Abstract
The demand for organ transplantation continues to rise due to the spread of serious and chronic diseases, yet only 10% of the need is being met. In Syria, organ donation relies primarily on living donors, highlighting the necessity of promoting deceased organ donation. Therefore, medical college students can play an important role in raising awareness and educating the public to increase organ donation rates. To better understand how medical, dental, and pharmacy students in Syria view organ donation, a cross-sectional study was conducted. Over the course of three weeks, 615 students completed questionnaires that were distributed electronically, via QR codes, and in printed form both on and off campus. The survey included questions about their background, trust in the healthcare system, attitudes toward organ donation, and multiple-choice questions, all collected with strict ethical oversight and informed consent. Social media (43.3%) and university courses (29.9%) emerged as the primary sources of students’ knowledge about organ donation. Overall attitudes were positive (mean = 3.65 ± 0.55). Furthermore, both medical students, participants from high-income family backgrounds, and sixth-year students had significantly more positive attitudes (p < 0.05). However, some barriers, such as lack of trust in the healthcare system, concerns about confidentiality, cultural and religious sensitivities, and perceived discomfort when seeking consent from the families of the deceased, are high. The ongoing war in Syria has exacerbated these challenges. we recommend structured educational programs, transparent healthcare policies to rebuild trust, and targeted social media campaigns.
Data availability
The datasets generated and/or analysed during the current study are not publicly available due to privacy and ethical considerations but are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.
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H.H., M.M.A., N.M.G., S.A., B.M.A., W.M.A., contributed to study design, data collection, analysis, interpretation, manuscript drafting, revision, critical review, scientific consultation, and project management. D.A.N., R.A., T.I.I., O.H.A., T.A., Y.M.A., participated in data collection, conceptualization as well as manuscript drafting and manuscript review and editing. E.A., H.H., H.N.A., M.A.M.M., N.H., contributed to manuscript drafting. Dr. **Hamdah Hanifa** , and Dr. **Kamal Alwannous** conceived and supervised the conduct of the study. All authors reviewed and approved the final version of the manuscript.
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All procedures performed in this study involving human participants complied with the institutional and/or national research committee ethical standards and the 1964 Helsinki declaration and subsequent amendments or equivalent ethical standards. The study was designed and conducted in accordance with the ethical principles established by University of Kalamoon. Therefore, ethical approval was obtained from the Institutional Review Board (IRB) Committee, Faculty of Medicine, University of Kalamoon, Syria (ID Number: 115:2025). Written informed consent was obtained from all the participants for the participation of this study and accompanying images. A copy of the written consent is available for review by the Editor-in-Chief of this journal on request.
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Hanifa, H., Al-Refaai, M.M., Ganama, N.M. et al. Attitudes of healthcare students in Syria toward organ donation and their association with healthcare system distrust in the context of a prolonged war. Sci Rep (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-36630-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-026-36630-y
