Prevalence of stress and its determinants among residents in Saudi Arabia.
OBJECTIVE
To examine perceived stress among residents in Saudi Arabia and its associated risk factors.


METHODS
A cross-sectional study of all residents registered at the Saudi Commission for Health Specialties, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, was conducted between May and October 2012. We assessed the likelihood of stress using the perceived stress scale (PSS).


RESULTS
Out of the 4000 residents contacted, 1035 responded and 938 were included. The mean (±standard deviation) PSS score was 22.0±5.1 (median 22 and inter-quartile range of 18-25). With the exception of gender and nationality, no significant associations were found between stress and socio-demographic or behavioral factors. Stress was associated with higher workload, sleep deprivation, dissatisfaction with colleagues and the program, and harmful ideations. Stressors included work-related, academic, and homesickness stressors. In multivariate analysis, the following were independently associated with stress: Saudi nationality, facing homesick stressor, facing work-related stressor, dissatisfaction with relationships with colleagues, and frequent thoughts of quitting the medical profession.


CONCLUSIONS
Residents in Saudi Arabia are at comparable or slightly higher risk of perceived stress than that reported among residents worldwide. Unfortunately, most of the participants never received stress management, which highlights the need for stress management programs during residency.
Department of Psychiatry, King Khalid University Hospital, PO Box 7805, Riyadh 11472, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. E-mail. dr.fahad.alosaimi@gmail.com.
Fahad D
FD
Alosaimi
Sana N
SN
Kazim
Auroabah S
AS
Almufleh
Bandar S
BS
Aladwani
Abdullah S
AS
Alsubaie
D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007396:Internship and Residency; D007588:Job Satisfaction; D008297:Male; D010465:Perception; D015995:Prevalence; D012529:Saudi Arabia / Q000453:epidemiology; D012892:Sleep Deprivation / Q000523:psychology; D013315:Stress, Psychological / Q000453:epidemiology*; D014940:Work Schedule Tolerance / Q000523:psychology; D016526:Workload / Q000523:psychology