Journal of Medical Education and Curricular Development

Aims:

• To explore organ donation and transplantation knowledge and attitudes among medical students at the University of Auckland.

• To understand students’ perception of the extent of training received prior to and during the medical program.

Method: A validated web-based questionnaire consisting of 42 questions in five categories was anonymously administered to all enrolled medical students at the Faculty of Medical and Health Sciences, University of Auckland, in September 2012.

Results: In all, 419 out of 989 (42%) Year 2–6 students responded. A total of 99.3% of medical students supported organ donation, but knowledge was limited (mean score 7.54/15 ± 2.26). A total of 38% of students reported having participated in organ donation learning. A total of 96% of students believed that organ donation information should be available in primary care settings. A total of 69% of students reported that if a patient asked a question about organ donation that they did not know the answer to, they also would not know where to source the correct information from.

Conclusion: This study demonstrates that although medical students support organ donation, they lack the knowledge required to facilitate informative discussions with patients. Enhanced organ donation education in medical programs may enable students to develop skills and knowledge allowing them to better discuss donation with patients.