Objective: Nutrition is an important issue in medical training, but the nutritional knowledge, attitudes and practices of medical students in Taiwan have not been elucidated.
Methods: This investigation was a need assessment that examined knowledge, attitude and practices of medical students in selected areas of nutrition. A national sample of 528 senior medical students from nine medical colleges in Taiwan participated in this study by completing a questionnaire.
Results: On a 10-point scale, the average score of students on general and clinical nutritional knowledge was 5.99 +/- 1.51 and 5.15 +/- 1.77, respectively. The percentage of correct answers from questionnaires in both areas was 60% and 52%, respectively. Seventy-seven percent or more of the students reported that they either agreed or strongly agreed with four positive-attitude statements and either disagreed or strongly disagreed with two out of three negative-attitude statements. Between 30% and 61% of the students reported that they practice on nutrition-related individual behaviors.
Conclusions: The knowledge, attitudes and practices of senior medical students in Taiwan suggest the need for education strategies to improve competence in the area of nutrition.
PIP: A questionnaire administered to 528 senior medical students from all 9 medical colleges in Taiwan revealed a need for curriculum modifications to improve nutrition-related knowledge, attitudes, and practices. At present, 5 of the medical schools offer elective courses on nutrition, but a nutrition curriculum is not required during medical training. The 20 items on the questionnaire concerned the nutritional functions of various nutrients, nutrition management in disease states, nutrition in disease prevention, and nutrition status assessment. On a 10-point scale, the average score was 5.99 on general nutrition knowledge and 5.15 on clinical nutritional knowledge. Correct responses were highest (77.0%) on the 2 questions concerning the nutritive content of foods and lowest (17.35%) on nutrition status assessment. Only 50% knew the definition of a balanced diet and just 30% were concerned about the caloric content of their own diet. Overall, these findings suggest that nutrition education, including an evaluation of one's own diet, should be incorporated into the training programs of Taiwanese medical students.