Cyberchondria and Medical Student Syndrome

2022 ◽  
pp. 98-113
Author(s):  
Afkar Aulia ◽  
Budi Pratiti
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Student ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical Information ◽  
Health Anxiety ◽  
Health Condition ◽  
Medical Doctor ◽  
Patient Counselling ◽  
Online Behaviour ◽  
Diagnosis Therapy

Health anxiety is a disorder that can be very distressful and cause unnecessary examinations. A doctor is expected to handle health anxiety in terms of examination, diagnosis, therapy, and counselling processes. To provide optimal patient counselling, a doctor needs confidence, empathy, and good mental health. However, the process to become a medical doctor requires a student to read through a large amount of medical information, which arguably might induce “medical student's syndrome,” or health anxiety. Contradicting research findings exist about such conditions, however, most of them use traditional measures of health anxiety and do not consider students' online behaviour. The authors hypothesized that a medical student is susceptible to cyberchondria, a form of health anxiety due to excessive internet use. Some studies have shown that there may be higher cyberchondria scores among medical students compared to the general population. Cyberchondria needs to be studied further to improve the mental health condition of medical students and to provide optimal future healthcare for patients.

scholarly journals Wellbeing and mental health amongst medical students in Canada

2021 ◽  
pp. 002076402110577
Author(s):  
Thomas Christopher Wilkes ◽  
Thomas Lewis ◽  
Mike Paget ◽  
Johanna Holm ◽  
Nancy Brager ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Student ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Psychiatric Morbidity ◽  
Health Condition ◽  
Common Finding ◽  
Cultural Issues ◽  
Core Study ◽  
The Uk

Research: There is abundant data revealing that there is significant rate of rates of Psychiatric morbidity, psychological stress, and burnout in the medical student population. A core study group in the UK collaborated with 12 countries around the world to review medical student wellness. In this context we surveyed 101 medical students at the Cummings medical school, Calgary, Canada during the height of the COVID pandemic regarding their wellbeing and mental health. Results/main findings: Prior to medical school 27% reported a diagnosis with a mental disorder. Whilst at medical school 21% reported a mental health condition, most commonly an anxiety disorder and or depressive disorder. The most commonly reported source of stress was study at 81%, the second being relationships at 62%, money stress was a significant source of stress for 35%, and finally 10% reported accommodation or housing as stressful. Interestingly only 14% tested CAGE positive but 20% of students reported having taken a non-prescription substance to feel better or regulate their mood. Seventy-five percent of medical students met specific case criteria for exhaustion on the Oldenburg Burnout inventory 74% met criteria for the GHQ questionnaire. Conclusions: These findings confirm that medical students are facing significant stressors during their training. These stressors include, in order of frequency, study, relational, financial, and accommodation issues. Nonprescription Substance use was a common finding as well as exhaustion and psychiatric morbidity. Future interventions pursued will have to address cultural issues as well as the organizational and individual determinates of stress.

scholarly journals “Medical Student Syndrome”—A Myth or a Real Disease Entity? Cross-Sectional Study of Medical Students of the Medical University of Silesia in Katowice, Poland

2021 ◽  
Vol 18 (18) ◽  
pp. 9884
Author(s):  
Katarzyna Szczurek ◽  
Natalia Furgał ◽  
Dawid Szczepanek ◽  
Rashid Zaman ◽  
Krzysztof Krysta ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Medical Student ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Health Anxiety ◽  
Female Gender ◽  
Research Problem ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Entire Study ◽  
Medical University

The description of Medical Student Syndrome is based on the assumption that inexperienced medical students are prone to develop a pathological fear of medical conditions they are taught about. The aim of this study is to examine the sample of students (medical and non-medical) in order to assess and compare their level of hypochondriacal attitudes and health-related anxiety. We also examined other factors which might have had an influence on hypochondria and nosophobia attitudes among students. Methods: The study was conducted in two groups of students: 313 medical students at the Medical University of Silesia and 293 students at non-medical universities in Katowice, Poland. The study used the medical student syndrome self-explanatory questionnaire constructed for the study, taking into account the specificity of the group and the research problem. The research questionnaire was completed in an online survey by 606 students. Results: The results of the study showed that medical students obtained the same scores on a nosophobic scale as the non-medical students (p = 0.5). The analysis of hypochondriacal behavior showed significantly higher results in the non-medical student group (p = 0.02). In the entire study group, females and participants with mental disorders obtained higher scores in relation to nosophobia. Symptoms of depression and anxiety were more common in the group of medical students. Conclusions: Medical studies are not a risk factor for the occurrence of health anxiety and hypochondrial attitudes. Such factors are female gender and having a mental illness.

