Assessing Physiological and Psychological Factors Contributing to Stress among Medical Students: Implications for Health

Fawzia Al-Rouq, Alanoud Al-Otaibi, Alanoud AlSaikhan, Maha Al-Essa and Sarah Al-Mazidi ()
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Fawzia Al-Rouq: Physiology Department, Faculty of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh 11362, Saudi Arabia
Alanoud Al-Otaibi: Physiology Department, Faculty of Medicine, King Saud University, Riyadh 11362, Saudi Arabia
Alanoud AlSaikhan: Family Medicine Department, King Khalid University Hospital, Riyadh 12372, Saudi Arabia
Maha Al-Essa: Radiology Department, King Khalid University Hospital, Riyadh 12372, Saudi Arabia
Sarah Al-Mazidi: Physiology Department, Faculty of Medicine, Imam Mohammad Ibn Saud Islamic University, P.O. Box 5701, Riyadh 11432, Saudi Arabia

IJERPH, 2022, vol. 19, issue 24, 1-9

Abstract: Background: Physiological responses to stress disturb internal homeostasis, leading to serious health consequences. Medical students experience high stress levels that should be managed promptly to prevent stress-related impacts on students’ health and education. Aim: This study aims to identify the relationship between stress factors, general health, and academic performance. Methods: This study recruited 421 medical students of all academic years. Participants completed an online survey assessing stress levels using a validated 10-item Perceived Stress Scale. Stress was also compared with students’ health and academic performance. Results: We found that 93.6% of our sample experienced moderate to severe stress, and 31% reported increased stress due to the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic. Except for internship students, stress significantly decreases as students progress each academic year ( p < 0.05). Students with higher GPAs and with comorbidities are more stressed. Comorbidities were primarily reported in students in their final years of education with a 4% lower GPA than healthy students. Although we had three stress-related themes (general, academic, and pandemic), students’ perceptions of stress factors were primarily academically related. Conclusions: Students experience high stress levels in their final educational years, which might increase the risk of health issues and low academic performance. It is essential to innovate stress-coping strategies specially designed for medical students and mandatorily provided by all medical colleges and to educate students on the effects of stress on their health.

Keywords: physiology; stress; medical students; pandemic (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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