T he Prevalence of Psychological Stress, Anxiety, and Depression among Medical Students During Their Study Period in Palestine

Abstract

Objectives: Medical students have significant rates of psychological morbidity such as depression and anxiety, and their psychological stress levels are consistently higher than those of the general population and age-matched coworkers. This study aimed to assess the prevalence of stress, anxiety, and depression among Palestinian medical students and to assess the differences between socio-demographic characteristics in terms of stress, anxiety, and depression scores.

Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted among medical students at Palestine Polytechnic University in Oct 2022 using a self-administered questionnaire distributed among medical students by simple random sampling method. The assessment of psychological mood disorders among 200 medical students was done by using Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21. Descriptive and inferential statistics were used.

Results: Among 200 students, half of the medical students have suffered from psychological mood disorders at moderate, severe, and extremely severe levels. Furthermore, 2nd-year medical students have higher stress and depression scores than 3rd and 4th-year students (p=0.017) and (p=0.020) respectively. Female medical students have significantly higher anxiety scores than male students (p=0.043).

Conclusions: It is noted that stress, anxiety, and depression are common among medical students, and there is an urgent need for attention, support, and personalized counseling.