Psychiatric Associations with Barriers to use of Mental Health Services in Medical Students

Introduction: Medical students experience stress, anxiety, and depression at rates greater than those of the general population. Medical students also underutilize mental health services. There exists a need for a comprehensive, multivariate analysis of the reasons medical students do not pursue mental health services, and the undesirable mental health outcomes that are associated with these barriers. This study associates psychiatric phenomena of stress, anxiety, and depression within the context of barriers to use of mental health services in medical students. Methods: In this cross-sectional study, medical students (N = 128) from the University of South Florida engaged with an online survey on their degree of perceived stress, anxiety, and depression using the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 scale (GAD-7), and Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), respectively. They also provided responses to a study-specific measure designed to assess barriers to use of mental health services. Multiple regressions were performed to determine the weights of associated variables—barriers to use of services—relative to the aforementioned psychiatric phenomena. Results: Stress, anxiety, and depression were significantly associated— F(13, 113) = 4.541, p < 0.001; F(13, 113) = 3.976, p < 0.001; F(13, 113) = 6.296 p < 0.001, respectively—with lack of time, stigma of mental health care, feeling that “my problems are not that important,” cost, fear of unwanted intervention, and fear of documentation on academic record. Conclusion: Future interventions by relevant stakeholders can target specific barriers to use of mental health services to reduce stress, anxiety, and depression among medical students.