Mz. Alshahri et al., PROMOTION OF HEALTHY LIFE-STYLE - KNOWLEDGE AND ATTITUDES OF PRIMARY-CARE PHYSICIANS, Patient education and counseling, 31(2), 1997, pp. 125-130
This study was conducted in Riyadh city to determine the knowledge and
attitudes of primary health care physicians regarding promotion of ce
rtain healthy lifestyles. Using a stratification technique, 50% of the
male physicians were selected at random. A validated self-administere
d questionnaire was distributed to (and recollected from) the particip
ants. One physician refused to participate resulting in a response rat
e approaching 99%. Most of the physicians (77.5%) were shown to have s
atisfactory knowledge, while only 20% possessed reasonably positive at
titudes. Physicians above 40 years of age were more knowledgeable than
younger age group (P < 0.0001). There was a general pessimism about c
ompliance of patients to lifestyle advice, The relatively acceptable k
nowledge possessed by physicians was not properly translated into posi
tive attitudes towards promotion of healthy lifestyle. To improve the
situation, a greater emphasis should be placed on health promotion dur
ing undergraduate and postgraduate training of physicians. (C) 1997 El
sevier Science Ireland Ltd.