Research Article | Open Access
Volume 2025 - 1 | Article ID 302 | http://dx.doi.org/10.51521/IJSA.2025.11.104
Academic Editor: John Bose
Sarah Oreoluwa Olukorode1, Olawale Taiwo Ojo-Rowland1,
Morufat Gbemisola Adelagun1, Regina Aramide Olaleye1
1College of Health Sciences, University of
Ilorin, Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria.
Corresponding author: *Sarah Oreoluwa
Olukorode, College of Health Sciences, University of Ilorin, Email: olukorodeoreoluwa@gmail.com
Citation: Sarah Oreoluwa Olukorode, Olawale Taiwo Ojo-Rowland, Morufat Gbemisola
Adelagun, Regina Aramide Olaleye, (2025).
Knowledge and Perception of Anaesthesia and Anaesthesiologists Among Medical
Students in a Tertiary Institution in Nigeria: A cross-sectional Study. Int J
Surg Anesth, 1(1),1-6.
Copyright: © 2025, Sarah Oreoluwa Olukorode, et al. This is an open-access article
distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0
International License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution and
reproduction in any medium, provided the original author and source are
credited.
Abstract
Background: Anesthesiology often remains unfamiliar to many medical
students, and the responsibilities of anesthesiologists are not widely
comprehended by the students. The aim of this study is to determine the
knowledge and perception of Nigerian medical students about Anaesthesiology as
a specialty, assess their understanding of the roles of anaesthesiologists, as
well as their overall perception of anaesthesiology as a career choice.
Methods: This was a
descriptive cross-sectional study of 250 undergraduate medical students from
the University of Ilorin, Kwara state, who completed a structured online
questionnaire. Descriptive statistics summarized responses, and associations
between variables were tested using the Chi-square statistic, with significance
set at p < 0.05.
Results: 91.2% of participants have some knowledge of anaesthesia.
97.6% of participants identified anaesthesiologists as the professionals
primarily responsible for administering anaesthesia during surgery. 72.4% of
participants agreed that anaesthesiologists are actively involved in
perioperative care. However, only 48.0% rated the specialty as highly or
moderately visible compared with others. Career interest was moderate to high,
with 58.8% considering anaesthesiology as a career option, 27.6% undecided, and
13.6% uninterested. Significant associations were observed between knowledge
level and both academic year (χ² = 49.66, p < 0.001) and age group (χ² =
27.42, p < 0.001).
Conclusion: The study revealed
that most medical students possessed a sound understanding of the
anesthesiologist’s key roles. While overall perceptions are favorable, exposure
to the field remains a key determinant of knowledge and career interest.
Keywords: Anaesthesia education, Anaesthesiologists’ roles, Career perception, Medical student awareness, Medical student career choice, Specialty interest, University of Ilorin, Nigeria.
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