Prevalence, perceptions, and consequences of substance use in medical students

ABSTRACTBackground: Research regarding the health and wellness of medical students has led to ongoing concerns regarding patterns of alcohol and drug use that take place during medical education. Such research, however, is typically limited to single-institution studies or has been conducted over 25 years ago.Objective: The objective of the investigation was to assess the prevalence and consequences of medical student alcohol and drug use and students’ perceptions of their medical school’s substance-use policies.Design: A total of 855 medical students representing 49 medical colleges throughout the United States participated in an online survey between December 2015 and March 2016.Results: Data showed that 91.3% and 26.2% of medical students consumed alcohol and used marijuana respectively in the past year, and 33.8% of medical students consumed five or more drinks in one sitting in the past two weeks. Differences in use emerged regarding demographic characteristics of students. Consequences of alcohol an...