A Stress Management Program for Higher Risk Medical Students: Preliminary Findings

Abstract

Approximately 10 % of first year medical students have clinically relevant anxiety or depression which may affect academic success and quality of life. This study tested the effects of a stress management intervention on indicators of anxiety, depression and self-efficacy in self-selected first year medical students. Forty two medical students volunteered to participate and provided informed consent. An eight session intervention was offered and focused on building relaxation skills, adaptive coping, and basic nutrition. Anxiety, depression, and self-efficacy were assessed pre and post intervention. This group of students had significantly higher baseline values of depression and anxiety but lower self-efficacy compared to a previous study of medical students at the same institution (p < 0.03). After the intervention, statistically significant improvements were observed in anxiety (p < 0.05), and self-efficacy (p < 0.05), but not in depression. The entering levels of anxiety and depression in this group suggested that these students were at risk for later clinical syndromes. Intervention directed to decreasing the effects of stress was associated with improvement in indicators of distress and may modify the longer term risk.

Short-Term Effects of a Multidimensional Stress Prevention Program on Quality of Life, Well-Being and Psychological Resources. A Randomized Controlled Trial

“…Contrary to our expectations and previous studies, social support and self-efficacy are not improved after the participation in the program (130, 131). Self-efficacy is one the most important predictors of distress (25), but also an important personal resource to reduce the effects of stress in well-being (132), like social support (133, 134).…”

Use of Meditation and Cognitive Behavioral Therapies for the Treatment of Stress, Depression and Anxiety in Students. A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…Brennan et al (2016) [54] and McGrady et al (2012) [56] propose that education and the development of certain skills at university leads to positive behavioral change of students. According to them, interventions should include awareness of breathing, muscle relaxation, coping skills, adequate nutrition, and positive psychology to overcome the problems arising from mental health [49].…”

Asking future doctors: what support options do medical students want to cope with medical school?

“…Support strategies that had been assessed in other studies concluded the survey and represent the underlying data of this manuscript. Items (N = 22) were extracted to evaluate support options such as accessible counselors (Brennan et al 2016) or changing the grading system into a pass/fail system (Wasson et al 2016). The leading question was, "In order to better deal with my study-related stress, I would use the following services/wish the following services were offered."…”

“…According to our knowledge, no other survey has been published listing different options as rated by students. Normally, studies either consist of meta-analyses (Schmidt and Hansson 2018) or the assessment of a direct intervention (Brennan et al 2016). Qualitative collections of student suggestions exist, where a relatively small number of participants indicated options they preferred (Kötter et al 2015).…”

“…Several publications assessed the implementation of methods that might help medical students to stay healthy and prevent the development of depressive symptoms (Brennan et al 2016;Wasson et al 2016;Kuhlmann et al 2015). A survey of five US medical schools recently showed a positive correlation between engaging oneself in topics apart from medicine-in this case the "Exposure to Humanities"and a reduced burnout rate (Mangione et al 2018).…”