Impact of an educational debate on the knowledge of college students on opioids, and factors affecting their perception about addiction

Marin Smillov; Larry N. Smith; Nilanjana S. Caballero; Cristobal Cintron; Hale Toklu

Impact of an educational debate on the knowledge of college students on opioids, and factors affecting their perception about addiction

Abstract

The prescription and illicit use of opioids has greatly increased over the past 2 decades leading to what is currently recognized as the opioid epidemic. In this study, we evaluated the impact of an educational event on the perceptions of college students about opioid use and addiction. A survey was given to 61 students in a community college. The responses of the students who attended the conference (n=31) were compared with those who did not attend (n=30). All the respondents, regardless of the conference attendance, agreed that the opioid use is a serious problem for the community and the individual. Students stated that single use of opioids does not cause addiction (control 59% vs intervention 41%). Overall, 80% of the students agreed that short term use of opioids can cause addiction; however, almost half of these (43%) believed that they will not be addicted after a short term use. There was no significant difference between the two groups. However, the students younger than 25 were two times more likely to believe that they will not be addicted after a short term use of opioids (OR 2.1). This was lower among the students who attended the educational session. Furthermore, educational session significantly (p=0.02) increased their knowledge of opioids (45% vs 55% in the intervention group answered the question correctly). Even though the sample size is too small to draw a generalized conclusion, the present findings demonstrate the importance of the educational activities in increasing awareness towards opioid use and abuse.

Keywords

References

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Details

Primary Language

English

Subjects

Pharmaceutical Biochemistry, Clinical Pharmacology and Therapeutics, Medical Pharmacology

Journal Section

Research Article

Authors

Marin Smillov This is me
United States

Larry N. Smith This is me
United States

Nilanjana S. Caballero This is me
United States

Cristobal Cintron This is me
United States

Hale Toklu ^*
United States

Publication Date

June 27, 2025

Submission Date

December 19, 2018

Acceptance Date

February 24, 2019

Published in Issue

Year 2019 Volume: 23 Number: 5

IZ

https://izlik.org/JA56PA86WP

Cite

RIS / Bibtex

APA

Smillov, M., N. Smith, L., S. Caballero, N., Cintron, C., & Toklu, H. (2025). Impact of an educational debate on the knowledge of college students on opioids, and factors affecting their perception about addiction. Journal of Research in Pharmacy, 23(5), 792-796. https://izlik.org/JA56PA86WP

AMA

1.Smillov M, N. Smith L, S. Caballero N, Cintron C, Toklu H. Impact of an educational debate on the knowledge of college students on opioids, and factors affecting their perception about addiction. J. Res. Pharm. 2025;23(5):792-796. https://izlik.org/JA56PA86WP

Chicago

Smillov, Marin, Larry N. Smith, Nilanjana S. Caballero, Cristobal Cintron, and Hale Toklu. 2025. “Impact of an Educational Debate on the Knowledge of College Students on Opioids, and Factors Affecting Their Perception about Addiction”. Journal of Research in Pharmacy 23 (5): 792-96. https://izlik.org/JA56PA86WP.

EndNote

Smillov M, N. Smith L, S. Caballero N, Cintron C, Toklu H (July 1, 2025) Impact of an educational debate on the knowledge of college students on opioids, and factors affecting their perception about addiction. Journal of Research in Pharmacy 23 5 792–796.

IEEE

[1]M. Smillov, L. N. Smith, N. S. Caballero, C. Cintron, and H. Toklu, “Impact of an educational debate on the knowledge of college students on opioids, and factors affecting their perception about addiction”, J. Res. Pharm., vol. 23, no. 5, pp. 792–796, July 2025, [Online]. Available: https://izlik.org/JA56PA86WP

ISNAD

Smillov, Marin - N. Smith, Larry - S. Caballero, Nilanjana - Cintron, Cristobal - Toklu, Hale. “Impact of an Educational Debate on the Knowledge of College Students on Opioids, and Factors Affecting Their Perception about Addiction”. Journal of Research in Pharmacy 23/5 (July 1, 2025): 792-796. https://izlik.org/JA56PA86WP.

JAMA

1.Smillov M, N. Smith L, S. Caballero N, Cintron C, Toklu H. Impact of an educational debate on the knowledge of college students on opioids, and factors affecting their perception about addiction. J. Res. Pharm. 2025;23:792–796.

MLA

Smillov, Marin, et al. “Impact of an Educational Debate on the Knowledge of College Students on Opioids, and Factors Affecting Their Perception about Addiction”. Journal of Research in Pharmacy, vol. 23, no. 5, July 2025, pp. 792-6, https://izlik.org/JA56PA86WP.

Vancouver

1.Marin Smillov, Larry N. Smith, Nilanjana S. Caballero, Cristobal Cintron, Hale Toklu. Impact of an educational debate on the knowledge of college students on opioids, and factors affecting their perception about addiction. J. Res. Pharm. [Internet]. 2025 Jul. 1;23(5):792-6. Available from: https://izlik.org/JA56PA86WP