Impact of Infectious Diseases training in the perception of antibiotic resistance and rational use of antibiotics among Spanish medical students – a cross-sectional study

Abstract

Background Antibiotic resistance is one of the main public health problems worldwide. One key tool to optimize antibiotic prescription is medical training. The aim of this study is to compare the impact of training in infectious diseases on students’ knowledge of the antibiotic resistance problem and the rational use of antibiotics. Methods We performed a cross-sectional study in the medical school of the University of Navarra. We conducted an anonymous in situ survey of students in each year of training. Data were analyzed grouping the students as follows: GROUP 1: first three years of education, no training in Clinical Microbiology (CM) or in Infectious Diseases (ID); GROUP 2: fourth-year students, training in CM but not ID; GROUP 3: Fifth and sixth-year students who have completed the training in CM and ID. Chi-square test (or Fisher’s exact test when appropriate) was performed to evaluate potential associations. Wilcoxon’s test was used to compare the median correct answers between groups. We used Spearman’s test for correlation between year of training and performance in questionnaire. Results A total of 994 students respond to the survey, 80.4% of the eligible students. Almost all students who had completed infectious diseases training perceive antibiotic resistance as an important problem in comparison with students who had not completed the formation (99.5% in group 3 vs 94.5% in group 1, p = 0.02). Knowledge of antibiotic stewardship underwent a statistically significant change after training in infectious diseases (from 9.2% in group 1 to 52.2% in group 3, p < 0.001). In the training questions block we also found an increase in the average number of correct answers (21.4% in group 1 vs 44.7% in group 3, p < 0.001). When comparing the results of subgroups 3A and 3B we found a significant loss of knowledge as we moved away from training (49% vs 40.9%, p < 0.001). Conclusions The training of medical students is the key to improving both perception and knowledge of infectious diseases. However, we have an opportunity for educational improvement as far as infectious diseases are concerned, regarding both the acquisition of knowledge and its loss as time lapses after training.

The Impact of Antimicrobial Resistance and Stewardship Training Sessions on Knowledge of Healthcare Students of Wah Cantonment, Pakistan

“…A cross-sectional study conducted among 994 medical students in Spain established the effect of the inclusion of infectious disease training in the final year curriculum on the knowledge of students regarding antimicrobial stewardship which increased from 9.3% in the first year to 52.2% in the sixth year of the degree program ( P < .05). 21 This study also established that when an intervention like a training session on AMS was conducted among medical students, the mean AMS knowledge score increased from 59.92 ± 8.10 to 68.56 ± 5.92 ( P < .05).…”

Knowledge, attitudes and behaviours regarding antibiotics use among Cypriot university students: a multi-disciplinary survey

“…Furthermore, a study conducted among United Arab Emirates medical students revealed that study year was a strong determinant of KAP regarding antibiotic use and knowledge, as final year students scored more highly than first-year students [ 23 ]. Furthermore, a study of Spanish medical students found that knowledge of antibiotic stewardship increased significantly after they received infectious diseases (ID) training in their fifth and sixth-years, in comparison to students in their first three years of education without ID training [ 24 ]. Consistent with our study, a survey of 291 Polish medical students, in their first to third years, found they had a high level of knowledge (91.1%) regarding the efficacy of antibiotics against viral infections [ 25 ].…”