Factors Influencing Medical Students' Choice Regarding Anaesthesiology as a Future Career at King Abdulaziz University Hospital Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Aims: Our study aimed to identify whether anesthesiology is a desired specialty among medical students at King Abdulaziz University and what factors may have influenced or hindered their decision. Study Design: Cross‑sectional study. Study Setting: At King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia between June 8th, 2019 till June 25th, 2019. Methodology: An online questionnaire was distributed to all 700 5th and 6th year medical students at King Abdulaziz University Hospital and they were asked to fill it anonymously. Pre-clinical medical students (2nd, 3rd and 4th years) were excluded due to their lack of exposure to the field of anesthesiology. The estimated sample size was a random 248 medical students of KAUH. Results: Our results showed that the most preferred specialties were Internal medicine (37.9%), followed by surgery (35.5%), then family medicine (27%). While the field of anesthesiology was chosen by 14.5% of the participants. However, in response to a separate question, 79.8% of the respondents have not considered it as their future career. Many considered Doctor-patient relationship to have the greatest influence (81.7%), followed by controllable lifestyle (80%), while income 71% and prestige 63.2% were less influential factors for those career decisions. Conclusion: It is essential to show medical students that anesthesiologists do interact with patients and increase their interaction with influential individuals in this field since they are capable of positively adjusting their viewpoints.

Download Full-text

Perception of Plastic Surgery and the Role of Media Among Medical Students: Cross-Sectional Study (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.12999 ◽

2018 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Hatan Hisham Mortada ◽

Yara Aayed Alqahtani ◽

Hadeel Zakaria Seraj ◽

Wahbi Khalid Albishi ◽

Hattan A Aljaaly

Keyword(s):

Medical Students ◽

Plastic Surgery ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

University Hospital ◽

Male Students ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Online Questionnaire ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

King Abdulaziz University ◽

The Mean

BACKGROUND Although plastic surgery has been gaining a lot of popularity recently, there seems to be limited perception and a poor understanding of this field by both medical professionals, including medical students, and the general public. This might alter referral patterns as well as medical students’ choice to pursue a career in plastic surgery. OBJECTIVE The purpose of this study was to assess knowledge and perception of plastic surgery among medical students and to explore the influencing factors underlying particular beliefs. METHODS Data for this cross-sectional study were collected between August 22 and December 22, 2017. The questionnaire was formulated on the basis of our own study objectives and from available questionnaires with similar objectives. It was composed of 14 questions divided into three main parts: demographics, the specialty of plastic surgery, and media involvement and its effect on plastic surgery. The study was conducted via an online questionnaire among medical students in all years at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Data were considered significant at P<.05. All analyses were performed using SPSS, version 20. RESULTS A total of 886 medical students participated in this study. We achieved a response rate of 56.79%. The mean age of the participants was 21.2 years. The mean awareness score was 9.7 (SD 4.2) for female students and 8.3 (SD 4.2) for male students (P<.001). The condition most commonly known to be treated by a plastic surgeon was burns (70.3% of responses). CONCLUSIONS Medical students do not have adequate awareness of plastic surgery, and early exposure to this specialty may enhance their awareness.

Download Full-text

Behavior of Medical Students toward Over-the-Counter Drugs in Comparison to Students from Other Faculties, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Journal of Pharmaceutical Research International ◽

10.9734/jpri/2021/v33i35b31911 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 129-135

Author(s):

Amar Fathi Mohamed Khalifa ◽

Yasser Nabil AlKhudairy ◽

Adel Ahmed Algahtani ◽

Bandar Mohammed Abduljabbar ◽

Fahad Majed Aldawsari ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Medical Students ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

P Value ◽

Online Questionnaire ◽

Self Medication ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Over The Counter ◽

Otc Drugs ◽

Professional Guidance

Background: Over-the-counter-drugs (OTC) are drugs that can be obtained by patients without a prescription from a physician. In Saudi Arabia, it has been reported that more than half of university students practiced self-medication and used OTC drugs. Methods: An institutional-based cross-sectional study, among medical and non-medical students in Riyadh. The sample size was 421, by systemic random sampling. A pre-coded pre-tested online questionnaire was used. Data was analyzed using SPSS V 23. P-value ≤ 0.05 was considered significant. Results: There was no significant relationship between what the participants were majoring in and the usage of OTC drugs (p value= 0.373). Gender also had no relation with the use of OTC (p value= 0.168). Panadol appeared as the most commonly used OTC drug 62.9% for the relief of the most commonly mentioned factor which is headache 50.12%. Conclusion: Medical education didn’t have much of an effect on the use of OTC drugs. Moreover, professional guidance or advice was not considered most of the time for taking OTC, but the majority of respondents portrayed good behavior towards usage of OTC.

