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Introduction: Body image is the percep?on and a?tude one holds toward one’s own body, especially, but not exclusively, one’s physical appearance. The promo?on of posi?ve body image improves people’s quality of life and behaviors related to health. Social factors, sociocultural influences, media pressure, and the pursuit of an ideal body, associated with accomplishments and happiness are among the causes of changes in the percep?on of body image, leading to dissa?sfac?on. There is very less literature on these topics among males and also medical students. Objec?ves: To assess body image percep?on and the influence of sociocultural factors on it and self-esteem among undergraduate students of a medical college. Methods: A cross-sec?onal study was carried out among 192 undergraduate medical students of a medical college from June 2021 to September 2021 using a predesigned pretested self-administered ques?onnaire in English. Results: Out of 200 students included in the study the mean age of study subjects was 19.78 ± 1.39 years, of which,107(56%) were males and 85(44%) were females. The 192 students were classified as Underweight (27(14%)), Normal weight (78(41%)), Overweight (43(22%)) and Obese I (44(23%)) according to Asian WHO BMI classifica?on. BISS scores (which measure body image sa?sfac?on) were the median of the six items a?er reversescoring the three posi?ve-to-nega?ve items which were found to be 5.5(4-7) and 53% of students showed body image dissa?sfac?on. 33% (63 students) of students have thin/low body fat internaliza?on and about 77(40%) have muscular/athle?c internaliza?on.54(28%) students mostly agree about family pressure to a?ain the ideal appearance, 53(28%) feel pressure from peers and 75(39%) mostly agree with influence of media to a?ain ideal appearance. Out of the 192 students,124(64%) showed normal self-esteem, 63(33%) with low self-esteem, and 5(3%) with high selfesteem as per Rosenberg’s self-esteem score. A sta?s?cally significant associa?on was found between BMI and body image percep?on and also between Body image percep?on with sociocultural a?tudes toward the appearance and self-esteem of students. Conclusion: Body image dissa?sfac?on affects young students. In this study, about 53% of the students showed body image dissa?sfac?on. This percep?on of self has mainly been influenced by media (39%), family pressure (28%), and peer pressure (28%). Also, 33% of the students have low esteem with a significant associa?on between Body image percep?on and self-esteem.
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Background: Different blood groups are associated with various personality traits, perceived stress and intelligence of an individual. Assessment of students’ academic performance helps to judge their knowledge, skill, and affective domains. Aims and Objectives: The objective of this study was to determine association of ABO blood groups among undergraduate medical students with academic stress and their academic performance. Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among 99 1st-year undergraduate medical students in Indian medical College. Blood group was determined by agglutination reaction. Academic stress was estimated using medical students stressor questionnaire score. Academic performance of student was assessed from marks of terminal examination. Results: In the present study, academic related stress level was highest in A blood group students followed by B blood group. Blood Group A students also have higher interpersonal related and teaching learning related stress levels. Whereas AB blood group students have higher social related, drive related and group activity related stress levels though not statistically significant. Mean academic scores were highest for AB blood group students, followed by O blood group students. B blood group students had least academic scores but not statistically significant. Furthermore, Blood group AB and O shows negative correlation, whereas A and B blood group shows positive correlation of academic stress with academic scores. Conclusion: Academic stress was highest for A blood group followed by B blood group and academic performance was highest in AB blood group followed by O blood group. Significant association of different blood groups with academic stress and performance was not found.
