Mental health and burnout in Nepalese medical students: an observational study

Bikram Kafle,Yashoda Bagale,Murtaza Kadhum,Andrew Molodynski

doi:10.1186/s43045-021-00134-4

Abstract

BackgroundMental health problems among medical students are highly prevalent internationally. There have been very few studies however in Nepal. This study aimed to assess the frequency of mental health problems and burnout in Nepalese medical students.ResultsA total of 169 students responded to the questionnaire. Half (50%) of the surveyed students had some form of mental health problem according to the GHQ-12, while the OLBI showed that 85% students were disengaged and 65% were exhausted. The CAGE screening tool was positive in 14%, and 11% described illicit drug use. Sixty-four percent of students identified their academic studies as their major source of stress.ConclusionsTimely recognition of mental health problems is imperative to avert psychiatric illness. Training on early identification and management of stress would be helpful. Further studies are required to identify the factors associated with poor mental health.

Highlights

Mental health problems among medical students are highly prevalent internationally
Our study has provided additional data concerning the mental wellbeing of Nepalese medical students
Our study found that mental health problems are high among Nepalese medical students

Summary

Introduction

Mental health problems among medical students are highly prevalent internationally. There have been very few studies in Nepal. Medical students are exposed to multiple stressors that may detrimentally affect their mental health, such as study, difficult academic environments, heavy workload, sleeplessness, and exposure to serious illness They are exposed to substantial tuition fees incurring financial difficulties, constant travel raising housing concerns, and/or a lack of recreational activities [8, 9]. These issues may result in significant anxiety or mood disorders, compromise academic attainment, and heighten the risk of medical errors, dropout, alcohol and substance abuse, and tragically in some cases suicide [10,11,12]. This in turn can lead to such things as poor patient care, increases in medical errors, suicidal ideation, and substance misuse [16,17,18]

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