Stress and Stressors among Medical Undergraduate Students – A Cross Sectional Study in Maharashtra

Abstract

Stress is a feeling of emotional or physical tension. Present study was conducted with
aim to survey the perceived stress among medical undergraduate students. The objectives were 1. To
identify the sources of stress. 2 To find an association of perceived stress with socio-demographic
characteristics and various stressors. Methods: A cross sectional study was conducted among medical
undergraduates in a selected medical college in Karad, Maharashtra. A randomly 100 MBBS students
were included. 25 students from each year. The tool included self-administered questionnaire
consisting of the following sections socio-demographic profile, Perceived stress scale developed by
Cohen and sources of stress .Data was analyzed using suitable statistical tests and confidence intervals
were calculated. A p < 0.05 was statistically significant. Results: Logistic regression analysis shows
socioeconomic status (p < 0.05) as an important socio-demographic determinant of stress. Academic
stressors are most important reason for increased stress among medical students. Vastness of academic
curriculum (64%) and fear of failure or poor performance in examination (51%) were important.
Among psychosocial stressors, high parental expectation (24%), loneliness (21%) and relation with the
opposite sex (21%). Environmental stressors include quality of mess/home food as a major factor
(59%). There was a positive co-relation between academic(r=0.09387), psychosocial (r=0.04853),
environmental stressors (r=0.2647) and perceived stress with environmental stressors being a
significant factor. Conclusion: There is a need of sports and recreational activities, counseling
facilities and teaching stress management among Medical Undergraduate Students.