Attitudes of Medical and Pharmacy Students
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ORIGINAL SCIENTIFIC PAPER ORIGINALNI NAUČNI RAD ORIGINAL SCIENTIFIC PAPER ATTITUDES OF MEDICAL AND PHARMACY STUDENTS TOWARDS PATIENTS SUFFERING FROM SCHIZOPHRENIA Dragana Ignjatovic-Ristic1, Ana Solujic2, Andrea Obradovic1, Katarina Nikic-Djuricic1, Marija Draskovic1, Jelena Jovic3, Nemanja Rancic4, Milena Jovicic1, Ivan Ristic5 1Psychiatry Clinic, Clinical Centre Kragujevac and Faculty of Medical Sciences, University of Kragujevac, Kragujevac, Serbia 2Pharmacy Gornji Milanovac, Gornji Milanovac, Serbia 3School of Medicine, University of Prishtina-Kosovska Mitrovica, Department of Preventive Medicine, Kosovska Mitrovica, Serbia 4Centre for Clinical Pharmacology and Military Medical Academy Medical Faculty, University of Defence, Belgrade, Serbia 5Medical Faculty, University of Belgrade, Belgrade, Serbia STAVOVI STUDENATA MEDICINE I FARMACIJE PREMA PACIJENTIMA OBOLELIM OD SHIZOFRENIJE Dragana Ignjatović-Ristić1, Ana Šolujić2, Andrea Obradović1, Katarina Nikić-Đuričić1, Marija Drašković1, Jelena Jović3, Nemanja Rančić4, Milena Jovičić1, Ivan Ristić5 1Klinika za psihijatriju, Klinički centar Kragujevac i Fakultet medicinskih nauka, Univerziteta u Kragujevcu, Kragujevac, Srbija 2Apoteka Gornji Milanovac, Gornji Milanovac, Srbija 3Medicinski fakultet, Univerzitet u Prištini - Kosovska Mitrovica, odsek Preventivne medicine, Kosovska Mitrovica, Srbija 4Centar za kliničku farmakologiju; Medicinski fakultet Vojnomedicinske akademije, Univerzitet odbrane, Beograd, Srbija 5Medicinski fakultet, Univerziteta u Beogradu, Beograd, Srbija Received / Primljen: 26. 07. 2016. Accepted / Prihvaćen: 31. 07. 2016. ABSTRACT SAŽETAK Research over the past twenty years has shown that the Istraživanja ukazuju da su u poslednjih dvadeset godi- attitudes of health care workers and students towards peo- na stavovi javnosti, ali i zdravstvenih radnika i studenata ple who are suff ering from schizophrenia have become more prema obolelima od shizofrenije postali negativniji. Cilj negative. Th e aim of our study was to investigate the atti- rada je da se ispitaju stavovi studenata medicine i farmaci- tudes of medical and pharmacy students towards patients je prema pacijentima obolelim od shizofrenije i da li postoje with schizophrenia and explore the diff erences in attitudes razlike u stavovima između studijskih grupa kao i između between study groups and students in diff erent years. Ma- studenata različitih godina studija. Materijal i metod: Op- terials and methods: Second- and fi fth-year medical and servacionom prospektivnom studijom preseka obuhvaćeni pharmacy students from the Faculty of Medical Sciences su studenti druge i pete godine farmacije i medicine Fakul- at the University of Kragujevac were included in an obser- teta medicinskih nauka Univerziteta u Kragujevcu. Uzorak vational, prospective, cross-sectional study. Th e sample je činilo 113 ispitanika, koji su birani metodom slučajnog consisted of 113 students from the pharmacy and medical uzorka. Ispitanici su popunjavali upitnik koji je u prvom schools who were chosen via random sampling. Th e students delu sadržao pitanja o sociodemografskim karakteristi- completed a two-part questionnaire. Th e fi rst part contained kama, a drugi deo predstavlja prevedenu verziju Mental questions about sociodemographic characteristics, whereas Illness: Clinician’s Attitudes (MICA) v4 scale. Rezultati: the second part was a translated version of the Mental Ill- Naši rezultati pokazuju da postoji statistički značajna ra- ness: Clinician’s Attitudes (MICA) v4 scale. Results: Th ere is zlika (р<0.05) u stavovima prema osobama obolelim od a statistically signifi cant diff erence (р<0.05) in the attitudes shizofrenije između studenata druge i pete godine medici- towards people with schizophrenia between second- and ne i farmacije, pri čemu su niži skorovi kod studenata pete fi fth-year medical and pharmacy students (with lower scores godine u obe grupe. Od ukupnog broja studenata koji su in both groups in fi fth-year students). Of the total number of imali niže vrednosti sumarnog skora na Likertovoj skali za students who had lower summed scores on the Likert scale, procenu stavova studenata prema osobama obolelim od 51.3% had previously fi nished medical high school, whereas shizofrenije, 51,3% bili su studenti koji su završili srednju 28.3% had previously fi nished regular high school. Conclu- medicinsku školu, dok su 28,3% bili studenti koji su završili sion: Our results showed a statistically signifi cant diff erence gimnaziju. Zaključak: Postoji statistički značajna razlika in attitudes towards people with schizophrenia between sec- u stavovima o obolelima od shizofrenije između studenata ond- and fi fth-year students as well as a diff erence related to