Smoking habits and attitudes of medical, students towards smoking and antismoking campaigns in fourteen european countries

Abstract

From an ongoing global international survey we present the results for 14 European countries. The survey was carried out through a WHO-based questionnaire given to the students at the beginning of their first year and during the course of their final year. Daily smokers comprised 13.7% in first year and 21.5% in final year, with an overall variation between 3 and 33% according to country. There were already 16% of ex-smokers among first year students. More than 50% of smokers had made attempts to quit. 60% of daily smokers, and almost all others, thought that they would no longer be smoking in five years time. Knowledge of aetiology was moderate in first year. It later improved but there remained many lacunae in final year, e.g. less than 30% were aware that smoking was a cause of coronary artery disease. There was little knowledge of public health measures for smoking control. Attitudes were greatly influenced by smoking; ex-smokers were similar to non-smokers, with occasional smokers intermediate between these and daily smokers. Only 25% accepted a preventive and educative role in advising patients. As regards smoking, students were concerned with their personal health and with advising patients whom they knew to have smoking-related disease, but in general had little conception of smoking as a public health problem. The differences between countries indicate that both habits and attitudes are social and cultural problems. In most of the centres there seemed to be much room for improvement of medical education in this field.

High prevalence of smoking in Northern Greece

“…This implies that female medical students do not show the high degree of awareness of the dangers of smoking as might be expected. In 1989, in 14 European countries, the percentage of medical students who were smokers was 21% [8]. For the medical students in this study, the per capita consumption rate of cigarettes was particularly high at 6,345.…”

Knowledge and practices among male medical students regarding smoking and its hazards

“…28 However, this is lower than the prevalence of current smokers in studies of European medical students (21%) and other Asian medical students (18%-24%). [29][30][31] The prevalence of smoking in medical students of our college was higher (47.3%) than the general population 34 and among medical students of neighboring countries; 29% in Saudi Arabia, 10.9% in Syria and 18.5% in Iran. [33][34][35] This may look as an indicator of a more poor health attitude among medical students.…”

Teaching medical students about tobacco

“…17 19 Most students claimed that they would advise a patient to quit only if the subject was raised by the smoker. 17 55 More than half of Turkish students 55 and around 45% of final year students in Africa 16 18 and Tunisia 19 thought that they had suYcient knowledge to counsel smokers, but students knew less about cessation techniques in Europe (27%), 40 Asia (29%), 25 and the former USSR (16%) (table 3).…”