Awareness and attitude towards fertility and parenthood: a comparative study among medical students in Saudi Arabia

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To compare the awareness, attitudes towards fertility, and intentions for parenthood between preclinical and clinical medical students. METHODS: An online cross-sectional study was conducted among preclinical and clinical medical students of King Faisal University, Al Ahsa Saudi Arabia. The study was conducted during the first semester of the academic year of a medical bachelor's degree program, utilizing a convenience sampling technique. A total of 225 students, comprising 148 from the 3rd year and 77 from the 4th year blocks, voluntarily completed self-reported questionnaires. Data analysis was performed using IBM SPSS version-26. RESULTS: The mean age of participants was 21.56±1.55 years, with a slightly higher representation of females (54.2%) compared to males (45.8%). Among the participants, 45.8% were married, and only 11.1% had children, while the majority expressed a desire to have children (73.8%) within the age range of 25-29 years. A significant proportion (44.9%) indicated a preference for 2-3 children. In terms of childcare, most participants agreed to its necessity. Interestingly, females across both academic years showed similar responses regarding the possibility of combining work/study, with almost equal numbers agreeing or remaining undecided. Clinical students exhibited greater fertility knowledge compared to preclinical students, with no significant differences observed based on gender. Furthermore, participants with a family history of infertility were more inclined to consider both IVF and adoption (p-value = 0.0001). CONCLUSION: Clinical-year medical students showed improved understanding of female fertility decline and infertility causes, coupled with positive attitudes towards parenthood at a suitable reproductive age, preferring smaller families.

Keywords

• fertility
• awareness
• saudi arabia
• parenthood
• parents
• students, medical