Download Full-text

Vitamin D Status in Postmenopausal Females in Saudi Arabia

Proceedings of The Nutrition Society ◽

10.1017/s0029665120002566 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 79 (OCE2) ◽

Author(s):

Shatha Alharazy ◽

Eman Alissa ◽

Adeel Chaudhary ◽

Susan Lanham-New ◽

M. Denise Robertson

Keyword(s):

Vitamin D ◽

Saudi Arabia ◽

Postmenopausal Women ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

University Hospital ◽

Older Individuals ◽

Anthropometric Measures ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Jeddah City ◽

King Abdulaziz University

AbstractVitamin D (vitD) deficiency is highly prevalent in the Middle East (including Saudi Arabia) despite the abundance of sunlight. Older individuals in particular are at high risk of being vitD deficient. VitD binding protein (DBP), which acts as a carrier of vitD and its metabolites, has been reported to influence vitD status. In our study we aimed to investigate vitD status among postmenopausal women and its relation to DBP. A cross-sectional study was conducted at the King Fahad Medical Research Center, King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Seventy six postmenopausal females (age ≥ 50 years) who were not taking vitD supplementation and who were resident in Jeddah city, were randomly recruited from internal medicine clinics at King Abdulaziz University Hospital. Anthropometric measures, blood pressure, lifestyle history, dietary vitD intake and fasting blood samples were obtained from all study participants. Serum total 25 hydroxy-vitamin D (25(OH)D), DBP, albumin, parathyroid hormone, calcium, phosphate, magnesium and metabolic bone parameters were analysed. VitD deficiency was defined as serum total 25(OH)D level below 30 nmol/L. The mean (± SD) serum level of total 25(OH)D was 46.9 ± 28.9 nmol/L with 36 % of the study population being vitD deficient. Although non-significant, the vitD deficient group had lower DBP and higher dietary vitD intake levels when compared with those with serum vitD > 30nmol/L. In addition, DBP was inversely correlated with vitD dietary intake (r = -0.233, P = 0.046). In conclusion, vitD deficiency is highly prevalent among postmenopausal women living in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. Intake of a vitD rich food seems to be associated with low DBP levels. Genetic polymorphisms in DBP will be studied in the future to find out a possible explanation for the differences in vitD status and DBP between individuals as well as the concomitant relationship between dietary vitD intake, DBP and serum 25(OH)D levels.

Download Full-text

A multi-institutional and cross-sectional study on empathy in Chinese medical students: Differences by student cadre or not, future career preference, and father's education status

10.21203/rs.2.16897/v2 ◽

2020 ◽

Author(s):

Kangqi Yi ◽

Mingyi Kang ◽

Dongju Li ◽

Zhipeng Wang ◽

Jinsong Bai ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Factor Analysis ◽

Medical Students ◽

Education Reform ◽

Factor Structure ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Online Questionnaire ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Career Preference ◽

Future Career ◽

Chinese Medical Students

Abstract Background The aims of this study were to examine the factor structure of the Chinese version of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy for medical students (JSE-S) and investigate differences in empathy scores among Chinese medical students according to gender, student cadre or not, future career preference, and parents’ education. Methods Medical students from three universities completed an online questionnaire containing the JSE-S. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted to determine the factor structure, and group comparisons of empathy scores were examined via t -tests and analysis of variance. Results Four factors emerged from the factor analysis: “perspective taking,” “compassionate care,” “standing in the patient’s shoes,” and an uninterpretable factor. The results indicated that students who were female, held positions as student cadres, preferred to become a doctor, and whose fathers had a high school education or below tended to have more empathy. Conclusions Overall, the findings provide information on the dimensions of empathy applicable to Chinese medical students and confirm the factors found in the original measure.The dimensions have implications for developing empathy among medical students throughout the world. Educators can use the information to design interventions to foster empathy among students in the context of medical education reform in many countries, including China.

