Abstract

 
 
 
 Purpose: To investigate health professions student’s awareness, attitude, and perception towards the complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) and also to determine the influence of socio- demographic variables on the descriptive outcomes of this study.
 Methods: A descriptive, cross-sectional, comparative study was conducted among Undergraduate Health Professions Students (n=398) at King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences at Riyadh campus, through a validated questionnaire.
 Results: The results of the study revealed that among various modalities of CAM, most students were aware and used prayers/spirituality, followed by nutritional supplements, cupping, massage, herbal medicine and yoga. The least effective modality was aromatherapy, whereas the most harmful modality was acupuncture. The data showed that the students obtained more information from friends/relatives and media and less from formal CAM training/courses. Awareness/self-use and beliefs/attitudes were found to have significant associations (p < 0.05) in regard to gender, parent’s educational level, and family income.
 Conclusion: The study shows that most of the healthcare students are aware of and demonstrate positive attitudes towards the effectiveness and safety of most CAM modalities. However, the lack of formal training or courses is a major barrier towards its use and practice.
 
 
 
Highlights
Traditional medicine, known as complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), has remained an alternative form of treatment
We have evaluated the awareness, self-use, beliefs, and attitudes of health professions students towards CAM in Riyadh and compared these results with a similar study conducted in Jeddah [6]
418 questionnaires were circulated to the students; 398 out of which consented to participate in the study and completed the questionnaires and twenty of them did not take part in the study
Summary
Traditional medicine, known as complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), has remained an alternative form of treatment. Complementary and alternative medicine is more effective in chronic diseases and deals mainly with products or procedures which are not usually considered as a part of allopathic/conventional medicine [1]. Does CAM cover physical health, and has remedies for mental and social problems prevalent in society. NCCIH is looking to combine both the complementary and the conventional methods which have evidence of safety and effectiveness. This health and wellness treatment method is growing all over the world. People have showed interest and trust in CAM as an alternative option for relieving their health-related problems and reducing side effects emerged from conventional therapies [4]. Saudis have showed more interest in CAM and gave their voices to it, accepting it as an alternative therapy. We have evaluated the awareness, self-use, beliefs, and attitudes of health professions students towards CAM in Riyadh and compared these results with a similar study conducted in Jeddah [6]
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