Attitude and perception of medical interns towards rural healthcare services in India: A cross-sectional study.

Introduction: To provide equitable distribution of healthcare there is a need for increased number of healthcare professionals willing to provide rural health services. As the interns are the future workforce of India, this study was taken up among them. Aim: To assess the attitude and perception of medical interns towards rural healthcare services and to find out associations between socio-demographic characteristics and their attitude towards rural healthcare. Materials and methods: A cross-sectional study was carried out among 97 interns in a medical college of Odisha, during February to April 2020. A pre-deigned, pretested semi-structured questionnaire was used with questions on attitudes towards rural healthcare services were used to calculate scores and categorize the attitude of the interns into positive and negative. Data was analyzed using SPSS version 20 and results were presented in terms of means, standard deviation and proportions. Chi-square test was applied and p value of <0.05 was considered significant. Results: The mean±S.D. age of the study participants was (23.7±0.96) years. Majority (52%) of them were males. The mean±SD of the total score of respondents' attitudes towards working in rural areas was 43.7±7.76, indicating a negative attitude. Males had a higher mean score. A significant association was found between gender, place of residence, parents' education and the attitude towards rural healthcare services. Conclusions: Even though the interns realized the importance of working in rural areas, their attitude was somewhat negative. Improved residential facilities, opportunities for post-graduation, professional growth and additional allowances for rural service can help in conditioning a more favorable attitude. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]