scholarly journals Gender Disparities in Symptoms of Depression After Medical School Exams and Student Coping Strategies for Postexam Depression Symptoms

2022 ◽  
Vol 9 ◽  
pp. 238212052110553
Author(s):  
Taxiarhia J Arabatzis ◽  
Jennifer Marsidi ◽  
Muhammad Ashraf ◽  
Christina Supino ◽  
Ryan Smith
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Coping Strategies ◽  
Depression Symptoms ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Diagnostic And Statistical Manual ◽  
Symptoms Of Depression ◽  
First Year Medical Students

CONTEXT Little research exists to determine if medical students experience symptoms of depression after examinations and if symptoms vary by gender. OBJECTIVES Determine if is there a difference between male and female medical students in the number of symptoms of major depressive disorder (MDD) experienced after exams, as well as which coping strategies are used by students to alleviate depression symptoms. METHODS An anonymous and secure survey was sent via university email to first, second, and third-year medical students after exams for 2 consecutive exam periods. Surveys that were not fully completed were excluded from the analysis. RESULTS A total of 162 out of 550 students completed the survey for a response rate of 30%. Overall, a greater proportion of female students experienced more symptoms of depression compared to males. This was statistically significant for the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders 5th Edition symptoms of MDD: depressed mood, anhedonia, changes in sleep, fatigue, and difficulty with concentration after exams compared to their male counterparts. Male first-year medical students experienced higher rates of depression compared to their third-year counterparts. Most students exhibited coping strategies that helped them feel less depressed. The 3 most common coping strategies reported were: reaching out to social support networks, physical activity/exercise, and engaging in hobbies. CONCLUSIONS Both gender and year in a medical school play a role in the number of symptoms of depression experienced after medical school exams. Recognizing that examinations can be a trigger of depressive symptoms in medical students, particularly female and first-year students, has important implications on student mental health. Helping students recognize these symptoms and employ healthy coping strategies may further help alleviate these symptoms. Long-term consequences of experiencing symptoms of depression after recurrent exams in medical school are unknown and require further research.

The medical career choice motivations — Results from a Hungarian study

Open Medicine ◽  
2011 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 502-509 ◽  
Author(s):  
Edmond Girasek ◽  
Regina Molnár ◽  
Edit Eke ◽  
Miklós Szócska
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Career Choice ◽  
Medical Profession ◽  
Medical Doctor ◽  
First Year ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Economic Changes ◽  
Traditional Health ◽  
Medical Career ◽  
First Year Medical Students

AbstractSome decades ago being a medical doctor was characterized unambiguously as a profession that offers help and serves the patients’ needs during medical treatment. In today’s society, this image of the medical profession has been substantially changed. The present paper aims to examine medical career choice motivations and preferences of choosing speciality, in the light of current social and economic changes in Hungary. The study was carried out by using a voluntary, self-administrated, questionnaire among first-year medical students and resident doctors in four medical faculties in Hungary. The career choice motivations of the first-year medical students and resident doctors are similar and match to the traditional health profession career choice motivations. Nevertheless the first-year students consider high income as one of the most important factors. They appear more conscious and more ambitious regarding their future speciality choice. The Hungarian health care system and medical education must be prepared for the presence of students that are aware of the high market value of a medical diploma, have excellent language skills, and consider migration as one main factor in their motivation when choosing a medical profession.

scholarly journals First year medical students’ perceptions of the impact of wearing scrubs on professional identity: a narrative analysis in the United Arab Emirates

BMJ Open ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 10 (11) ◽  
pp. e039357
Author(s):  
Sara Sorrell ◽  
Halah Ibrahim
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Qualitative Analysis ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Professional Identity ◽  
United Arab Emirates ◽  
Medical Curriculum ◽  
First Year ◽  
Written Narratives ◽  
First Year Medical Students ◽  
The Impact

