National Mental Health Survey of Doctors and Medical Students

Abstract

Background 2. Key findings 3. Final considerations and recommendations 4Young doctors and female doctors appeared to have higher levels of general and specific mental health problems and reported greater work stress.General mental health problems were assessed with the use of the K10 and General Health Questionnaire (GHQ), which provides an indicator of the likelihood of minor psychiatric disorders.Specific distress was determined based on diagnoses of anxiety and depression.Female doctors reported higher rates than male doctors of current psychological distress (4.1% vs 2.8%), high likelihood of minor psychiatric disorders (33.5% vs. 23.2%),and current diagnoses of specifc mental health disorders (8.1% vs. 5.0% for depression; 5.1% vs. 2.9% for anxiety).In addition, they were more likely to have thoughts of suicide in the previous 12 months (11.0% vs. 10.0%),prior to the previous 12 months (28.5% vs. 22.3%), and attempted suicide (3.3% vs. 1.6%).They also reported greater work stress (e.g.37.4% vs. 19.8%for confict between career and family/personal responsibilities) and were more likely to report experiencing stressful life events in the past year compared to male doctors (e.g.20.4% vs. 17.2% regarding caring for a family member).Young doctors appeared to be particularly vulnerable to poor mental health and high levels of stress.Compared to older doctors (51-60 years), younger doctors reported higher rates of burnout, as measured by the Maslach Burnout Inventory (MBI), across the three domains of emotional exhaustion (47.5% vs. 29.1%),low professional efficacy (17.6% vs. 12.8%) and high cynicism (45.8% vs. 33.8%).The general work experience for Australian doctors is stressful and demanding.The work experience of doctors was assessed with the use of the MBI.In addition, participants were asked about whether they experienced a number of work related stressors.