Neurosurgery in Saudi Arabia: Navigating Through Future Pathways and Students' Perspectives

Zhra Muneer Al Sadah, Amer Ayman Altalib, Hosam Maher Al-Jehani

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Neurosurgery is a surgical discipline that demands comprehensive knowledge in other specialties. It is regarded as one of the most competitive specialties. However, there is a new trend toward considering life-style friendly specialties. Therefore, this study aims to assess the neurosurgery perception and identify potential factors influencing such attitudes.

METHODS: An observational, survey-based study was conducted on medical students at the College of Medicine, Imam Abdulrahman bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia. An online-based questionnaire was administered to the participants. It consisted of 2 main parts: the first part collected demographic data, while the second part included 20 Likert scale-based questions. Pearson's χ 2 test was utilized, with statistical significance set at P < 0.05.

RESULTS: A total of 305 medical students from various academic years participated in the questionnaire survey, with nearly an equal gender distribution. Remarkably, a significant majority (76.72%) expressed uncertainty or disagreement regarding the adequacy of neurosurgery education during their medical studies. While a substantial portion of participants (69.5%) found neurosurgery intriguing, almost half (47.87%) indicated that they would not pursue it as their future specialty. The consideration of neurosurgery as a career path showed statistically significant differences in relation to both gender and academic year (P = 0.009 and P < 0.001, respectively).

CONCLUSIONS: This study emphasizes how gender and academic year affect choosing neurosurgery as a career but notes limitations like self-reporting bias and a single-institution scope, which may affect generalizability. Future research might consider national summer training programs to engage more students in neurosurgery.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Pages (from-to)e649-e655
Number of pages7
JournalWorld neurosurgery
Volume187
DOIs
StatePublished - Jul 2024

Keywords

  • Medical education
  • Medical student
  • Neurosurgery
  • Saudi Arabia
  • Specialization
  • Humans
  • Male
  • Young Adult
  • Students, Medical/psychology
  • Neurosurgery/education
  • Career Choice
  • Female
  • Surveys and Questionnaires
  • Adult

ASJC Scopus subject areas

  • Surgery
  • Clinical Neurology

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