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Objectives: Medical education has undergone significant changes all over the world and patient safety is one of the main reasons for the changes. The new competency-based medical curriculum in India also emphasises early clinical exposure along with the acquisition of competent and verifiable skills. The objective of this study was as follows: (1) to introduce the 1st year medical students to simulation-based learning (SBL) to develop their knowledge, skills, and communication and meet the desired learning objectives without exposing subjects to any harm and gain valuable immersive experience that felt real and (2) to obtain students feedback about SBL in learning applied aspects of physiology. Materials and Methods: The study was approved by the Institutional Ethical Committee. A total of 132 1st year medical students were divided into six batches and each batch was exposed to a pre-test, simulation exercise, a debriefing session, post-test, and feedback. Descriptive analysis of the data was done and values were expressed as mean and standard deviation. The McNemar test was used to study the effectiveness of SBL. Results: The average pre-test and post-test correct responses were 64.6% and 77.5%, respectively. This difference was found to be highly significant with P < 0.001. The mean pre-test score and post-test scores were 6.46 ± 1.39 and 7.75 ± 1.52, respectively, with P < 0.001. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Positive feedback was received from the students with 86.8% of them strongly agreeing to the incorporation of simulation-based activities in the curriculum. About 76.7% strongly agreed to a self-perceived increase in their decision-making, communication, and teamwork skills. Perception of the simulation as a realistic experience was perceived by 74.4% of the students. Conclusion: SBL is an effective tool for learning applied physiology and was viewed by the students with interest. It also enhanced their understanding of the pathophysiological basis of the clinical scenario.
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Medical or clinical ethics provides guidance for health practitioners and has, hopefully, been taught to medical students during training. The teaching of clinical/medical ethics is more important in the current times because of advances in medical science and the different cultural and socioeconomic circumstances in which medicine is practised. This study sought to determine if and how clinical/medical ethics was taught at two Kenyan medical schools by conducting focus group discussions with undergraduate students and key informant interviews with lecturers teaching ethics and academic administrators. While medical/clinical ethics is a part of the medical curriculum approved by the Kenya Medical and Dental Practitioners Council (Board) and is taught during the training, we identified a gap between the theory and application of ethics education. Undergraduates, medical school administrators and lecturers from both institutions acknowledged a lack of role models and mentors, and a need for further training in communication skills since medical ethics has not been made an examinable subject and there has been no formal requirement for training of lecturers teaching ethics. For the short-term, these gaps can be addressed by training lecturers in medical/clinical ethics, and identifying and utilising suitable reference materials, while long-term measures include developing context-appropriate materials for teaching, in addition to nurturing mentorship skills among lecturers for ethical role modeling.
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Background: Stress among undergraduate medical students is a bigger concern globally. Aims and Objectives: This study aims to estimate the prevalence of stress among undergraduate medical students and to find association between stress with sociodemographic variables and other stressors. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among 300 private medical college undergraduate students in Surendranagar district. The study used Kessler-10 psychological distress inventory, which measures the level of stress according to none, mild, moderate, and severe grades. Various sociodemographic, academic, and psychosocial factors were assessed using Microsoft Excel version 2021 and analyzed in SPSS version 26. Chi-square test, Fisher’s exact test, and binary logistic regression were used for analysis. Results: Overall prevalence of stress among medical students was noted as 71%. Majority (39%) of the stressed students were from the 2nd year. Female students were more stressed than male students. Broad MBBS syllabus, high frequency of examinations, fear of failure in examinations, competition with the peers, language barrier, lack of recreational activities, and fear of less attendance were the academic factors behind the stress. Feeling of social isolation and lack of motivation were found to be predictors for the stress. Conclusion: High prevalence of the stress among medical students was found in this study. Minimization of the academic workload and promotion of extracurricular activities such as sports and cinema are in need. Self-care skills should be incorporated in curriculum and counseling units can be set up for students to cope up with stress.
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Background: Present status of pharmacovigilance is not satisfactory in India due to underreporting of adverse drug reactions which may be due to shortcomings of knowledge, attitude, and practice (KAP) toward pharmacovigilance among health professionals. Best time to inculcate this is during their undergraduate studies. Aim and Objectives: The study amis to evaluate KAP of undergraduate medical students and compare the results. Materials and Methods: pharmacovigilance KAP-based preformed questionnaire containing 23 questions was answered by second, pre-final and final year MBBS students of our tertiary care teaching hospital. Data obtained was analyzed statistically. Analysis was done by calculating mean score in each year and compared between respective MBBS years. Level of significance was assessed by Kruskal Wallis test. Results: Total 219 students participated in the study among which 93 were from second year (3rd term), 74 were from pre-final year and 52 were from final year MBBS. Mean score of second year, pre-final year, and final year for knowledge was (4.12, 5.34, 6.06), for attitude was (6.90, 6.99, 6.35) and for practice was (1.16, 1.55, 2.62). Statistically significant difference is seen between knowledge and practice, while attitude difference is not significant. Conclusion: Students have relatively better attitude but limited knowledge and less practice for pharmacovigilance.
