Critical Analysis of Perceived Stress among Medical Students Studying in Government Medical Colleges at Srinagar, Anantnag and Baramulla, Union territory Jammu and Kashmir, India- A Cross-sectional Study

Introduction: Stress is one of the most important issues among medical students, often defined as the "wear and tear" the body experiences and multiple factors contribute to its prevalence. It can exert a negative impact on the emotional/psychological well-being of an individual, if not treated at the proper time. Proper management and timely interventions will lessen the negative effects of stress, thereby enhancing their academic performance and skill development as medical graduates. Aim: To measure and compare the perceived stress level among medical students studying in three main medical colleges located at Srinagar, Anantnag, and Baramulla (in the government sector). Materials and Methods: This cross-sectional study was multi-institutional, conducted in the first and second year medical students of Government Medical College (GMC)-Srinagar/GMC-Anantnag and GMC- Baramulla, Jammu and Kashmir, India in the age group of 18-25 years who voluntarily consented to participate. Data as per structured/standard questionnaire was collected on Google form in a password-protected electronic format. Perceived stress, the already validated and reliable Perceived Stress Scale (PSS)- Cohen et al., 1983, was used to analyse the stress levels. Categorical data were analysed using the Pearson Chi-square test. Results: Overall maximum students, 145 (54.9%) had moderate stress, followed by 83 (31.5%) who had high or perceived stress and 36 (13.6%) had low stress levels. College analysis indicated that perceived high stress was highest in GMC-Srinagar students with 38.1%, followed by 31.6% from GMC-Baramulla and 22.22% from GMC- Anantnag. Conclusion: Present study indicate an overall high prevalence of moderate stress followed by perceived high stress among the medical students of three medical colleges located in Kashmir, India. Interestingly, the location of the medical colleges had little impact on the stress level among such undergraduate students.