Knowledge, attitude, and intended practice of abortion among medical students in Thailand after the amendment of the Thai abortion law

Abstract

Objectives

Following the amendment of the Thai abortion law in February 2021, the authors conducted an anonymous survey to assess knowledge, attitude, and intended practice toward abortion among fifth-year medical students at Chulalongkorn University.

Study design

The authors developed a self-administrated questionnaire consisting of three parts: knowledge of the recently amended Thai abortion law, attitude toward abortion, and intended practices. Pilot testing showed a high Cronbach's alpha and test-retest reliability coefficient.

Results

Of the 292 surveyed medical students, 70% completed the questionnaire. The mean ± standard deviation of the knowledge part was 6.9 ± 1.8, of which the maximum score was 10. Nearly half of the participants (45.6%) answered at least 80% of the knowledge statements correctly. Sixty-four percent of participants answered correctly on the gestational limit for first-trimester abortion. Around one-third of participants answered correctly on the gestational limit for second-trimester abortion. Most participants (86.8%) agreed that abortion is a woman’s right. The most acceptable conditions for abortion were pregnancy as a result of rape (93%) and serious anomalies that cause a nonviable neonate (95.6%).

Conclusions

Participants exhibited a lack of understanding regarding the legal gestational limit, which is a key aspect of the amendment. The findings of this study urge medical schools to emphasize the revised Thai abortion law in the Obstetrics and Gynecology curriculum.

Implications

Our results show that encouraging medical students to have up-to-date knowledge regarding the amendment of Thai abortion law may support their future decision to provide safe abortion services.