Knowledge and management of first-aid skills between medical and non-medical students at King Saud University
Suhail Mohsen Basuhail, Bader K. Al Hammad, Bader G. Aldhafeeri, Mohammed F. Alquhayz, Mohammed S. Alqahtani, Hussain F. Alkharboush, Yousef A. Al Turki
Abstract
Objectives: The study aims to determine the knowledge of first-aid management in medical and non-medical students and how they will act in certain situations. Methods: A cross-sectional study has been conducted on a convenience sampling of 375 (medical and non-medical) students. The research proposal was approved by the IRB Committee of King Saud University. The data has been obtained randomly by a validated questionnaire in a sample of 381 participants. The questionnaire had items related to knowledge and management of first-aid skills. The study was conducted from August 2020 to May 2021 in King Saud University. Results: The participants in the current study were medical (53.02%) and non-medical students (46.98%). Overall results showed that all students possessed a good knowledge of first-aid management, but medical students possessed more knowledge in comparison to non-medical students. The awareness of students related to first-aid management was found to be 32.02% 'high', 56.43% 'middle' and 11.54% 'low'. Moreover, results illustrated that medical students are more interested to attend first-aid courses than non-medical students by 60.4% and 43.6% respectively. Conclusion: The study revealed the participants' knowledge and management were not adequate. A statistically significant association was found between being a medical student and having a high level of knowledge about first aid. Awareness campaigns must be conducted to increase awareness among the non-medical community about first-aid knowledge, and how it is essential for every individual.