Comparison of Mental Health Issues Due to Competency Based Medical Education (CBME) vs Traditional Curriculum among the Undergraduate Students of Rajasthan

Introduction: Medical education in India is going through reforms and advancement for better outcomes and improved health care of community. This transition period is an arduous task for all the stakeholders and can impel mental health issues among medical students. Objective: To compare the level of depression, anxiety, and stress among medical students from Traditional curriculum and CBME. Material and Methods: In our study, a total of 700 students participated (449 were of CBME curriculum; 251 of traditional curriculum) in a medical college of Rajasthan. We used a self-administered questionnaire, the DASS 21 scale to assess anxiety, stress and depression among anxiety medical students. The statistical package for the social science (SPSS) version 21.0 of windows was used for data analysis. Results: Almost half of (Traditional: – 53.4%; CBME -52.8%) the participants suffered from some level of depression. However severe and extremely severe depressive symptoms were found to be significantly higher among CBME students (Traditional-7.2%,5.6%,CBME-13.4%,8.7% respectively). Similarly, the majority (Traditional -70.5%; CBME- 65.7%) suffered from some level of anxiety, but extremely severe anxiety was also significantly higher among CBME students (Traditional -15.9%; CBME – 27.8%). About 43.8% of traditional curriculum and 50.1% of CBME curriculum suffered from some level of stress. However, severe and extremely severe stress symptoms were significantly higher among CBME students (Traditional -8.8%,4%; CBME -13.6%,8%). Conclusion: About half of medical students were detected to have symptoms suggestive of depression, stress and the majority suffering from anxiety issues. Severe forms of depression, and stress symptoms were found to be higher in CBME students than traditional curriculum students and the difference was found to be significant ( p-value <0.05).