ABSTRACT

Objective:

The study was conducted to evaluate the occupational anxiety levels of the final year medical students about their future and the factors affecting it.

Methods:

This cross-sectional analytical research was conducted between September 2015 and February 2016 with 296 final year students who were at family medicine internships. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) and the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI TX-2), and a questionnaire containing socio-demographic items prepared by the researchers were administered.

Results:

Of the participants, 47.3% (n=140) were female and 52.7% (n=156) were male. The average ages of the male and female students were 23.83±1.18 and 24.13±1.18 years, respectively. Among the students, 51.8% (n=142) were living with their friends, 34.3% (n=103) with their family members and 12.8% (n=38) in hostels. 81.8% (n=242) of the participants had occupational future anxiety. Occupational anxiety was significantly more frequent in female students than in male students (χ2=5.167, p<0.05). During medical education, 68.9% of the students (n=204) had difficulty during oral exams, 18.9% (n=56) were unable to communicate with senior staff, 27.0% (n=80) had difficulty with presenting their patient during visits, 22.3% (n=66) were afraid of misdiagnosing, 15.9% (n=47) were afraid of psychiatric patient management, and 16.6% (n=49) had difficulty with reporting a case.

Conclusion:

Being a doctor is accepted as a profession with high income and work quarantee in general. However, this study has revealed that final year students have high levels of occupational future concerns. There is a need for further research on causes and solutions.