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Background: Cervical cancer is one of the most preventable of all cancers and is the second leadingcause of death from malignancy amongst female patients. Utilizing Pap test for early detection ofcarcinoma cervix by all graduating medical students would be an excellent preventive strategy. Thecurrent modes of teaching medical students (lecture-based curricula) neither encourage the right qualitiesin students nor impart a life-long respect for learning.Objective: At the end of the training, the undergraduate students would become competent in learningabout Pap smear with the help of The Pap smear teaching cum testing module (brief lectures + hands ontraining).Methods: Following approval by the Institutional Ethics Committee (IEC), the training was divided intotheory, practical and demonstration classes, lasting from October 2014 to March 2015. Subjects included50 students of 3rd MBBS. Pretest were conducted and results were evaluated and tabulated on excel sheet.The students were initiated into clinical application of Pap smear on ZOE model, through demonstrationand skill practice under the supervision of trained faculty. Students were asked for their feedback to thequestionnaire provided to them. Post-test in the form of a MCQ test, short answer-question was taken forevaluation of theoretical knowledge, scientific principles and application. Practical skills were evaluatedbased on practice session on ZOE model, assessed on adherence to DOPS checklist for Pap smear, theresults were formulated. Student paired t test was performed to compare the scores of the pretest andpost-test sessions.Results: Students showed improvement in post-test compared to the pretest. Feedbacks showed thatstudents were enthusiastic in this innovative way of teaching and expressed their satisfaction. 90%students agreed that competency-based training of Pap smear made them understand the steps and madethem confident about carrying out the procedure. Practical assessment was done on ZOE model withDOPS Checklist, 80% students’ demonstrated proficiency in practical skills by scoring 100% in checklistadherence.Conclusion: Interactive-competency-based teaching module among the small group in addition to thedidactic lectures can improve the performance of the students and make them better to understand thesubject better with lasting effect.
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Background: Medical education is recognized as stressful globally. COVID‑19 pandemic is an additional source of anxiety to the medical students. Objectives: This study was conducted to assess the prevalence and to identify the factors associated with anxiety due to COVID‑19 among undergraduate medical students in a teaching hospital of Kolkata, West Bengal. Methods: An observational cross‑sectional study was conducted among 363 undergraduate medical students using the stratified random sampling of a medical college from June to July 2021. Data were collected using a predesigned, pretested, and structured online questionnaire, including “Coronavirus Anxiety Scale.” Descriptive statistics were used to estimate the prevalence of anxiety. Pearson’s Chi‑square test was performed to find out the factors associated with anxiety due to COVID‑19. Results: About 25.6% of the medical students were found to have anxiety due to COVID‑19. About 28.9% of them reported COVID‑19 infection in family in recent past and 11.0% had themselves tested positive. Nearly 20% reported loss of family members, relatives, and close friends due to COVID‑19. The factors associated with anxiety due to pandemic were socioeconomic status, social stigma, sleep disturbances, history of COVID‑19 in family, loss of job. and vaccination status of family members missing practical classes and exam‑related anxiety. Conclusion: The study found that one‑fourth of the medical students had anxiety due to COVID‑19. Social stigma due to COVID‑19 and loss of job of parents were the most significant predictors. It is recommended that targeted psychological and clinical interventions need to be taken to alleviate students’ anxiety due to COVID.
