Awareness, Perceptions and Attitudes Towards Cadaveric Body Donation and Embalming Among First-Year MBBS Students: A Descriptive Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction: Cadaveric dissection remains the cornerstone of anatomical education despite advances in digital learning tools. For the same body donation provides an indispensable foundation. Understanding medical students’ awareness and attitudes toward body donation and embalming is important for improving ethical practices and organising donor programs.

Materials and Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted among first-year MBBS students at Government Medical College, Buldhana. The students were given a structured questionnaire via google forms and a total of 84 responses were recorded and analysed.

Result: Only 13.7% of students were aware of body donation prior to joining medical college while 86.3% learned about it after admission into the college. The majority (69.1%) correctly identified anatomical education and research as the primary purpose of body donation with remaining confusing it with organ transplantation. Cultural uncertainty was observed, with 47.4% of students unsure whether body donation aligned with their religious and cultural beliefs. Although appreciation toward cadavers increased after exposure, the willingness for self-donation still remained low at only 12.7%, with many students (45.6%) seeking more information regarding body donation. Sociocultural hesitation remained a major barrier to self-pledging.

Interpretation & Conclusion: The findings highlight the need for structured awareness efforts, pledge drives, and respectful donor-honouring practices. Awareness among students can also be increased by including embalming and body donation in their curriculum so that they have key information regarding it. The more the students are educated, they will be more motivated for self-donation and they in turn can become educators of their communities.