ArticleAfrican journal of primary health care & family medicine2020
Pain knowledge and attitudes of final-year medical students at the University of Cape Town: A cross-sectional survey.
Article in African journal of primary health care & family medicine, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 2 papers.
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2 citing papers in PubMed, 8 citations in OpenAlex.
- A novel virtual reality-based educational module to address gaps in morphine titration training among medical students.BMC medical education · 2026Article
- A cross-sectional study on pain neurophysiology knowledge among Spanish primary healthcare professionals.Scientific reports · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
3 authors at 1 institution in 1 country.
Funding
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Abstract
backgroundPain is the most common presenting complaint in patients visiting a healthcare facility. Healthcare professionals need adequate knowledge of pain to be able to manage it effectively.
aimThe aim of this study was to determine the pain knowledge and attitudes of the 2018 final-year medical students at the University of Cape Town (UCT).
settingThis study was conducted by the Department of Anaesthesia and Perioperative Medicine in the Faculty of Health Sciences, UCT, South Africa, with final-year medical students.
methodsUnruh's Modified Pain Knowledge and Attitudes (MPKA) questionnaire was utilised to collect data in a cross-sectional survey using an Internet-based electronic format.
resultsA total of 104 students out of 232 students in the class (44.8%) participated in the study. The total median score on the MPKA questionnaire was 46 (interquartile range [IQR] 44-50.5) out of 57, or 80.7% (IQR 77.2-88.6%). The participants performed worst in the section on the pharmacological management of pain with median scores of 6 (IQR 4-8) (55%) correct out of 11 questions.
conclusionPain knowledge, especially with regard to the pharmacological aspects of pain management, has some important deficiencies in these final-year medical students. It appears that the undergraduate curriculum and teaching thereof would benefit from a review of the pain curriculum.
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