Download Full-text

Knowledge and Attitudes Among Medical Students Toward the Clinical Usage of e-Cigarettes: A Cross-Sectional Study in a University Hospital in Saudi Arabia

Risk Management and Healthcare Policy ◽

10.2147/rmhp.s302309 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol Volume 14 ◽

pp. 1969-1984

Author(s):

Sami Alzahrani ◽

Rawan A Alghamdi ◽

Ahmed Mabruk Almutairi ◽

Ali Ahmed Alghamdi ◽

Abdullah Abdulwahab Aljuhani ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Medical Students ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

University Hospital ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Knowledge And Attitudes

Download Full-text

A multi-institutional and cross-sectional study on empathy in Chinese medical students: Differences by student cadre or not, future career preference, and father's education status

10.21203/rs.2.16897/v1 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Kangqi Yi ◽

Mingyi Kang ◽

Dongju Li ◽

Zhipeng Wang ◽

Jinsong Bai ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Factor Analysis ◽

Medical Students ◽

Education Reform ◽

Factor Structure ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Online Questionnaire ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Career Preference ◽

Future Career ◽

Chinese Medical Students

Abstract Background The aims of this study were to examine the factor structure of the Chinese version of the Jefferson Scale of Empathy for medical students (JSE-S) and investigate differences in empathy scores among Chinese medical students according to gender, student cadre or not, future career preference, and parents’ education.Methods Medical students from three universities completed an online questionnaire containing the JSE-S. Exploratory factor analysis was conducted to determine the factor structure, and group comparisons of empathy scores were examined via t-tests and analysis of variance.Results Four factors emerged from the factor analysis: “perspective taking,” “compassionate care,” “standing in the patient’s shoes,” and an uninterpretable factor. The results indicated that students who were female, held positions as student cadres, preferred to become a doctor, and whose fathers had a high school education or below tended to have more empathy.Conclusions Overall, the findings provide information on the dimensions of empathy applicable to Chinese medical students and confirm the factors found in the original measure. The dimensions have implications for developing empathy among Chinese medical students. Educators can use the information to design interventions to foster empathy among students in the context of Chinese medical education reform.

Download Full-text

Colostrum knowledge among Saudi mothers in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia

Journal of the Pakistan Medical Association ◽

10.47391/jpma.1251 ◽

2020 ◽

pp. 1-13

Author(s):

Steve Harakeh ◽

Musab Almatrafi ◽

Rahma Bukhari ◽

Turki Alamri ◽

Salah Barnawi ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Occupational Status ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

University Hospital ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Saudi Women ◽

Lactating Mothers ◽

High Knowledge ◽

King Abdulaziz University ◽

Community Data

Abstract Objective: To assess the knowledge level of Saudi women about colostrum for the newborns. Methods: The cross-sectional study was conducted from October 2015 to June 2016 at the Gynecological Clinics of King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, and comprised lactating mothers in the community. Data was collected using a pretested questionnaire. Data was analysed using SPSS 22. Results: of the 552 mothers, 301(54.5%) were age >30 years. The source of information about colostrum was friends and family for 367(66.67%) subjects. Overall, 367(66%) had high knowledge about colostrum. A significant correlation was detected between age and knowledge about colostrum composition and duration (p<0.05); as well as between educational level and colostrum composition, colour, and form (p<0.05). A significant association between occupational status and knowledge about colostrum colour and form was also noted (p<0.05). Conclusion: Saudi mothers were found to have a good knowledge about colostrum and its benefits. Key Words: Colostrum knowledege, Breastfeeding, Pregnancy, NewbornI, Immunity. Continuous...

Download Full-text

Medical Graduates’ Research Practices and Perceptions: A comparative cross-sectional study between 2015 and 2017 graduates of King Abdulaziz University

Sultan Qaboos University Medical Journal [SQUMJ] ◽

10.18295/squmj.2019.19.01.007 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 19 (1) ◽

pp. 32

Author(s):

Ahmed M. Basakran ◽

Maysaa A. Banjari ◽

Malak A. Almarghoub ◽

Elaf M. Alzarnougi

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Medical Students ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Research Project ◽

Research Practices ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Medical Graduates ◽

Research Activities ◽

Significant Difference ◽

King Abdulaziz University

Objectives: This study aimed to compare changes in medical students’ research practices and perceptions of two cohorts of graduates. Methods: This cross-sectional comparative study was conducted from November 2014 to December 2017 and included the 2015 and 2017 medical graduates of King Abdulaziz University, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. A validated self-administrated questionnaire, which included questions about participants’ age and gender, research activities, and obstacles to and motivators for research involvement was used. Results: A total of 484 graduates were included in this study (response rate: 96.8%). A significant difference was found between the 2015 and 2017 graduates who had not started any research project (48.4% versus 35%; P <0.001) and a 20% increase in the 2017 graduates’ confidence in their abilities to start their own projects was observed (P <0.001). Significantly more 2017 graduates were engaged in various research roles, other than 'author', compared to 2015 graduates (71.3% versus 55.4%; P <0.001). Career progression was the main motivator for both the 2015 and 2017 medical graduates to participate in research (79.5%). Reported obstacles to research included a lack of dedicated time for research and methodology training and a shortage of research project opportunities. Conclusion: This study highlights positive changes in attitudes towards and perceptions of research among medical graduates.Keywords: Medical Students; Research; Professional Practice; Attitude; Perception; Medical Education; Saudi Arabia.