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Objectives: This study assessed the prevalence and risk factors of depression among undergraduate medical students at the University of Benin, Benin City, Nigeria. Design: This was a cross-sectional study. Setting: This study was carried out at the University of Benin. Participants: Three hundred medical students were recruited for this study. Methods: The Patient Health Questionnaire 9 (PHQ-9) and a structured pre-tested self-administered questionnaire were used to assess the prevalence and risk factors of depression, respectively. Results: The students' age ranged from 15 34 years, with a mean age of 21.8 ± 3.3 years. Many risk factors which could predispose students to depression were identified. Overall, 96 (32.0%) students were found to have depression. Of these, 59 (19.0%) had mild depression, 4 (1.3%) had severe depression, 53 (39.3%) were pre-clinical students, and 43 (26.1%) were clinical students. Emotional problems (OR 2.205, 95% CI 1.122 3.749, p = 0.020), financial challenges (OR 3.971, 95% CI 2.170 7.269, p < 0.001) and smoking (OR 6.877, 95% CI 1.731 27.327, p = 0.006) were the significant independent predictors of depression. Conclusion: The prevalence of depression was high among medical students. There is a need to include screening for risk factors of depression in the routine medical examinations for new students admitted into medical schools
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Humans , Students, Public Health , Depression , Education, Medical, Undergraduate , Risk FactorsABSTRACT
This study examined whether medical students were able to consider themselves to have practiced patient-centered team medicine through the practice of small group IPE. Undergraduate medical, pharmacy, and nursing students during Clinical Clerkship were asked to complete case-based clinical reasoning and treatment/nursing planning in small groups, and a questionnaire was administered to the IPE. The medical students felt that they were able to practice clinical reasoning and treatment planning, the pharmacy students felt that they were able to propose countermeasures against side effects of treatment, and the nursing students felt that they were able to provide necessary information to the medical team and practice patient-centered medicine with the medical team. Each department had different objectives they considered when practicing team-based medicine. It is important to incorporate each of these elements in IPE.
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Background: Depression has become one of the commonest mental ailments in current era. Its impact is far more in medical personnel than general population. Most of the medical students leave their houses for the first time and enter into the new environment of knowledge and responsibility. Though various studies have reported high prevalence of depression among undergraduate students, it was desirable to know its status in south Rajasthan. Methodology: A cross sectional study was conducted on 302 undergraduate medical students to know prevalence and risk factors for depression. Along with the pre-designed questionnaire, Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) Scale was used as study tools. Cut off value of 17 and above was considered to define the depression on BDI scale. Results: Prevalence of depression was 10% among undergraduate medical students. Statistically, female gender and students studying in fifth semester were significant risk factors. Residence, socio-economic class and family history of depression were not significant associated factors. Conclusion: Prevalence of depression is higher among medical undergraduates as compared to general population with female gender and fifth semester students being important risk factors
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ObjectiveTo analyze the correlation between personality characteristics and family environment of undergraduate medical students taking psychology course. MethodsIn June 2017， a cross-sectional survey was conducted among 67 undergraduate medical students taking psychology course， and all the selected individuals were assessed using Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory （MMPI） and Family Environment Scale-Chinese Version （FES-CV）. Then Pearson correlation analysis was performed between the original scores of MMPI subscales and the scores of FES-CV subscales. ResultsThe scores of hypochondriasis， depression， hysteria， psychopathic deviate， masculine-femininity， paranoia， psychasthenia and schizophrenia in MMPI of undergraduates were all higher than those of the national norm， with statistical differences （t=2.070~8.350， P<0.05 or 0.01）. The scores of cohesion， intellectual-cultural orientation， organization and achievement orientation in FES-CV of undergraduates were all lower than those of the national norm， while the scores of conflict tendency was higher than that of the national norm， with statistical differences （P<0.05 or 0.01）. Correlation analysis showed that cohesion score in FES-CV was negatively correlated with the scores of correction， hypochondriasis， depression and hysteria in MMPI （r=-0.410~-0.331， P<0.01）. Conflict tendency score was positively correlated with the scores of hysteria and psychasthenia （r=0.315， 0.415， P<0.01）. Active-recreational orientation score was negatively correlated with hypochondriasis score （r=-0.367， P<0.01） and positively correlated with schizophrenia score （r=0.346， P<0.01）. Control score was positively correlated with hysteria score （r=0.366， P<0.01）. ConclusionUndergraduate medical students taking psychology courses exhibit neuropathic and paranoid personality characteristics， and the personality characteristics are closely related to family environment.
