Perceived stress among male medical undergraduates at College of Medicine, Majmaah, Saudi Arabia

Medical Education

Objectives: This study was conducted to explore the level of perceived stress in male medical undergraduates. In addition, this study also examines the change in perceived stress with progressing academic years. Methods: This was a cross sectional study conducted at College of Medicine, Majmaah, Saudi Arabia. The students were contacted in the class, and their participation was voluntary. All one hundred and thirty-five medical students of first, second and third year were targeted for study whose age range was 18-23 years. A 10-item perceived stress scale (PSS-10) questionnaire was used to measure the level of stress among the subjects. Results: One hundred five subjects participated in the study. Majority of students belonged to year 1 (n=50, 47.6%) of which 5 students had least stress, 24 had mild stress; 19 had moderate stress and 2 had severe stress. Almost one third of the students (n=34, 32.4%) were studying in year 2 of which 19, 11 & 2 students had mild, moderate and severe stress respectively. Similarly one-quarter (n=21, 20.0%) of students were studying in year 3 of which 5 students had least stress, 6 had mild stress and 9 students had moderate stress. Conclusions: The stress among our students was found to be higher than other medical colleges in Saudi Arabia. However, no significant difference in stress level was found between different academic years.

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