ObjectivesMedical school serves as a critical developmental period for future physicians, during which students begin to form a professional identity. Just as personal appearance, particularly clothing, is an important external expression of one’s personal identity, ‘uniforms’ in healthcare, including white coats and scrubs, symbolise status and a group identity. There are, however, limited studies on the impact of physician attire on medical students’ formation of professional identity. Accordingly, through qualitative analysis of written narratives, we sought to analyse medical students’ experiences of wearing professional physician attire, namely scrubs, and how the uniform impacted their confidence level, performance and behaviours, as well as their identity as future physicians.DesignQualitative analysis of medical student’s written narratives.SettingKhalifa University College of Medicine and Health Sciences (KU CMHS) is a new medical school in the United Arab Emirates, with an inaugural class of 30 students admitted in August 2019. It is the only medical school in the city of Abu Dhabi, and the only school in the country that follows a postgraduate medical curriculum.ParticipantsAll first year medical students at KU CMHS were purposively sampled.MethodsStudents completed a voluntary online anonymous questionnaire. We employed a social identity approach to data analysis. Thematic content analysis was conducted on their narratives to identify themes.ResultsWe identified three major themes, namely (1) emotions, (2) logistics and (3) interpersonal relationships.ConclusionsMedical students form early perceptions regarding physician attire and its impact on their professional identity. Engaging in conversations regarding professional attire with educators or mentors could provide an important opportunity for students to discuss and explore professional identity early in training.

scholarly journals Nutrition Practice and Knowledge of First-Year Medical Students

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robyn Perlstein ◽  
Scott McCoombe ◽  
Susie Macfarlane ◽  
Andrew Colin Bell ◽  
Caryl Nowson
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Vegetable Consumption ◽  
Dietary Guidelines ◽  
First Year ◽  
Nutritional Knowledge ◽  
Dietary Recommendations ◽  
Dietary Practices ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
And Behavior ◽  
First Year Medical Students

Objectives. To compare the knowledge of Australian dietary recommendations to the dietary practices of first-year medical students. Design. Over a period of four years, anonymous online surveys were completed by medical students attending a first-year nutrition lecture. Background. There is little information on the nutritional knowledge and dietary practices of medical students. Setting. First-year postgraduate university medical students, Geelong, Victoria, Australia. Participants. Between the years 2012 and 2016, 32%–61% of first-year students completed the survey. Phenomenon of Interest. Student’s knowledge of dietary guidelines and related practices. Analysis. The frequency of response was assessed across the different year cohorts using descriptive statistics. Results. Between 59% and 93% of first-year students correctly identified the recommended daily servings for fruit, and between 61% and 84% knew the vegetable recommendations. In contrast only 40%–46% met the guidelines for fruit and 12%–19% met the guidelines for vegetables. Conclusions and Implications. Discrepancies between students’ nutrition knowledge and behavior can provide learning opportunities. With low rates of fruit and vegetable consumption in medical students, increased awareness of links between nutrition and health, together with encouragement to make behavioral changes, may increase the skills of graduates to support patients in improving dietary intake.

scholarly journals Empathy as Related to Motivations for Medicine in a Sample of First-Year Medical Students

2013 ◽  
Vol 112 (1) ◽  
pp. 73-88 ◽  
Author(s):  
Manuel Gonçalves-Pereira ◽  
José Loureiro ◽  
Bruno Trancas ◽  
Ana Papoila ◽  
José Miguel Caldas-de-Almeida
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Strong Relationship ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
First Year ◽  
Clinical Settings ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Clear Cut ◽  
Physician Empathy ◽  
First Year Medical Students ◽  
Person Orientation

Professionalism and empathy are crucial in clinical settings. An association would be expected between empathic attitudes and altruistic motivations for a medical education. However, data is scarce in first-year students, and a previous small-scale study did not fully confirm the hypothesis that personoriented motives would have a strong relationship to empathy. The present study tested this association in a larger sample. 202 first-year medical students ( M age = 19.0 yr., SD = 2.7; 67.3% women) were assessed cross-sectionally, using the Vaglum and colleagues' indexes on motives for choosing medicine (security/status, person-orientation, and interest in the natural sciences) and the Jefferson Scale of Physician Empathy for students. There was a weak association between empathy and person-orientation, but the evidence regarding links between empathy and the three motivation scores was low overall. In this Portuguese sample there was not a clear-cut association between empathy and motivations for medical school.

scholarly journals ATTITUDE TOWARDS STRESS AMONG FIRST YEAR MEDICAL STUDENTS

2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (34) ◽  
Author(s):  
I.I CHEREMISKINA ◽  
◽  
A.S ELZESSER ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Negative Attitude ◽  
Adaptive Strategies ◽  
First Year ◽  
Coping With Stress ◽  
First Year Students ◽  
Educational Situation ◽  
Heavy Loads ◽  
First Year Medical Students ◽  
Research Show

