Ankara’da Bir Tıp Fakültesinde Eğitim Gören Tıp Öğrencilerinde Çevresel Risk Algısının Değerlendirilmesi

İngilizce (OpenAlex)

Objective: This descriptive study aimed to assess medical students’ risk perceptions regarding environmental risks through an online survey. Methods: The study included 5th and 6th-grade students at a Medical Faculty in Ankara, Turkey. Participants were invited to take part in the study via email, and data were collected through an online questionnaire. The questionnaire included sociodemographic characteristics, career preferences, activities related to environmental health, risk perceptions regarding 20 environmental issues, opinions on environmental problems, and education. Results: The top five perceived risk issues were climate change (85.2%), water pollution (78.4%), fossil fuels (74.7%), air pollution (74.7%), and chemical pollution in food (66.7%). Gender, perceived health, healthy behaviors, membership in an environmental NGO, and engagement in environmental activities were associated factors in environmental risk perception scores. More than half of the students found the topics related to the impacts of climate change in their medical education to be insufficient. Gender and membership of an environmental NGO were significant factors in multivariate analysis.Conclusion: Developing curricula and extracurricular activities centered the environment may enhance physicians’ contributions to mitigating climate change and promoting sustainable healthcare practices.