Investigating the relationship of sleep quality and psychological factors among Health Professions students

Abstract

Quality sleep is critically imperative for facilitating learning and academic achievement among university students. Students are subject to several potential stressors during their academic journey which can pose far-reaching implications for their psychological well-being. A very limited number of studies have evaluated the association of sleep problems and psychological factors in health professions students. This research aimed at exploring relationship between sleep quality and psychological factors among Health Professions students. It is equally important to know the prevalence of such conditions so that necessary intervention could be set in place. A cross-sectional descriptive research was conducted. The study targeted a group of 450 conveniently sampled health professions students at King Saud Bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS) to collect data pertinent to the research study. Five self-report questionnaires were utilized, including: sociodemographic and education background questionnaire (e.g., age, gender, marital status, college), the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Patient Depression Questionnaire (PHQ-9), Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and Zung Self-Rating Anxiety Scale (SAS). The prevalence of poor sleep quality (PSQI score > 5) among students was 69.6% (n = 313). PSQI components with showed most disturbances included subjective sleep quality, sleep latency, sleep duration, sleep disturbance and daytime dysfunction. Findings showed that 38.9% (n = 175) of the participants were depressed, 56.7% (n = 255) of students had severe stress, and 33.1% (n = 149) had mild to moderate and severe levels of anxiety. Additionally, there were statistically significant associations between sleep quality, depression, stress and anxiety (at p < 0.01). The findings of the present study establish a correlation between depression, stress, anxiety and sleep quality. Academic institutions should develop interventional program directed toward managing students’ academic related sleep and psychological concerns.