The results of modern research show that first-year students, in particular students of medical universities, experience severe stress due to the changed conditions of their life, heavy loads and physiological limitations. The consequences are quite serious, among those a decrease in academic achievement, lowered satisfaction with the educational situation and the chosen profession as a whole, an increase in psycho-emotional stress, the maximum number of expelled students, including expelled at their own free will, falls on the first year. An empirical study will identify problem areas and outline a set of measures to adapt freshmen. The attitude to stress in the context of the subjective approach can be considered through the analysis of interrelated cognitive, emotional and behavioral components. The study was conducted among first-year medical students of various specialties. The results show their extremely negative attitude towards stress. In first-year students' perception, stress is closely related to learning situations and living in a dormitory; they experience negative emotions in stress situations and primarily use avoidance as a coping strategy. We can say that they practically don’t notice the mobilizing possibilities of stress, which raises the question of the need for their psychological support, in particular, training in more adaptive strategies for coping with stress.

scholarly journals The meaning of humanization for first-year medical students - The use of narratives in medical school

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Luciana Tavares ◽  
Sylvia Enns ◽  
José Ricardo Ayres ◽  
Patricia Tempski
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Role Models ◽  
First Year ◽  
Clear Understanding ◽  
Human Being ◽  
Personal Experiences ◽  
Medical Program ◽  
First Year Medical Students ◽  
The Relationship

Abstract Purpose To analyze the meaning of humanization by first-year medical students as well as to find out about their role models and what were their personal experiences of humanization and dehumanization before entering medical school. Methods The authors performed a qualitative study using narratives of first-year medical students. The data were analyzed through content analysis. The narratives were used as a strategy to stimulate students' reflection and to understand their perspectives and values at the beginning of the medical program. Results The study included 167 participants: 67 females (40.1%) and 100 males (59.9%). The participants' ages ranged from 16 to 38 years. The analysis of the narratives showed three main themes: socio-political and economic aspects of medicine, humanization of healthcare, and dimensions of humanization and dehumanization. In their narratives, the students expressed the desire to become doctors, to help and improve people's lives, and the intention to emulate good role models. Another desire was to contribute to the development of the Brazilian healthcare system. The students considered the humanization of healthcare as an integral vision of the human being that includes perceiving the context and personal history, as well as the complexity, of the human being. The students emphasized the importance of "going beyond the technical dimension" in the relationship between physician and his/her patient. Some students recognized the transdisciplinary aspect of medicine. Conclusions The students in the first-year of the medical program have a clear understanding of the meaning of humanization in medical practice, regardless of their social and economic conditions, age, sex, and religion. The students' narratives expressed their expectations for a more humane society with respect, solidarity, and compassion. The use of narrative is a strategy to develop critical thinking and to better get to know our students: who they are, what they think, and how they feel.

scholarly journals A study skills course for First-Year Medical Students: Experience of a Private Medical School in Pakistan

2020 ◽  
Vol 37 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Sobia Ali ◽  
Afifa Tabassum ◽  
Muhammad Suleman Sadiq Hashmi ◽  
Nighat Huda
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Study Skills ◽  
First Year ◽  
National Hospital ◽  
Study Skill ◽  
Study Skills Course ◽  
Medical College ◽  
Before And After ◽  
First Year Medical Students

Objectives: To share the experience of study skill module development and implementation for first year MBBS students at Liaquat National Hospital and Medical College (LNH&MC). To compare the change in students’ self- assessment of their knowledge of study skills before and after the course. Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted from November 2019 to April 2020. A structured study skills course was offered to 100 first year MBBS students of Liaquat National Hospital & Medical College, Karachi. Steps involved in the development included identification of outcomes, instructional objectives, content and instructional strategies. Students were given two questionnaires. In the first questionnaire, students rated their interest in implementing the learning techniques learnt. In the second questionnaire, students rated their level of knowledge of effective study skills before and after the course. Analysis included computing percentages for students’ preferred study skill technique. Change in knowledge was assessed by comparing retrospective pre-post self-rating using Wilcoxon Signed Ranks Test (two-tailed). Results: Analysis of survey forms showed that more than 50% of the students were willing to implement active listening techniques, metacognitive note taking and writing reflections in their future study practice.There was also a statistically significant change in students’ self-rating of their knowledge about study skills (pre-test median 3, post-test median 4, p0.00). Conclusion: This study provides an insight of structured study skills course development and implementation in early medical college studies that could help them in combating academic stress. In addition, students’ response about their preferred technique and their feedback comparison concluded their positive attitude towards the course. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.37.1.2772 How to cite this:Ali S, Tabassum A, Hashmi MSS, Huda N. A study skills course for First-Year Medical Students: Experience of a Private Medical School in Pakistan. Pak J Med Sci. 2021;37(1):65-70. doi: https://doi.org/10.12669/pjms.37.1.2772 This is an Open Access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0), which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.

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