PREVALENCE OF STRESS AND COPING STRATEGIES AMONG MEDICAL STUDENTS LEARNING AT St. PAUL HOSPITAL MILLENIUM MEDICAL COLLEGE

Abstract

Summary Background Students undergoing training in medical school are not always prepared to deal with the challenges of the classroom and the clinical practice settings. They have the pressure to study new subjects, excel in their examination, getting practical experience in caring for patients with various disease conditions, as well as face other challenges which are similar to those experienced by college students. They may use healthy or unhealthy methods to cope with stress. This study aimed at exploring the perceived stress level, and the coping strategies among medical students at SPHMMC. Objective: To determine prevalence of stress and coping mechanisms used by medical students currently learning at SPHMMC. Methodology/Study design: A cross sectional study using a semi-structured self administered questionnaire was carried out over four weeks, using 350 students of all categories and classes of a medical college. Results Among the 350 students participated in the research majority were females accounting 54.3%.The mean age is 22 and the age range of 18-26.the majority of responders were orthodox accounting for 52%.According to the study 53.2% of medical students at SPHMMC responded to be stressed during their stay at the college from which 19.2% reported experiencing sever stress. Students use various coping strategies among those sharing problems with family and friends is the commonly used healthy coping strategy (55.2%) where as sleeping too much was the common unhealthy coping strategy (44.4%). Conclusion and Recommendation Medical students at SPHMMC experience significant stress during their study period. Majority of students 53.2% are stressed among which 19.2% of students experienced sever stress. There is a need to improve awareness and utilization of counseling and guidance service.