Prevalence and severity of Anxiety among medical students studying in modular curriculum

Abstract

Abstract

Introduction: A modular curriculum is required to produce well-equipped medical graduates in present era. Teaching in this system is multidisciplinary, fast-paced, and includes multiple assessment strategies. This may produce mental stress and anxiety among the students, hindering them in academic performance and patient care.

Objectives: To find the prevalence and severity of anxiety among the students of a private medical college  in Lahore studying in the modular system. Methodology: According to inclusion criteria, 212 first- to fourth-year students were enrolled in this study. Data collection started after getting permission from the research ethical committee of the institution. Both male and female medical students were recruited by convenient sampling. All the students were asked to fill out the questionnaire performa. Data was analyzed using the 20th SPSS version. Results: The prevalence of anxiety among medical students was found to be high (97.2%).  One-third of the students were suffering from moderate stress, and one-half had mild anxiety. Severe anxiety was found in 9.4%  students. The prevalence of high and moderate anxiety was higher among female students. Conclusion: It was concluded that one-third of students are suffering from moderate anxiety, which is more common in female students. It was discovered further that end modular assessments were the primary stressor.