The majority of students trust their attending physician. But they only go there when necessary, mainly because of the price of the consultation, according to a study.
The general practitioner is popular with students. The Student Health survey of the SMEREP student health insurance company, delivered on March 12, shows that this young public trusts health professionals, even if it considers the health expenses to be too high.
According to the results of the Harris Interactive poll, 14% of students believe medicine is too expensive. They are as many to give up care for lack of means, a rate which climbs to 28% among young people in financial difficulty. The increase in the price of consultations, coupled with the reduction in certain coverage and reimbursement of certain drugs, is also denounced by those surveyed.
Faced with these ever-increasing expenses, students are organizing themselves to avoid them. In the event of illness, a majority confirms “wait for it to pass” (75%) or practice self-medication (61%). In this case, they tend to consume the drugs already available in the medicine cabinet. One in five students say they plan to buy it on the Internet. They are also two thirds to seek the opinion of their relatives before consulting a specialist. The consultation with the general practitioner appears at the bottom of the podium, followed by far by the pharmacist and the Internet sites.
If necessary, the students are still 3/4 to go to a health professional. This time, the general practitioner is at the top of the ranking. Moreover, 85% of young people say they trust their doctor. Next come the dentist, ophthalmologist and gynecologist. Overall, students trust healthcare professionals, whether they are in the pharmacy (74% positive reviews) or in the hospital (78%). The institutions are less well received: the Ministry of Health collects less than a third of positive opinions and the level of confidence in the pharmaceutical industry drops to 27%.
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