Foreign Medical Students in Eastern Europe: Knowledge, Attitudes and Beliefs about Medical Cannabis for Pain Management

Vsevolod Konstantinov, Alexander Reznik, Masood Zangeneh, Valentina Gritsenko, Natallia Khamenka, Vitaly Kalita and Richard Isralowitz
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Vsevolod Konstantinov: Department of the General Psychology, Penza State University, 440026 Penza, Russia
Alexander Reznik: Regional Alcohol and Drug Abuse Research Center, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 8410501, Israel
Masood Zangeneh: School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Humber College Institute of Technology and Advanced Learning, Toronto, ON M9W 5L7, Canada
Valentina Gritsenko: Department of Social Psychology, Moscow State University of Psychology and Education, 123290 Moscow, Russia
Natallia Khamenka: Department of Psychiatry and Medical Psychology, Belarusian State Medical University, 220116 Minsk, Belarus
Vitaly Kalita: Department of Pedagogy and Psychology of Professional Education, Moscow State University of Technology and Management Named after K.G. Razumovski, 109004 Moscow, Russia
Richard Isralowitz: Regional Alcohol and Drug Abuse Research Center, Ben Gurion University of the Negev, Beer Sheva 8410501, Israel

IJERPH, 2021, vol. 18, issue 4, 1-9

Abstract: Objective: To assess the knowledge, attitudes, and beliefs of foreign students toward the use of medical cannabis (MC) for pain management. Methods: This study uses data collected from 549 foreign students from India ( n = 289) and Middle Eastern countries mostly from Egypt, Iran, Syria, and Jordan ( n = 260) studying medicine in Russia and Belarus. Data collected from Russian and Belarusian origin medical students ( n = 796) were used for comparison purposes. Pearson’s chi-squared and t -test were used to analyze the data. Results: Foreign students’ country of origin and gender statuses do not tend to be correlated with medical student responses toward medical cannabis use. Students from Russia and Belarus who identified as secular, compared to those who were religious, reported more positive attitudes toward medical cannabis and policy change. Conclusions: This study is the first to examine the attitudes, knowledge, and beliefs toward medical cannabis among foreign students from India and Middle Eastern countries studying in Russia and Belarus, two countries who oppose its recreational and medicine use. Indian and Middle Eastern students, as a group, tend to be more supportive of MC than their Russian and Belarusian counterparts. These results may be linked to cultural and historical reasons. This study provides useful information for possible medical and allied health curriculum and education purposes.

Keywords: medical cannabis; foreign medical students; pain management (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2021
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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