Assessing the use of social media by medical and pharmacy students for drug-related and medical information in Saudi Arabia: A cross-sectional study
Ghadah H. Alshehri, Lama A. AlshabaniBackground
Social media platforms have emerged as frequently used sources of health- and drug-related information for medical and pharmacy students, especially in rapidly evolving knowledge fields. The extent to which students rely on these platforms and their perceived credibility and influence on professionalism and learning remain underexplored in Saudi Arabia.
Methods
We conducted a cross-sectional survey of 528 undergraduate medical and pharmacy students at accredited universities in Saudi Arabia, reported in accordance with CROSS guidelines. Data were collected using an electronic questionnaire that measured the frequency and patterns of social media use for drug information, perceived reliability, engagement practices, risk perception, and willingness to recommend social media for academic purposes. Descriptive statistics and chi-square tests were used to analyze the associations between demographic variables and usage patterns.
Results
Over 93% of the students reported using social media for drug-related information, with X (Twitter), YouTube, Telegram, and TikTok being the most commonly accessed platforms. Nearly half (48.87%) believed that social media significantly enhanced their drug and pharmacology knowledge. while 44.15% reported always verifying information through trusted sources, 44.53% reported that they sometimes verify, and 10.94% never verified. However, 76% of respondents perceived risks, particularly misinformation and drug misuse. Although usage patterns were inconsistent across disciplines, we found differences between specific behaviours, such as medical students’ willingness to recommend social media as a source of information more frequently than pharmacy students (p ≤ 0.05).
Conclusions
Saudi medical and pharmacy students extensively use social media for medical information but remain cautious about reliability and risks. Educational initiatives should focus on developing critical appraisal skills for social media content while promoting responsible digital professional behaviour.