FACTORS CAUSING STRESS AMONG FEMALE STUDENTS OF AL JOUF MEDICAL COLLEGE IN SAUDI ARABIA

Background: Medical students feel a significant amount of stress due to a variety of factors. Few studies have explored the relative size of these various stressors to identify which are most important. Early identification and necessary interventions targeting the alleviation of modifiable stressors might result in a less stressful academic life for students, which in turn could enhance their academic performance and skill development as medical graduates. This study is undertaken to quantify the magnitude of various sources of stress among female students of Al Jouf medical college in Saudi Arabia. Objectives: To determine the level of stress among female students of Al Jouf medical college and to know the factors associated with stress. Methods: Present cross-sectional study was conducted from December 2017 to January 2018 among 86 medical students from year one to three using MSSQ-20 questionnaire. Results: The overall prevalence of stress was about 88.4%. The prevalence of stress was the highest among the second-year students (96.4%) followed by first year students (84.8%) and third year students (84%). A significant number of study participants in our setting suffer from moderate to high stress. Most of the students (44.2%) reported stress due to academic‑related factors (ARS)followed by Social Related Stressor (SRS) (15.1%). Conclusion: The study showed a high prevalence of stress in the medical students with preponderance among the second-year students. A significant number of study participants in our setting suffer from moderate to high stress. The main sources of stress stated by the students were academic‑related factors (ARS). Implementing effective changes in the curriculum to make it more student-friendly should receive priority in addressing this high prevalence of stress among medical students. Keywords: MSSQ, Stress, Medical Students, ARS, SR