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Background: E-learning refers to utilization of internet technologies to enhance knowledge and performance of the learners and to improve the effectiveness of educational interventions. From the review of literature it was evident that e-learning has gained popularity in past decade, however its use is variable among medical colleges. The objectives of the present study were to assess knowledge, attitude and practice towards e-learning among undergraduate medical students.Methods: A cross-sectional study was done among 150 medical students (50 each from 1st, 2nd and 3rd year) of Andhra Medical College, Visakhapatnam in the Month of December 2018. A pre-tested semi-structured questionnaire was administered to access the knowledge and practices. Students’ responses in attitude were collected and rated on 5-point Likert scale from 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree. Results are displayed in frequencies and proportions. A p value of <0.05 is considered as statistically significant.Results: A total of 150 undergraduate medical students were included, among them 67 (40.6%) were males, 98 (59.4%) were females. Majority were aware of e-learning. Nearly 46.7% students used both laptop and smart phones for purpose of e-learning. About 53% were confident in using software applications. Most of students agreed that e-learning has important role in acquiring clinical skill along with other learning methods and 88% of students agreed that it should be supplemented in regular teaching curriculum. The 3rd year students were found to have better attitude towards e-learning than other students.Conclusions: Majority felt that e-learning plays an important role in acquiring clinical skill along with other learning methods in educational institute. So, there is need to provide necessary infrastructure and include e -learning as a part of curriculum in medical education.
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Background/objectives: The epidemiology of the stress is not well known. The reason behind this is, very few studies have been conducted about allied health sciences students. This study may act as pioneer studies that focus on all the sources and causes of stress among the students in Government College University Faisalabad. Materials and methods: This study was a type of observational study, cross-sectional survey. This type of study is quite brief and easy to understand so it was done. A questionnaire was made which comprised of all the necessary questions to be asked from the students. It included demographic information such as gender, degree, semester, and age of the students to get the idea from where the student belongs. It includes all the questions about sources of stress which they were facing while studying in the university. Results and Conclusion: It has been inferred that furnishing of labs, clinical rotation, dealing with criticism related to academics, major cause of stress that is any complex, financial responsibilities, job expectation and insecurity about future employment are the factors that increased or decreased the stress per day among the students.
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Background: Basic research can help medical school students improve critical thinking skills required by medical practice. In this era of evidence-based medicine, the combination of medical education with clinical research is the key to ensure scientific discoveries are translated into clinical practice. This study’s objective was to know the awareness about clinical trials among undergraduate medical students.Methods: After obtaining approval from the Institutional Ethics Committee of NRI Academy of Medical Sciences, Guntur, India, this cross sectional study was conducted in second year medical students after taking their consent. A sample of 90was considered for statistical analysis. A structured questionnaire was used to measure the objective of this study, which had general, regulatory and ethical questions related to clinical trials. Qualitative data variables were expressed by using frequency and Percentage (%).Results: Out of 90 students, it was observed that in the general questions category, 70% of students were aware of the purpose of conducting clinical trials, 50% were aware of the pre-requisites for a participant before participating in a clinical trial and 50% were aware of the parameters evaluated in a clinical trial. 95% of students did not know the response for regulatory questions. The students’ awareness regarding ethics related to clinical trials was better than the other two categories.Conclusions: The overall awareness of clinical trials was low among students though they demonstrated good awareness regarding few aspects of clinical trials.
