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Cited by 477Healthcare professionals’ stress and burnoutMental Health Treatment and AccessInnovations in Medical Education

The DOI matches its Crossref record; 53 of the 53 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.

Medical student depression, anxiety and distress outside North America: a systematic review

Open access
Hope, Valerie, Henderson, Max·2014·Medical Education
DOI 10.1111/medu.12512
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Abstract

CONTEXT: North American medical students are more depressed and anxious than their peers. In the UK, the regulator now has responsibility for medical students, which may potentially increase scrutiny of their health. This may either help or hinder medical students in accessing appropriate care. The prevalences of anxiety, depression and psychological distress in medical students outside North America are not clear. A better understanding of the prevalence of, risk factors for and results of psychological distress will guide the configuration of support services, increasingly available for doctors, for medical students too. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to examine the prevalences of depression, anxiety and psychological distress in students in medical schools in the UK, Europe and elsewhere in the English-speaking world outside North America. METHODS: A systematic review was conducted using search terms encompassing psychological distress amongst medical students. OvidSP was used to search the following databases: Ovid MEDLINE (R) from 1948 to October 2013; PsycINFO from 1806 to October 2013, and EMBASE from 1980 to October 2013. Results were restricted to medical schools in Europe and the English-speaking world outside North America, and were evaluated against a set of inclusion criteria including the use of validated assessment tools. RESULTS: The searches identified 29 eligible studies. Prevalences of 7.7-65.5% for anxiety, 6.0-66.5% for depression and 12.2-96.7% for psychological distress were recorded. The wide range of results reflects the variable quality of the studies. Almost all were cross-sectional and many did not mention ethical approval. Better-quality studies found lower prevalences. There was little information on the causes or consequences of depression or anxiety. CONCLUSIONS: Prevalences of psychological distress amongst medical students outside North America are substantial. Future research should move on from simple cross-sectional studies to better-quality longitudinal work which can identify both predictors for and outcomes of poor mental health in medical students.

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Crossref · 10.1111/medu.12512

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Citations

Cites

Research works printed but not linked: 8

  1. Department of Health, 2008, Mental Health and Ill Health in Doctors
  2. Practitioner Health Programme, 2012, National Health Service Practitioner Health Programme 2011 Annual Report
  3. British Medical Association, 2011, BMA Medical Students’ Finance Survey Academic Year 2010/2011
  4. Daily Mail.Cambridge medical student killed himself after university wouldn't let him resit exam for a third time. Daily Mail; 10 December 2010.
  5. North East London Strategic Health Authority, 2003, Report of An Independent Inquiry into the Care and Treatment of Daksha Emson MBBS, MRCPsych, MSc and her Daughter Freya
  6. Yoong CK, 1999, Stress among medical students in a medical college of South India, Educ Health, 12, 63
  7. Das A, 1999, Stress among medical students in a medical college of south India, Educ Health, 12, 63
  8. Radovanovic Z, 1985, Smoking, mental health and selected variables among medical students in Belgrade, Soc Psihijat, 13, 255

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Metadata

Authors
Hope, V., & Henderson, M.
Affiliations
King's College London (GB)
Corresponding author
Henderson, Max
Venue
Medical Education
Publisher
Wiley
Published
2014-09-09
Volume
48
Issue
10
Pages
963-979
ISSN
  • 0308-0110 (ISSN-L)
  • 1365-2923
DOI
10.1111/medu.12512
OpenAlex
W2077695865
Cited by
477
References
53
Citations by year
2026: 18 · 2025: 27 · 2024: 63 · 2023: 50 · 2022: 61 · 2021: 88 · 2020: 53 · 2019: 44 · 2018: 29 · 2017: 22 · 2016: 14 · 2015: 7 · 2014: 1
FWCI
2.48
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Licence
Locations
  • Medical Education (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • Research Portal (King's College London) (submittedVersion, cc-by)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Health Professions › General Health Professions › Healthcare professionals’ stress and burnout
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Psychiatry and Mental health › Mental Health Treatment and Access
  • Social Sciences › Education › Innovations in Medical Education
Keywords
medical students, depression, anxiety, psychological distress, prevalence, mental health, risk factors, support services, Europe, English-speaking countries
MeSH terms
Adult, Anxiety Disorders, Cross-Sectional Studies, Depressive Disorder, Europe, United Kingdom, Humans, Male, North America, Risk Factors, Sex Factors, Stress, Psychological, Students, Medical, Prevalence, Young Adult

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