestyle factors (tobacco and alcohol). Associations between sociodemographic variables and oral cancer awareness were also evaluated. Results: The sample consisted of 1360 participants (56.4% female; mean age: 33.44 ± 14.60 years; range: 18–70). Of the 1377 questionnaires collected, 1360 were complete and included in the final analysis (questionnaire completion rate: 98.8%). Breast cancer was the most recognized cancer (96.9%), whereas only 50.8% of participants had heard of oral cancer. Dentists (39.4%) were the primary source of information. Tobacco use (92.2%) and alcohol consumption (80.3%) were the most frequently identified risk factors, whereas only 58.3% recognized human papillomavirus as a risk factor for oral cancer. In univariate analyses, oral cancer awareness was significantly associated with age, marital status, education level, monthly income, occupation, alcohol use, and the timing of the most recent dental visit (p < 0.05). In multivariable logistic regression, undergraduate education (OR = 2.008, 95% CI: 1.135–3.553), higher monthly income (>100,000 TRY vs. <25,000 TRY, OR = 2.398, 95% CI: 1.571–3.658), alcohol use (OR = 1.521, 95% CI: 1.082–2.139), and a dental visit within the previous year (OR = 4.130, 95% CI: 1.590–10.730) remained independently associated with oral cancer awareness. Conclusions: Oral cancer awareness in this study population was limited. The findings suggest that targeted educational strategies may be beneficial for improving oral cancer awareness. Strengthening dentists’ preventive role and promoting education through social media may help improve oral cancer awareness and facilitate earlier detection. Full article