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Introduction: For medical students, second year is crucial, as they enter the clinical postings for the first time and are taught about the pathogenesis of disease, which will enable the students understand medicine with better concept. It is an agreed fact that regular reviewing of teaching learning methods of the teachers is necessary for improvement. Hence to find out the perception regarding the didactic lecture method being followed, the present study was conducted using feedback in form of questionnaire from students. Materials and methods: 197 II year MBBS students appearing for their Part II final university exams were asked to fill up the structured pre-validated feedback questionnaire regarding the didactic lecture method of teaching being followed at pathology department. Questionnaire included set of questions on T/L methods and on the changes recommended. Descriptive statistics were used in the form of frequency distribution and percentages were used to analyze the data. Results: Study showed female preponderance. Majority of the students found the subject to be interesting and agreed that knowledge about pathology helps in clinical posting. 35.53% of the students found general pathology to be difficult subject. Students were satisfied with clinical correlation, content and explanation given to clarify the subject during the lectures. Most of the students agreed that they were encouraged to asked questions and give answers during lectures, and were satisfied with the delivery and pace of lecture. Readability, usefulness and innovative methods S. S. S. Quadri, Shyamala Srujana, S Mahesh, B. Bheeshma. Undergraduate medical students’ feedback and perceptions on teaching learning methodology in Pathology at Government Medical College. IAIM, 2016; 3(7): 28-35. Page 29 during lecture presentation were found to be satisfactory. 56.33% of students agreed that didactic lecture is a very effective teaching learning method. Majority of the students felt the strong need for introduction of integrated teaching, case based and group discussion. Conclusion: Taking feedbacks from the students is one of the accepted and reliable methods of assessment. Majority of the students were satisfied with the present teaching learning method. Introduction of integrated teaching and case based and group based discussion was favored by majority of the students.
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Objective To explore the abilities and personal qualities that medical undergraduates need for their future clinical work, and develop their competency model. Methods The self-made ques-tionnaire survey on medical undergraduates' competencies was conducted among the 1326 medical under-graduates in a medical university by using the cluster sampling method, and the 1099 effective question-naires were collected with effective rates of 82.88%. The exploratory factor analysis was used to analyze the internal structure of competency item and to build the competency model. The rating method was used to calculate the weight of each competency item. Results The overall Cronbach's alpha coefficient of the competency questionnaire was 0.965, and the coefficient of each dimension was above 0.832. The KMO statistic value was 0.970, and the probability associated with Bartlett test statistic was P=0.000, showing that the questionnaire has high reliability and validity. The competency model of medical undergraduates covers six aspects, namely, craftsmanship, personal qualities, professional learning, interpersonal communication, psychological adaptation and the pursuit of excellence, which contain 49 factors. The cumulative variance contribution rate was 54.729%. The weights of these six aspects in the model were 0.204 4, 0.202 1, 0.175 3, 0.158 8, 0.137 6 and 0.121 8 respectively. Conclusion The competency model of undergraduate medi-cal students has a certain scientific and practical value, which can provide new evaluation methods and ideas for medical education objectives, quality assurance, teaching evaluation, medical personnel selection and training.
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Background: According to WHO’s definition, “self-medication is the selection and use of medicines by individuals to treat self-recognized illnesses or symptoms”. A sensible clinical use of antimicrobials is crucial to prevent the occurrence of antimicrobial resistance. As undergraduate medical students are aware of the various antimicrobial agents and diseases, this study assessing antimicrobial self- medication carries a significant value. Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was conducted among the undergraduate medical students of Adichunchanagiri Institute of Medical Sciences, BG Nagar, Mandya, Karnataka. Results: The prevalence of antimicrobial self-medication among the medical undergraduates was 48.4%. Male student participation was 53.2%, whereas female students 46.8%. Among the antimicrobial agents self-medicated, azithromycin (55.6%) was the most common, followed by amoxicillin (12.3%), ciprofloxacin (7.4%), ofloxacin (6.2%), cefixime (4.9%), levofloxacin (3.7%), metronidazole (2.5%), amoxicillin + clavulanic acid (2.5%) and others (5%). The indications for self-medication reported were upper respiratory infection (66.6%), gastroenteritis (12.3%), fever (11.1%), boils (3.7%), acne, tonsillitis and urinary tract infection, 1.2% each. Reasons for seeking self-medication: About 54.4% students felt that their illness is mild in nature and 21% were confident about the illness and treatment. Choice of antimicrobial agents was based on previous prescription of physicians (51.6%) and textbook knowledge (39%). 90% of students had completed the course of treatment, 76.1% were aware of antimicrobial resistance and 92% students considered self-medication as a component of self-care. Conclusions: Our study shows that antimicrobial self-medication is widely practiced among under-graduate medical students of the institute. In this situation, faculties should create awareness and educate their students regarding advantages and disadvantages of antimicrobial self-medication.
