Prevalence of stress among medical students in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Mohammad M. Zagzoog; Ryan O. Bamashmous; Ahmed O. Alamoudi; Shahad A. Al–Raddadi; Hatem E. Al–Thagafi; Siraj O Wali; Reda Jamjoom

Volume : VII, Issue : I, January - 2018

Prevalence of stress among medical students in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia.

Mohammad M. Zagzoog, Ryan O. Bamashmous, Ahmed O. Alamoudi, Shahad A. Al Raddadi, Hatem E. Al Thagafi, Siraj O Wali, Reda Jamjoom

Abstract :

Purpose: Education can be very stressful, and medical practice has been described as one of the most stressful professions. Undergraduate medical students have demonstrated high stress levels, which is becoming a serious concern the aim was to determine the prevalence of perceived stress among medical students at King Abdulaziz University, and to assess the association of the stress levels with different academic and socio–demographic variables.

Methods: This cross–sectional survey targeted medical students attending King Abdulaziz University (KAU) in January 2016 using the Arabic version of the Perceived Stress Scale–10 (PSS–10) questionnaire.

Results: Six hundred thirty medical students were included, of whom (51.1%) were females. The overall prevalences for High perceived Stress and Average perceived Stress were (56.6%) and (42.9%), respectively. Second–year students reported the highest mean perceived stress score of (22.34�5.1, P=0.004), and female students had a higher mean perceived stress score than male students (21.85� 4.7 vs 20.19� 5.2, P=0.001). The use of public transportation was associated with higher perceived stress levels, particularly among female students (P=0.027). No difference in stress levels was detected according to different GPAs.

Conclusion: perceived stress is very common among medical students, and especially females. More support such as orientation workshops and counselling services is needed to help students to promote their psychological well–being.