Assessing Undergraduate Medical Students' Awareness Regarding the Use of ChatGPT as an Educational Tool: A CrossSectional Survey

Abstract

Objective: To examine the level of knowledge, present utilization, and opinions of undergraduate students on the application of ChatGPT for educational objectives. Methodology: This cross-sectional study was carried out at a private medical institution in Pakistan and included 219 participants from various academic years. The data was gathered by employing a pre-tested, structured survey form generated through Google Forms after obtaining informed consent. The gathered data underwent descriptive and inferential analyses using SPSS software version 26.0. Results: Out of the 219 students who were invited, 198 students completed the survey, resulting in a response rate of 90.41%. The average age of the participants was 22.48 ± 0.56 years. Out of the total student population, 92.4% were acquainted with ChatGPT, but 25.9% had never utilized it for educational endeavours. Merely 1% of individuals reported using it frequently, whereas 44.2% used it on occasion. The students exhibited favourable perceptions: 61.6% expressed an improved comprehension, 85.9% placed importance on immediate availability, and 81.3% acknowledged the significance of individualized instruction. The concerns mentioned encompassed information accuracy (65.5%), privacy issues (48.7%), and potential overreliance (42.1%). Proposed enhancements encompassed instantaneous updates, heightened precision and seamless connectivity with educational systems. An overwhelming majority of participants (78.7%) expressed a strong intention to continue using ChatGPT in the future. Conclusion: The findings provide new light on how ChatGPT might be used in medical education. It reveals positive views, major problems, and suggestions for its use. Even though there were some problems, most people still wanted to use ChatGPT in the classroom. It draws attention to the probable influence on medical education's trajectory in the future.