Opinions of last year medical students of Tabriz University about social determinants of health and social prescription in helping treatment patients in the outpatient settings, 1402

Abstract

Social prescribing is promoted as an effective way to address social issues relating with health and well-being. The aim of this study is the evaluation of the opinions of last year medical students of Tabriz University about social determinants of health and social prescription in helping treatment patients in the outpatient settings, 1402. Materials and Methods: This research was a descriptive cross-sectional study. In this study, the target population was all medical internship students of Tabriz University of Medical Sciences in 2023 (115 people). The sampling method was cencus. After the approval of the ethics committee, the data was collected online in such a way that the demographic information form and questionnaire were designed online in Google Doc or Porsiline system and its link was provided to medical students through virtual networks such as Instagram, WhatsApp, etc. Answering the questionnaire was done online and the answers were automatically entered in Excel. Results: From the opinion of most of the studied interns, with 57 cases (49.6%), between 20 and 40 percent of physical patients and 38 cases (33.0%), between 40 and 60 percent of mental patients, their problems are related to social determinants of health. Also, from the opinion of most of the studied interns, in common with 37 cases (32.2%), between 40 to 60 percent and 60 to 80 percent of physical patients and 36 cases (31.3%), between 40 to 60 percent of mental patients, their problems are related to inappropriate living conditions. From the opinion of most of the studied interns, with 45 cases (39.1%), between 20 and 40 percent of physical patients and 39 cases (33.9%), between 40 and 60 percent of mental patients, their problems are related to severe social stress. Also, from the opinion of most of the studied interns, with 32 cases (27.8%), between 40 and 60 percent of the physical or mental patients referred are not able to cover their food expenses. From the opinion of most of the studied interns, with 44 cases (38.3%), between 20 and 40 percent of physical patients and 48 cases (41.7%), between 40 and 60 percent of mental patients, the therapeutic role of social prescription is more than physical treatments and drug prescription. From the opinion of the studied interns, with 39 cases (33.9%), between 40 and 60 percent of physical and mental patients referred, the prognosis of their disease can be significantly improved with social prescribing. Also, in this study, if the social prescription is feasible for physical and mental patients with the support of the Ministry of Health, the majority of the studied interns stated that they would prescribe the social prescription.