Download Full-text

The Influence of Gender on the Choice of Radiology as a Specialty Among Medical Students in Saudi Arabia: Cross-Sectional Study

Interactive Journal of Medical Research ◽

10.2196/14666 ◽

2020 ◽

Vol 9 (2) ◽

pp. e14666 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Ahmed H Abduljabbar ◽

Sara F Alnajjar ◽

Hussein Alshamrani ◽

Lujain F Bashamakh ◽

Hisham Z Alshehri ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Saudi Arabia ◽

Medical Students ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Specialty Choice ◽

Female Students ◽

University Hospital ◽

Male Students ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Significant Difference

Background Medical undergraduates are the future doctors of the country. Therefore, determining how medical students choose their areas of specialty is essential to obtain a balanced distribution of physicians among all specialties. Although gender is a significant factor that affects specialty choice, the factors underlying gender differences in radiology are not fully elucidated. Objective This study examined the factors that attracted medical students to and discouraged them from selecting diagnostic radiology and analyzed whether these factors differed between female and male medical students. Methods This cross-sectional study conducted at King Abdulaziz University Hospital in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, used an electronic questionnaire sent to medical students from all medical years during February 2018. Subgroup analyses for gender and radiology interest were performed using the chi-square test and Cramér’s V test. Results In total, 539 students (276 women; 263 men) responded. The most common factor preventing students from choosing radiology as a career was the lack of direct patient contact, which deterred approximately 47% who decided against considering this specialty. Negative perceptions by other physicians (P<.001), lack of acknowledgment by patients (P=.004), and lack of structured radiology rotations (P=.007) dissuaded significantly more male students than female students. Among those interested in radiology, more female students were attracted by job flexibility (P=.01), while more male students were attracted by focused patient interactions with minimal paperwork (P<.001). Conclusions No significant difference was found between the genders in terms of considering radiology as a specialty. Misconception plays a central role in students’ judgment regarding radiology. Hence, early exposure to radiology, assuming a new teaching method, and using a curriculum that supports the active participation of students in a radiology rotation are needed to overcome this misconception.

Download Full-text

Awareness of Diabetic Eye Diseases among Diabetic In-Patients at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, cross sectional study. (Preprint)

10.2196/preprints.14770 ◽

2019 ◽

Author(s):

Ahmed Abdulrahman Basheikh ◽

Lujain Faisal Bashamakh ◽

Anan Abdulghaffar Aljawi ◽

Ibtihal Oudah Al-Gamdi ◽

Mariya Saeed Bahashwan ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Diabetes Mellitus ◽

Saudi Arabia ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

University Hospital ◽

Eye Disease ◽

Considerable Proportion ◽

Sectional Study ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Diabetic Eye Disease ◽

King Abdulaziz University

BACKGROUND Background: Saudi Arabia is the second most common country affected by diabetes mellitus in the Middle East, and it is the seventh in the world. Approximately 10% of diabetic patients develop visual impairment and blindness due to ocular complications. These could be prevented by increasing awareness. OBJECTIVE Aim: To assess the awareness of diabetic eye disease among diabetic in-patients. METHODS Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 241 diabetic in-patients at treated between 2014 and 2017 at King Abdulaziz University Hospital, Jeddah, Saudi Arabia. The data were collected through a telephone-based interview and analysis was performed using SPSS. The chi-square test was used to investigate the relationship between demographic data and awareness to diabetic eye disease. RESULTS Results: A total of 241 patients were included in the analyses. Of these, 140 (58.1%) were males. Approximately 80.9% of the patients knew about diabetic eye disease. Patients with a higher educational level and economic status were more aware about diabetic eye disease. A considerable proportion of the patients (79.7%) were aware that retinopathy could be caused by diabetes. Conversely, only 41.9% and 32.8% were aware that cataract and glaucoma could be caused by diabetes mellitus, respectively. CONCLUSIONS Conclusion: Most patients were aware of the ophthalmologic complications of diabetes. Despite being aware of diabetic retinopathy, more than half of the patients did not know that it was curable; hence, more public health education is needed.

Download Full-text