Spiritual health assessment among MBBS students of Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Burla, Sambalpur, Odisha, India

Abstract

Background: Spiritual health is a state which not only increases the meaning of life but also increases mental satisfaction and gist in life. It improves the verbal communication between physician and patients, which reflects future patient care by strengthening their relationship. Aims and Objectives: (1) The present study was planned to assess the spiritual health status of undergraduate medical students of Veer Surendra Sai Institute of Medical Sciences and Research, Burla, by use of the Spiritual Health Assessment Scale (SHAS) and coping orientation for problem experiences (COPE) score and (2) to find the association between sociodemographic variables and spiritual health status of the students. Materials and Methods: For this study, 750 undergraduate students of either sex were recruited between August 2023 and November 2023. The data were collected through “sociodemographic characteristic questionnaire’s,” “SHAS,” and “cope score.” Results: In our study, most of the students were female, i.e., 56.94%. Majority of students were having mean SHA score (96.83 ± 4.72). Regarding copping score, we found that 287 students have scored high score between 42 and 46 (38.26%). A significant association was found between SHAS and type of family (P = 0.001), ritual gathering (P = 0.000), father’s education level (P = 0.009), and mother’s education level (P = 0.003) at P < 0.05. Conclusion: This study concludes that the spiritual health is directly and indirectly associated with lifestyle modification of the MBBS students which help very easily to overcome from stress and anxiety.