Mental well-being of medical students and the need for mental health care in the dynamics of 2020-2024 years

Introduction Research has consistently highlighted the vulnerability of medical students to poor mental health and wellbeing. The COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated this issue. However, there is limited understanding of medical students’ mental wellbeing dynamics after the pandemic. Objectives The aim of the study was to comparatively analyse the mental wellbeing and mental health needs of medical students in comparison with those during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods An anonymous structured online survey was conducted among students of a medical institute in St. Petersburg, Russia. The sample included responses from 152 students (76.3% women) of all courses of study. The results were compared with the data of a survey conducted at the same institute in 2020 (Chumakov et al . Middle East Curr Psychiatry 2021;28, 38). Results The majority of respondents (n=145; 95.4%) reported experiencing significant stress in their lives (95.8% in 2020). The main sources of stress included education-related factors (83.6%), uncertainty about the future (72.4%), financial problems (48.0%), intimate/family relationships (46.7%), work (27.6%), and housing problems (19.1%). Thirteen students (8.6%) reported that they had been diagnosed with a mental health disorder prior to enrolling in the institute (6.1% in 2020; p=0.393). Twice as much students (n=27; 17.8%) were diagnosed with mental disorders during institute studies (15.2% in 2020; p=0.53). The mental disorders reported by the respondents were dominated by depressive disorders (n=7), anxiety disorders (5), mixed anxiety and depressive disorder (5), ADHD (5), bipolar disorder and cyclothymia (3). At the time of the study, 26 students (17.1%) were being seen by a mental health professional (10.9% in 2020; p=0.111), the same number of students were taking any prescribed medication for mental health (10.9% in 2020; p=0.111). One-third of respondents (n=53; 34.9%) had taken non-prescription medication in the last year to improve their well-being or mood (27.3% in 2020; p=0.143), and 45 (29.6%) had taken medication in the last year to improve concentration or academic performance (38.3% in 2020; p=0.107). Conclusions The study showed high mental health care needs among medical students with a tendency to self-medication. Notably, mental health indicators have not improved since 2020 despite the end of the COVID-19 pandemic. Our findings highlight consistent trends in medical students’ mental health and underscore the need for targeted interventions to support this vulnerable population. Disclosure of Interest None Declared