Prevalence of ADHD symptoms and their correlations with mental health-related variables among medical student

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Chiraphat Boonnag ◽  
Sirinut Siritikun ◽  
Sirikorn Chalanun ◽  
Pimolpun Kuntawong ◽  
Nahathai Wongpakaran ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Student ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Perceived Stress ◽  
Internet Addiction ◽  
Adult Adhd ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Adhd Symptoms ◽  
Health Related ◽  
Social Difficulties

Abstract Objectives Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) is a neurobehavioral development disorder contributed to social difficulties and affective problems. ADHD was evidently related to perceived stress, internet addiction and depression, leading to academic problems. However, ADHD symptoms among young medical student remains underreported. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of ADHD and explore the association between ADHD symptoms and mental health-related conditions among medical students. Results Among 124 participants of first year medical students in Chiang Mai University, Thailand, 78 (62.9%) were female. The average age was 18.7 (SD 0.7). Thirty-one (25%) were considered as having ADHD symptoms based on the Adult ADHD Self-Report Scale screener (ASRS). The group with ADHD symptoms showed higher scores on the internet addiction test core (t = 3.27, p = .001), perceived stress scale (t = 2.94, p = .004) and Rosenberg Self-esteem Scale (t = 3.04, p = .003). No difference was found between groups regarding depression and perceived social support scores. However, the total score of ASRS appeared to significantly correlate with all these mental health- related variables. The relatively high prevalent may have contributed to invalid items of ASRS, for which a new or revised scale is needed.

scholarly journals The COVID-19 pandemic: risks to psychological well-being and mental health

2020 ◽  
pp. 5-10
Author(s):  
Lyudmyla Yuryeva ◽  
Tamara Shusterman
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Health Anxiety ◽  
Antiviral Agents ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Psychological Well Being ◽  
Phobic Disorders ◽  
Medical Institutions ◽  
The Media ◽  
Diagnosis Therapy

The problematic article is devoted to the issues of psychological well-being and mental health in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The sociopsychological effects of pandemics that potentiate mental health disorders have been analyzed. The effect of the influence of the media and social networks on the mental state is considered. Quarantine, social distance and social exclusion have a negative impact on mental health and physical well-being. The growth of deviant forms of behavior, stigmatization, excessive mental stress on medical workers who are in the focus of a pandemic, and the non-standard state of medical institutions have been noted among the main factors that worsen mental health. The peculiarities of anxious and phobic disorders in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic have been described and analyzed in detail. It has been established that organic anxiety predominates in patients with COVID-19, having a number of clinical peculiarities (the predominance of somatic anxiety with an asthenic radical, high comorbidity with depression and hypochondria, cognitive deficit and the severity of vegetative manifestations). Pharmacogenic anxious and depressive effects have been described with the use of antiviral agents. The peculiarities of the treatment of patients with anxious and phobic disorders in the situation of the COVID-19 pandemic are the use of Internet technologies (psychoeducation, psychotherapy) and the discussion of specific problems and fears at psychotherapy sessions. Timely diagnosis, therapy and prevention of mental and behavioral disorders that occur during an outbreak of infectious diseases is a priority for successfully overcoming both the immediate and longterm effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the mental health of all segments of the population. Keywords: COVID-19, pandemic, risk, psychological well-being, mental health, anxiety, phobias

Medical Students' Quest Towards the Long White Coat

2017 ◽  
pp. 1-42
Author(s):  
Christina Ramirez Smith
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Education ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Medical Doctor ◽  
White Coat ◽  
Practice Of Medicine ◽  
Education Medical ◽  
Health And Well Being

Every year across the globe, thousands of students begin the quest towards becoming a medical doctor and donning a long white coat. Global research indicates that after beginning medical education, medical students' mental health and well-being dramatically declines. The loss of well-being continues into the residency and practice of medicine. The aim of this chapter is to broadly examine the pressures unique to medical students within the context of medical education training, higher education, and the general population. A call for medical education to adopt innovative policy, plans, and administrative and curricular changes designed to foster a culture conducive to the long-term positive mental health and well-being of medical students during training and into the internship and long-term practice of medicine concludes the chapter.

