Comparing vape use and perceptions among pharmacy and non-pharmacy students from two universities in the US and UK

Introduction. Little research exists regarding pharmacy student vaping habits or differences among students from different countries. Methods. A novel 19-item questionnaire was distributed in November 2023 to students at The University of Bath (United Kingdom) and The University of Texas at Austin (United States) to compare vape use and perceptions among pharmacy and non-pharmacy students from the two universities. All pharmacy students at both institutions were invited to complete the survey. A non-pharmacy student control group was identified through snow-ball sampling (i.e., the survey was distributed to a convenience sample of non-pharmacy students at each school, asking them to complete and distribute to peers). To incentivize participation, one respondent received a $100 reward. Data was analyzed using descriptive statistics. Chi-square and Wilcoxon Rank Sum tests were used to compare answers between pharmacy and non pharmacy and UK and US participants. A p-value < 0.05 was deemed significant. Results. Overall, 372 students completed the survey (25% pharmacy student response rate). Vape use significantly differed between pharmacy and non-pharmacy students (p = 0.03). Among 212 pharmacy students, 49% reported vape ever-use versus 59% of the 158 non-pharmacy students. Significant differences were found in harm perceptions; more pharmacy students believed vapes are cancer-causing, affect the health of others nearby, should be banned in public, and are ineffective for quitting cigarettes. Few differences were observed between UK and US students. Conclusion. Pharmacy students were less likely to vape and exhibited heightened awareness of associated risks than non-pharmacy students. Few differences were observed between UK and US students surveyed.