druge i pete godine studija i u odnosu na završenu srednju previous high school education. Th is stresses the importance školu ispitanika. Naše istraživanje nedvosmisleno ukazuje of levels of knowledge about schizophrenia to reducing the da je nivo znanja o shizofreniji bitan za smanjenje stigma- stigmatization of patients who suff er from this disorder. tizacije obolelih od ove bolesti. Keywords: attitude, schizophrenia, students, medicine, Ključne reči: stavovi, shizofrenija, studenti, medicina, pharmacy farmacija UDK: 614.253.8; 615-051:614.253.8; 616.895.8-085 / Ser J Exp Clin Res 2017; 18 (1): 53-59 DOI: 10.1515/SJECR20160055 Corresponding author: Katarina D. Nikic Djuricic, MD, PhD student Psychiatric Clinic, Clinical Centre Kragujevac, Zmaj Jovina 30, 34000 Kragujevac, Serbia 53 Tel.: +381 (0) 34 505 352;, +381 (0)60 334 25 15; E-mail: [email protected] INTRODUCTION ment, many studies investigate the positive influence of certain factors on reducing stigma (social contact, knowl- Attitudes are defined as learned susceptibilities to re- edge in the field of mental health). It has been shown that act to a certain thing or instance in a certain way, either social contact can have a positive effect on shifting nega- positively or negatively (1). In 2007, Tornicroft et al. found tive attitudes towards this population of patients (15-17). that attitudes about a certain occurrence, with inadequate A number of studies have assessed the influence of knowl- knowledge and behaviour that follows such knowledge, edge about mental disorders on medical students’ attitudes contribute significantly to the development of stigmati- (18-20). One of those studies showed that there are no dif- zation. Stigma that is associated with mental disorders is ferences in the attitude towards schizophrenic patients greatly widespread, which is why it is referred to as the ul- between students at a medical high school and medical timate stigma (2). university students, with 78% of the students who were Research shows that over the past twenty years, pub- questioned agreeing that schizophrenic patients are dan- lic attitudes towards patients with schizophrenia have gerous and violent. Additionally, 95% of the students who become more negative (3). Crisp et al. conducted a study were questioned stated that they did not possess enough using a questionnaire in which they found that 70% of the knowledge in this field (21). people who were questioned held the opinion that peo- Few authors in Serbia have addressed the issue of psy- ple with schizophrenia are dangerous and 80% of them chiatric patient stigmatization. Stoiljković et al. found that thought that people with schizophrenia are unstable (4). A medical students are more prone to stigmatize people who situation such as this one directly influences the treatment visit a psychiatrist (22). Munjiza et al. published a first-of- efficiency of schizophrenic patients because their social its-kind study that analysed stigmatization relative to gen- reintegration is already compromised by negative stereo- der and the interaction with schizophrenic patients sepa- types and fear in the general population (5). rately. This study showed that male and female students Contrary to the expectation that health care workers were less likely to stigmatize people of the same gender for have no prejudice and negative attitude towards this group visiting a psychiatrist (23). One of the defined goals of the of patients, research on this subject shows that their atti- research that Totić et al. conducted in 2011 was to inves- tude does not differ from the attitude of the general popu- tigate the attitudes and behaviour of medical students to- lation and is sometimes even more restrictive (6, 7). Given wards psychiatric patients before and after finishing their the importance of the relationship between the physician psychiatry rotation. In this research, education in psychia- and patient in which a positive attitude towards the patient try has involved ambivalence about its effects on stigmati- is required to achieve successful treatment, there is a need zation (i.e., it can enhance or diminish it) (24). for research in the field on attitude of future health care The aim of our study was to investigate the attitudes workers towards these patients. of medical and pharmacy students towards patients with An insufficient number of studies can be found in the schizophrenia. We also explored possible differences in at- literature about the attitude of students towards schizo- titudes between the study groups and between students in phrenia. One of the first research papers on the topic different years. was written in 1989 by Eker, who explored the attitudes of first-year students in Turkey towards different types of mental disorders (8). The results showed that the most