Frequency of and Potentiating Risk Factors for Suicidal Ideation Among Medical Students of Rawalpindi Medical University in the Year 2021


Authors : Dr. Haris Kamran; Asad Nizami; Dr. Anam Fatima; Dr. Ahmed Salmaan; Dr. Gulfam Khan Shairwani

Volume/Issue : Volume 8 - 2023, Issue 5 - May

Google Scholar : https://bit.ly/3TmGbDi

Scribd : https://shorturl.at/COTU6

DOI : https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7980979

 Background: According to the World Health Organization, more than 800,000 people die from suicide each year. Doctors have the highest rate of suicide among all the professionals. No detailed study investigating the frequency of suicidal ideation and its associated risk factors among medical students has been conducted in Pakistan. This is the first study of its kind to be conducted among medical students of Pakistan. The aims and objectives of the study were to find the frequency of suicidal ideation among the medical students of RMC in the year 2021, to find out the most common associated risk factors, and to suggest interventions and recommendations.  Methods: The study was carried out at the Old and New teaching blocks of the Rawalpindi Medical University. The screening questionnaire used for phase 1 was “Suicide Behaviors Questionnaire-Revised (SBQ-R)” with the cut-off score of > 7. For phase 2, a questionnaire containing twenty-eight questions detailing the potentiating risk factors based on internationally standardized questions was developed. Data analysis was done using SPSS version 22.  Results: The sample size was 862 using stratified sampling technique. The frequency of suicidal ideation among medical students of RMC in 2021 was 20.2%. This translates to roughly 1 in every 5 students. The mean frequency of male students was significantly higher than that of the females (24.7% vs 19.4%), with no significant difference between the mean frequencies associated with the boarding status. Third year students reported the highest percentage of suicidal ideation at 26%, with fourth year having the highest mean score of 11.59, denoting the maximum severity. The three most common potentiating factors across all academic years were communication problems, academic failures, and risky activities. In third year, 60% students with suicidal ideation were unaware about the availability of the campus mental health resources.  Conclusion: A significant percentage of medical students in Rawalpindi Medical University report suicidal ideation, which should be recognized, acknowledged, and addressed at an early stage by the University administration and the mental health department.

Keywords : Suicide, Suicidal Ideation, Potentiating Factors, Rawalpindi Medical University, Mental Health.

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