Supporting the well-being of medical students

Abstract

Commentary CommentaireM edical school has long been recognized as involving numerous stressors that can affect the wellbeing of students. 1,2 In addition to coping with the normal stressors of everyday life, medical students must deal with stressors specific to medical school, which include information and input overload, financial indebtedness, lack of leisure time, and pressures of work, work relationships and career choices. [1][2][3] Comparisons between medical students and other undergraduate student groups have shown a higher level of stress and depression among medical students. 2,4 Moreover, the results of a study of 304 first-and second-year medical students revealed a 12% incidence of major depression and a lifetime prevalence of 15%; 5 the latter is 3 times higher than that of the average population. Other studies have reported incidences of depression among medical students in the range of 20% to 25%. 5,6 Predictors of depression identified in these studies included previous depression or other mental health problems, perceived medical school stress, intensity and vulnerability traits, and a family history of depression. Being married or having a stable and supportive family were found to be protective factors. [5][6][7] Reported levels of stress among medical students range anywhere from 25% to 75%. 8,9 In the United States, a survey of 9 medical schools found that 47% of student respondents had at least 1 major issue related to mental health or substance use and that stress affected 26% within this group. 9 What is equally disturbing in this study is that 70% of students indicated concerns about confidentiality and the potential impact of having stress-related issues appear on their academic record.Medical students themselves tend toward certain characteristics that place them at increased risk of stress. A study at the University of Manitoba 10 found that although medical students had high personal standards, which gave them an advantage on entry to a highly competitive profession, these standards were associated with maladaptive perfectionism leading to excessive concerns about academic performance. These characteristics were significantly correlated with baseline symptoms of neuroticism and were predictive of depression and feelings of hopelessness at follow-up.Coping strategies have also been studied in medical students. 11 Although no specific coping strategies have been identified as common to medical students, support from family and friends, exercise, recreational activities and spirituality are all reported to promote a greater sense of wellbeing. A study of 140 medical students at Hong Kong University found, not surprisingly, that optimism and a positive outlook had the strongest negative correlations with depression and anxiety. 11 One of the difficulties with stress in medical school is that students tend not to seek help from the support services available to them.The results of a survey from the University of Pennsylvania showed that although 24% of their medical students identified t...

Prevalência de Sintomas de Ansiedade e Depressão em Estudantes de Medicina

“…Assim, relutam em demonstrar tal vulnerabilidade, mesmo quando dispõem de suporte 8 . Confirmando isto, um estudo realizado em Portugal constatou que 10% dos estudantes que participaram do estudo haviam realizado tratamento medicamentoso sem prescrição médica para distúrbios relacionados a saúde mental, enquanto 30% já haviam procurado apoio de profissional de saúde por apresentarem sintomas relacionados com a saúde mental alguma vez na vida 33 .…”

“…Uma das dificuldades dos cuidados psiquiátricos para os estudantes de Medicina é o fato de que eles tendem a não procurar ajuda médica para seus problemas 8 . Estudos demonstraram que, apesar do alto nível de aflição que acomete os estudantes de Medicina, apenas de 8% a 15% deles procuram cuidado psiquiátrico durante a sua formação.…”

Common mental disorders among medical students

“…Among the problems potentially associated with working in the medical field, Nascimento-Sobrinho et al (2006) emphasize the excess workload, especially the regime of nights, weekends and holidays on-duty to insure emergency medical services, which could be equivalent to the long hours of study encouraged by the competitive environment in medical schools (Yiu, 2005). Although medical students tend to have high personal standards, which gives them an advantage in what is a highly competitive profession, this is associated to perfectionism that leads to search for high academic performance.…”

How Do Distress and Well-being Relate to Medical Student Empathy? A Multicenter Study

“…Others have noted that distress is only one end of the quality of life (QOL) continuum, and that achieving enhanced QOL or “well-being” is the ultimate goal 27–30. This paradigm holds that well-being goes beyond the absence of distress and is characterized by being challenged, successfully responding, and attaining satisfaction in a variety of domains of life (mental, physical, emotional, spiritual, social) 31.…”