Abstract
ObjectivesTo assess health-related quality of life (HRQOL) and to describe factors associated with its variation among undergraduate medical students at a Brazilian private medical school. MethodsA cross-sectional study in a sample (n=180) of medical students at a private medical school in Salvador, Brazil, stratified by year of medical course. Data about age, sex, year of course, physical activity, sleepiness, headaches, participation in a student loan program supported by the Brazilian government (FIES) and living arrangements were collected using a self-administered form. HRQOL was assessed by using a Brazilian Portuguese version of the SF-36 form. The eight domains of SF-36 and the Physical Component (PCS) and Mental Component (MCS) Summaries scales were calculated. ResultsThe medical students showed poor HRQOL, mainly because of the mental component. Lower mean scores were found among those with FIES support, females, those suffering from sleepiness, headaches and lacking physical activity. No clear trend was observed in the variation of the SF-36 mean scores according to the year of medical school. However, students in the fifth year of the course had the highest HRQOL mean scores. ConclusionsHealth-related quality of life of students at this private medical school was poor, mainly because of its mental component. Lower HRQOL was associated with FIES support, females, sleepiness, headaches and lack of regular physical activity. Higher scores were found among fifth year students.
Highlights
The World Health Organization has defined quality of life as “individuals’ perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and their relation to their goals, expectations, standards and concerns”.1 Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) is a broad, multidimensional and polysemic concept that usually comprises subjective evaluations of positive and negative aspects of an individual’s physical and mental health
Mean scores tended to reach a maximum in most scales and were high for Vitality, Mental Health, and Mental Component Summary (Table 2)
Compared to medical students from a Brazilian public university (UNICAMP), 19 students from EBMSP presented lower mean scores on the scales that are more related to the physical component (PF, Role Physical (RP), Bodily Pain (BP), and General Health (GH)), but scored higher in the scales more related to the mental component (VT, Social Functioning (SF), Role Emotional (RE), and Mental Health (MH))
Summary
The World Health Organization has defined quality of life as “individuals’ perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and their relation to their goals, expectations, standards and concerns”.1 Health-related quality of life (HRQOL) is a broad, multidimensional and polysemic concept that usually comprises subjective evaluations of positive and negative aspects of an individual’s physical and mental health. The World Health Organization has defined quality of life as “individuals’ perception of their position in life in the context of the culture and value systems in which they live and their relation to their goals, expectations, standards and concerns”.1. The health-related quality of life of medical students can be affected by many occupational stressors.[3] Having a perfectionist profile, being under great learning pressure, processing great amounts of new information, lacking time for social activities, and having contact with severe disease and with death can all contribute to the onset of depressive symptomatology among medical students.[4] Depression, stress, and burnout were associated with low HRQOL among medical students.[5] The undergraduate medical course seems to affect the health-related quality of life of the students, their mental health component.[6] A systematic review of 40 studies suggests a high prevalence of depression and anxiety among medical students, with levels of overall psychological distress consistently higher than in the general population and age-matched peers in the later years of training.[3]
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
