Determinants of academic stress and stress-related selfmedication practice among undergraduate male pharmacy and medical students of a tertiary educational institution in Saudi Arabia

Rizwan Ahmad,Atta Abbas Naqvi,Niyaz Ahmad,Muhammad Abdullah Al-Shagawi

doi:10.4314/tjpr.v16i12.26

Abstract

Purpose : To identify factors that promote academic stress and stress-related self-medication practice among undergraduate male students of pharmacy and medical colleges at Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University, Dammam, Saudi Arabia. Methods : A cross-sectional survey was conducted among undergraduate students of pharmacy and medical colleges of the university. The study used Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) to document academic stress. The responses of the students were analyzed using SPSS version 22. Results : As many as 51.6 % of students’ perceived moderate stress. The majority of students (55.9 %) highlighted examination as a stressor followed by course load (43.2 %) and cGPA (40.4 %). Prevalence of self-medication was 31.58 and 29.20 % among pharmacy and medical students, respectively. Most of the students consumed caffeine (63.8 %) and nicotine (17.8 %) as a drug. Students blamed heavy course load (23.9 %), followed by assignment load (23 %) and examination (21.1 %) for indulging in self-medication. Conclusion : Academic stress in undergraduate students in health disciplines is perceived to be high by the students. Examinations, course load and lack of time for leisure are major determinants of stress. Caffeine and nicotine are most frequently used by a majority of the students for self-medication. Keywords : Stress, Self-medication, Stressor, Caffeine, Nicotine, Students

Highlights

Stress may be defined as any non-specific body response towards any change whose outcome may affect one’s life
The aim of this study is to investigate the level of stress and self-medication among undergraduate male students of Imam Abdulrahman Bin Faisal University
More than half of those students who mentioned practicing selfmedication highlighted the use of caffeine (N = 136, 63.8 %) followed by some students who consumed nicotine (N = 38, 17.8 %) as a drug

Summary

Introduction

Stress may be defined as any non-specific body response towards any change whose outcome may affect one’s life. Students are victims of stress and its outcomes as reported in various studies [1]. The predisposing factors for stress in students may be lack of sufficient time for managing courses, exams, academic load, social and interpersonal issues etc. As supported by a study regarding stress, depression and anxiety conducted in undergraduate students of Kathmandu University Medical School, Nepal. The result of the study revealed a high prevalence for stress 27 %, anxiety 41.1 % and depression 29.9 % [1]. A study in King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Undergraduate Sciences, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia reported 33.8 % of students with severe stress. Nervousness, restlessness, feeling hopeless as well as depression were observed as the predisposing and dominant factors for stress [2]

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