Nursing students’ attitudes towards alcohol, alcoholism and alcoholics: A study of a brazilian sample

Objective: Various international studies have reported on negative attitudes of nurses and nursing students towards substance misusers and have found that this issue receives little attention in professional nursing education. This research examined attitudes towards alcohol, alcoholism and alcoholics in a Brazilian nursing student sample and analyzed associations between these attitudes and participants’ socio-demographic characteristics. Methods: Study participants were 144 last-year undergraduate students from two private colleges. A scale of attitudes towards alcohol, alcoholism and alcoholics was used for data collection. Results: The results showed that most participants had positive attitudes towards alcohol, alcoholism and alcohol addicts. In addition, gender, age and the number of hours participants spent in lectures on alcohol and other drugs during their education were associated with positive attitudes towards their work and interpersonal relationships with alcoholics. This association was stronger in females (OR = 3.42), younger participants (OR = 2.18) and students who received more lecture hours on alcohol and other drugs during their education (OR = 3.53). Conclusion: In conclusion, the authors suggest that education and preparation in coping with alcohol problems increase nurses’ abilities at work and support more positive attitudes towards alcoholic clients. In addition, this study demonstrated that a significant part of students had negative attitudes towards alcohol, alcoholism and alcohol addicts, despite the fact that positive attitudes prevailed in their schools. These results reflect the lack of importance granted to drug issues in undergraduate nursing curricula in Brazil.