ArticleHealth SA = SA Gesondheid2019
Second and third year medical students' self-reported alcohol and substance use, smoking habits and academic performance at a South African medical school.
Article in Health SA = SA Gesondheid, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 21 citations in OpenAlex.
- Prevalence of health risk behaviours related to non-communicable diseases amongst South African university students: a systematic review.Journal of public health (Oxford, England) · 2023Pooled it
- Sociodemographic, lifestyle, and educational environment factors associated with academic performance among Tunisian medical students: a cross-sectional study.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- Perspectives on substance abuse among nursing students and educators in Eastern Cape, South Africa.Health SA = SA Gesondheid · 2026Article
- Decriminalization of cannabis use in South Africa: The perspectives and health outcomes among medical students; A systematic qualitative review.Journal of public health research · 2025Review
- The burden of unlawful use of opioid and associated epidemiological characteristics in Africa: A scoping review.PloS one · 2025Article
- Alcohol and substance use and associated risk factors in nursing undergraduates at a South African university.Health SA = SA Gesondheid · 2025Article
- Use of psychoactive substances among university students from 2019 to 2020: A systematic review.Brain, behavior, & immunity - health · 2024Article
- Shisha Consumption and Presence of Cotinine in Saliva Samples among Students in Public Universities in Coastal Kenya.Global health, epidemiology and genomics · 2024Article
- A Model to Prevent Substance Use/Abuse by Student Nurses at Limpopo College of Nursing, South Africa.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2023Article
- Association between substance use and professional outcomes among medical students: Findings from a Canadian cross-sectional survey.The Canadian journal of addiction · 2022Article
- Article
- Prevalence and Socio-Demographic, Academic, Health and Lifestyle Predictors of Illicit Drug/s Use among University Undergraduate Students in Finland.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2020Article
- Student burnout and engagement: Relationship with adolescent use of alcohol and attitudes towards authority.International journal of clinical and health psychology : IJCHPArticle
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundHealth professional students frequently use alcohol and narcotics. The potential impact on academic performance and professional behaviour is concerning.
aimThis study aimed to determine self-reported use of alcohol, illicit substances (e.g. cannabis, lysergic acid diethylamide [LSD], magic mushroom, cocaine, crack, ecstasy, methamphetamine and heroin), prescription medication and smoking habits, correlating academic performance.
settingFaculty of Health Sciences, University of the Free State.
methodsAn observational, descriptive, cross-sectional study design was used. Information was obtained using a self-administered questionnaire, capturing demographics, self-reported academic performance, drinking and smoking habits, and substance use. Coded responses were analysed using the Remark Office OMR 8 Software System. Descriptive statistics were calculated for categorical variables.
resultsCompleted questionnaires comprised 171 students. A total of 78.4% of second year and 82.8% of third year students reported using alcohol. Twenty-two per cent of second year and 24.1% of third year students reported cannabis use. In the second year group, three (2.7%) students reported using magic mushroom, two (1.8%) reported cocaine, two (1.8%) reported ecstasy and one (0.9%) reported using methamphetamine. Only third year students reported using LSD or 'crack'. Cigarette smoking was common - 31.5% and 35.1% in both groups, respectively. Smokeless tobacco devices were used by 8.5% of second year and 7.1% of third year students. Almost 40% of both groups reported that they had smoked a water pipe. Academic performance achieved was mostly 60% - 69% (38.9%) among second year students and 70% - 79% (46.6%) among third year students.
conclusionSelf-reported use of alcohol and drugs and smoking among medical students is alarming. Additional student support, early identification and referral for management and/or rehabilitation should be a priority at tertiary institutions responsible for training future healthcare professionals.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.