Conocimientos y actitudes frente a la donación de órganos en estudiantes de la Facultad de Ciencias Médicas de la Universidad de Cuenca, marzo – mayo 2024

Abstract

Background: for many patients, organ donation is the last hope to improve their quality of life or even save it. However, there is a shortage of organs due to low donation rates; therefore, the health area represents an important link between society and the health system, therefore, it can promote and increase organ donation. General objective: determine the level of knowledge and attitudes towards organ donation in students of the Faculty of Medical Sciences of the University of Cuenca, march – may 2024. Methodology: cross- sectional descriptive study. A population of 362 students was obtained through random probabilistic sampling. For data collection, the PCID-DTO- RIOS Questionnaire, validated in studies from Spain, and a knowledge form, validated in an article from Puerto Rico, were used. For the analysis, descriptive statistics were used and the results were represented in frequency tables using programs such as Microsoft Excel and Epi Info ™ 7. Results: 52% of the students of the Faculty of Medical Sciences have sufficient knowledge about organ donation and transplantation. 73,2% have favorable attitude, with reciprocity and solidarity as the most frequent reasons; in those who are against the issue, 42,11% decided not to express their reasons and in those who did, the most frequent reasons were religious and rejection of the idea of body mutilation. Conclusion: the level of knowledge and attitudes in favor of organ donation and transplantation is apparently lower than that reported in other institutions in this country, but comparable to that reported in foreign studies.