• Julie Dupouy, Aurore Vergnes, Catherine Laporte, Shérazade Kinouani, Marc Auriacombe, Stéphane Oustric, and Marie-Eve Rougé Bugat.
• a Département Universitaire de Médecine Générale , Université de Toulouse III Paul Sabatier, Faculté de Médecine , Toulouse , France.
• Eur J Gen Pract. 2018 Dec 1; 24 (1): 160-166.

BackgroundHigh levels of stigma towards patients with substance use disorder (SUD) have been found in health professionals and medical students.ObjectivesTo assess the capability of residents in general practice to diagnose SUD correctly; to assess their stigmatization of patients with SUD and to assess the correlation between both variables. We hypothesized a negative correlation.MethodsIn 2014, we conducted a cross-sectional survey among French residents in general practice, using a self-administered questionnaire. First, a clinical case of SUD (tramadol) was presented, to assess the diagnosis and retained diagnostic criteria. A second clinical vignette was presented (intravenous heroin user) to assess stigmatization with the Attitudes to Mental Illness Questionnaire (AMIQ). Its score ranges from -10 (negative attitude) to +10 (positive attitude). AMIQ scores of residents who diagnosed SUD correctly versus incorrectly, and who had received at least six hours versus less than six hours of teaching on this topic, were compared using Student's t-test.ResultsOf 1284 solicited residents, 303 participated (23.6%), 249 residents diagnosed SUD correctly (82.2%). The mean AMIQ score was -3.91 (SD 2.4) without significant difference regarding the correct diagnosis of SUD; but with a significant difference between residents who had received training in SUD for at least six hours versus residents less trained (AMIQ scores -3.76 (SD 2.46) versus -4.50 (SD 2.27), p = .0354).ConclusionResidents in general practice had a good capacity to diagnose SUD correctly but on average expressed negative attitudes toward people with SUD. More SUD teaching seems to help in reducing stigmatizing attitudes.

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