Knowledge about diabetes mellitus among Polish medical students

Abstract

Background. Due to high prevalence of diabetes mellitus all over the world it is essential for students who will become doctors of different specialties to possess a basic knowledge of it in this field. This pilot surveybased study was designed to assess diabetes related knowledge among faculty of medicine students from all of the medical universities in Poland. Materials and methods. Students were invited to fulfill the questionnaire during Students' Diabetology Conference and via the Internet (social media). The survey consisted of questions about respondent's age and personal history of diabetes and diabetes related knowledge (etiology, symptoms, risk factors, complications and treatment of diabetes mellitus and additionally a section concerning gestational diabetes). Results. A total number of 1200 medical students from Poland (70% women; mean age [SD] 22.12 [1.83] years of age) completed the survey. Mean test result was 66.62%. The best score was observed in the group of students enrolled in the 5 th and 6 th year of study, and those with diabetes mellitus type 1. Conclusions. The study outcome proves that know ledge about diabetes mellitus among surveyed medical students in Poland is insufficient, therefore persistent improvement in transmitting it during the course of medical education is essential.

Blood glucose level testing in Poland – do socio-economic factors influence its frequency? A nationwide cross-sectional survey

“…The respondents' levels of knowledge varied significantly due to their personal experience of being a diabetic or having a diabetic person in the family. These results correspond with the results of other studies aimed at assessing the awareness of diabetes-related issues among different patient groups [32,33] and in the general population [34,17] in Poland.…”

Polish Women Have Moderate Knowledge of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus and Breastfeeding Benefits

“…In light of the above, there is a need to reinforce the role of obstetricians and midwives as sources of reliable knowledge, which should be reflected in lowering the incidence of some complications during pregnancy. Additionally, as stated by Kwiendacz et al [ 90 ], there is still a need to educate potential doctors in the field of gestational diabetes mellitus more thoroughly, since there are gaps in students’ knowledge related to diabetes. This indicates a need for persistent improvement in spreading diabetology knowledge during medical education in order to more efficiently combat the diabetes epidemic [ 90 ].…”

“…Additionally, as stated by Kwiendacz et al [ 90 ], there is still a need to educate potential doctors in the field of gestational diabetes mellitus more thoroughly, since there are gaps in students’ knowledge related to diabetes. This indicates a need for persistent improvement in spreading diabetology knowledge during medical education in order to more efficiently combat the diabetes epidemic [ 90 ].…”

Adequacy of knowledge of new medical graduates about diagnosis and management of children and adolescents with type 1 diabetes in a developing country

“…Participants with diabetes did not have different knowledge score compared to those without diabetes, p value = 0.128. On the contrary, Kwiendacz et al study that was conducted on Polish medical students showed that those with T1D obtained the best scores of knowledge [ 24 ]. This discripancy between the two studies can be justified by the differences in sample size and the frequency of participants with diabetes.…”