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Background: Self-medication with analgesics is widely practiced among medical students. Self-medication is defined as “the selection and use of medicines by individuals to treat self-recognized illnesses or symptoms.” It assumes a special significance among the undergraduate medical students as they are aware of the available analgesic medications. Our study would evaluate the pattern of analgesic self-medication among undergraduate medical students of Adichunchanagiri Institute of Medical Sciences (AIMS), BG Nagar. Methods: A cross-sectional questionnaire-based study was done from January to March 2014 among undergraduate medical students, AIMS, BG Nagar. 218 students consented for the study out of 250 students and filled in the questionnaire. 20 incomplete questionnaires were excluded and the remaining 198 were analyzed. Results: Our study showed that 63.6% of the students practiced analgesic selfmedication. 68.2% sought self-medication for headache followed by body pain (9.7%), low backache (5.1%), fever (4.5%) and joint pain (3.8%). Paracetamol was used by 47.2%, diclofenac by 20.5%, ibuprofen by 7.5%, aspirin by 6.8%, and aceclofenac by 4.1%. Self-medication was based on the use of previous prescriptions in 42.1% of the students and textbook knowledge in 39.1% of the students. 26.4% students complained that pain reduced concentration in studies. 61.6% students stated the mild nature of illness as the reason for self-medication. 91.9% of the students felt that self-medication is a part of self-care. 61.2% of the students were aware of the side-effects of the analgesic medications. Conclusion: Our study shows that self-medication with analgesics is high among the undergraduate medical students of this institute. Although it is an easy way to treat mild to moderate pain, it may be accompanied with side effects, drug interactions, and toxicities. Hence, we conclude that there is a need to create awareness, and educate the students regarding the possible harmful effects of self-medication with analgesics.
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Increasing substance abuse and its impact on physical and psychosocial health is a worldwide public health concern. Adolescence is the period when initiation of these habits usually takes place. During adolescence students are more vulnerable due to increased academic pressure, peer group influence and increased popularity and availability of substances. Understanding the pattern and circumstances leading to substance abuse will help to go for appropriate interventions to protect the young adults from substance abuse. Aims and Objectives: To find out the prevalence and causes of substance abuse among undergraduate students of three medical colleges of Bhubaneswar. Materials and methods: All the undergraduate students of the three colleges present on the day of survey (1188) were included in the study; data was collected using a pre-tested structured questionnaire. Compilation and analysis of data was done subsequently using proportion and chi square test as statistical test. Results: Prevalence of substance abuse was found to be 45.87% with a male (74.03%). Predominance. Cigarette (72%) was found to be the most common substance of abused followed by alcohol (68%), gutkha (24%) and drugs (23%) Staying in hostel, non-satisfactory intra- familial relationship favoured substance abuse. Curiosity about the substance, academic and peer pressure, family problems were the major initiating factors. Conclusion: Continuing use of these substances in spite of knowledge of hazards associated with them reflected lack of health consciousness and need of proper health education .So, proper counselling with well planned policies should be implemented to root out the evil of substance abuse among the future doctors which will help in providing better health care services to the people.