The attitude and knowledge of medical students regarding dementia

Due to the growing number of older people with dementia (PWD) worldwide, there is an urgent need to improve undergraduate medical education on dementia and skills of future health professionals to provide the best quality care for PWD. The study aimed to determine attitudes and knowledge regarding dementia among medical students.

This cross-sectional, survey-based study included 231 final-year medical students who completed the paper-and-pencil questionnaire with seven categories of questions including two dementia knowledge tests.

Students have relatively neutral attitudes towards working with PWD and a rather poor theoretical knowledge in the dementia knowledge exam. Students showed the best theoretical knowledge about the symptoms of Alzheimer's disease, while their knowledge was poor in the field of differential diagnoses, epidemiology, and pathogenesis of Alzheimer's disease. One in 11 sixth-year medical students has never had contact with a person with dementia. The opinion of most students was that they should have spent more time with PWD during their medical education and that there are too few classes in the field of dementia at the School of Medicine. The dementia knowledge test with 23 Multiple-Choice Questions showed a higher internal consistency compared to the Alzheimer's Disease Knowledge Scale.

There is an urgent need to increase the interest and improve attitudes and knowledge towards dementia for all future health care professionals from the earliest student days to provide the best care for PWD.