. Parmeshwar Satpathy; . Nafeha Siddiqui; . Darshan Parida; . Roshan Sutar
Volume 11, Issue 7 , August 2021, , Pages 1-6
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Stress is a subjective experience which creates an obstacle in a person’s path ofachieving his or her goals. It creates negative outcomes among the population. Medical ...
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BACKGROUND: Stress is a subjective experience which creates an obstacle in a person’s path ofachieving his or her goals. It creates negative outcomes among the population. Medical curriculumis very vast and stressful. As doctors are the very important part of society, medical students mustbe allowed to learn their trade in a stress‑free environment. The present study aimed to assess theperceived stress, various sources of stress among medical undergraduate students, and the copingstrategies adopted.MATERIALS AND METHODS: This was a cross‑sectional study conducted among medicalunder‑graduate students studying at a tertiary care hospital situated in Mumbai city of Maharashtrabetween January and June 2018. Using purposive sampling technique, a total of 450 medical studentsfrom 1st year to final year were invited to participate in the study. A self‑administered questionnaireconsisting of sociodemographic details and perceived stress scale questions was used. Logisticregression analysis was carried out to assess the determinants of stress. Odds ratio, 95% confidenceinterval was calculated. P < 0.05 was considered statistically significant.RESULTS: The overall response rate was 79.11%, with 356 out of 450 students returning thequestionnaire. Among 356 participants, 324 participants (91%) were suffering from high levelsof stress. Factors such as curriculum vastness, frequency of examination, competition with peer,performance in examinations, worry about future, loneliness, relation with opposite sex, and qualityof food played a major role in creating additional stress.CONCLUSIONS: The perceived stress was higher among female medical students. Academic factorsare greater perceived cause of stress in medical students in this study. A substantial proportion ofmedical undergraduate students were found to be stressed which necessitates appropriate and timelyinterventions. Reframing the academic curriculum along with examination and evaluation patterns,incorporating extracurricular activities, and establishment of counselling cells in the institution is theneed of the hour.
