Anxiety and Its Association with Preparation for Future Specialty: A Cross-Sectional Study Among Medical Students, Saudi Arabia

Abstract

Background

Anxiety disorders are a significant global health concern with destructive morbidity and mortality. Medical school is a stressful environment worldwide. This study measures the prevalence of anxiety symptoms among clinical-year medical students in Saudi Arabia. As well as to explore its association with students’ sociodemographic factors, academic performance, issues experienced by them during the study of medicine, and their perceived readiness for their future specialties.

Methods

The generalized anxiety disorder (GAD-7) tool along with a sociodemographic questionnaire was distributed to 523 clinical-year medical students (fourth, fifth and sixth years) from the Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Saudi Arabia, in this cross-sectional study. Data analysis was performed with SPSS version 23 and it included the Chi-Square or Fisher’s exact tests for bivariate analysis, and the multivariable logistic regression to account for confounders.

Results

The prevalence of anxiety symptoms as measured by the GAD-7 was found to be 31.7%. Of these, 14.3% had severe symptoms. Only 4.4% students went to a healthcare professional and were diagnosed with psychiatric problems. Logistic regression analysis revealed that the odds of anxiety was higher among females and students who had perceived psychological problems. However, students’ grade point average (GPA) and perceived readiness for their future specialty were not statistically significant with anxiety symptoms.

Conclusion

Anxiety was highly prevalent among clinical-year medical students included in this study. This urges periodic mental health screening, proper diagnosis of high-risk individuals in medical schools, and early interventions through confidential access to mental health services.

Keywords:

• prevalence
• generalized anxiety disorder
• medical students
• Saudi

Abbreviations

WHO, World Health Organization; GAD, Generalized anxiety disorder; GPA, Grade Point Average; CV, Curriculum Vitae; IAU, Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University.

Ethics Approval

The IRB committee at IAU approved the study. All participants gave their written consent. The researcher explained to the participants the study purpose, and to reassure them that there was no negative impact on them. Confidentiality of the data was assured, and it will be used only for research purposes.

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank the following medical students who participated in the data collection: Afnan A Alqutub, Fahad A Alzahrani, Kawthar A Alabdrabalrasol, Maan A Albehair, Majd M Alrayes, Mazen A Alosail, Mohammed A Aldokhi, Naif M Albluwi and Omar Y Almukhadhib. Also, we would like to thank Editage for English language editing. The authors would like to thank students who participated in the study. The content is under the responsibility of the researchers and does not represent the views of Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University.

Disclosure

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this study.