Mental health literacy about bipolar disorder and schizophrenia among medical students: a comparative study of illness recognition, treatment, and attitudes according to perception of aggressiveness-dangerousness

Salud Mental ◽  
2017 ◽  
Vol 40 (4) ◽  
pp. 141-148 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ingrid Vargas-Huicochea ◽  
◽  
Rebeca Robles-García ◽  
Carlos Berlanga ◽  
Carlos Alfonso Tovilla-Zárate ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Bipolar Disorder ◽  
Mental Illness ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Health Condition ◽  
Mental Illnesses ◽  
Accurate Information ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Adequate Treatment ◽  
Illness Recognition

Introduction. Lack of information may result in health professionals’ negative attitudes toward individuals with mental illness. Objective. We sought to determine the association between the perception of aggressiveness–dangerousness and illness recognition, suggested treatment, and attitudes regarding schizophrenia and bipolar disorder in a group of medical students. Method. This field study used a non-experimental, cross-sectional comparative design in a purposive sample of medical students. Mental illness recognition, beliefs about adequate treatment, perception of patient’s aggressiveness-dangerousness, and attitudes toward severe mentally ill persons were assessed with previously validated instruments. Results. Of the 104 participants, 54.8% identified a mental health condition in the schizophrenia vignette compared with only 3.8% in the case of bipolar disorder. Most students believed that both diagnoses could lead to aggressive behaviors. Dangerousness was more frequently perceived in the schizophrenia vignette. Discussion and conclusion. It is necessary to sensitize and educate medical students so they have accurate information about symptoms and available treatments for individuals with mental illnesses.

Medical students’ attitudes towards mental health disclosure: a qualitative study

2020 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Ryan Christy
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Student ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Mental Health Problems ◽  
Medical Curriculum ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Health Problems ◽  
Medical Council ◽  
Content Type

Purpose In 2013, the General Medical Council conducted research into best practice for supporting medical students with mental health concerns, producing a document outlining University’s duty of care. It also outlined reasons as to why medical students are susceptible to mental illness. The purpose of this paper is to explore what factors affected medical students' disclosure of mental health problems and their help-seeking behaviour today and if these differed from the GMC’s findings from 2013. Design/methodology/approach A questionnaire was issued to all University of Glasgow medical student year groups. In total, 72 people responded. All responses were then analysed by the primary researcher using Mayring’s six-step approach of systematic, rule guided qualitative text analysis. Findings Four main barriers to disclosure were revealed: fear of repercussions, medical student “expectations”, judgement and lack of support. Respondents feared being deemed unfit to practise, displaying “weakness” or being treated differently. They believed support provided was inadequate or inaccessible. Less than half felt the Medical School made mental health support easily available and only 11% were even aware of the GMC document. Respondents believed medical students were psychologically vulnerable due to Medical School environment, work load, “expectations” and course content. They perceived the Medical School was “a pressure cooker” for mental health problems and yet student well-being was not prioritised. Originality/value The research highlighted some key areas that universities should address, such as promoting support services available, recognising the unique stresses of the medical curriculum and the need for provision of resources that can be accessed without fear, stigmatisation or uncertainty.

Medical Students' Quest Towards the Long White Coat

2021 ◽  
pp. 1257-1288
Author(s):  
Christina Ramirez Smith
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Education ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Well Being ◽  
Medical Doctor ◽  
White Coat ◽  
Practice Of Medicine ◽  
Education Medical ◽  
Health And Well Being

Every year across the globe, thousands of students begin the quest towards becoming a medical doctor and donning a long white coat. Global research indicates that after beginning medical education, medical students' mental health and well-being dramatically declines. The loss of well-being continues into the residency and practice of medicine. The aim of this chapter is to broadly examine the pressures unique to medical students within the context of medical education training, higher education, and the general population. A call for medical education to adopt innovative policy, plans, and administrative and curricular changes designed to foster a culture conducive to the long-term positive mental health and well-being of medical students during training and into the internship and long-term practice of medicine concludes the chapter.

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