Medical Student Wellness in Wisconsin: Current Trends and Future Directions

Brittany Van Remortel; Emily Dolan; David Cipriano; Patrick McBride

Medical Student Wellness in Wisconsin: Current Trends and Future Directions

WMJ. 2018 Dec;117(5):211-213.

Authors

Brittany Van Remortel¹, Emily Dolan², David Cipriano², Patrick McBride³

Affiliations

¹ School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin, vanremortel@wisc.edu.
² Medical College of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
³ School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin, Madison, Wisconsin.

PMID: 30674098

Abstract

Introduction: The goal of this study is to describe the state of mental health of Wisconsin medical students.

Methods: Online wellness surveys were distributed to students at the University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health (UWSMPH) and Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW) during the 2016-2017 school year.

Results: Of UWSMPH respondents, 40.0% and 12.5% reported experiencing depression/other mood changes and suicidal ideation during medical school, respectively. Twelve percent of MCW respondents screened positive for depression using the Patient Health Questionnaire-2, and 7.8% reported experiencing suicidal ideation in the last 2 weeks.

Discussion: Similar to results shown worldwide, Wisconsin medical students experience diminished mental health relative to nonmedical peers. Changes in medical education are needed to improve student mental well-being.

MeSH terms

Adult
Depression / epidemiology
Female
Humans
Male
Mental Health*
Students, Medical / psychology*
Suicidal Ideation
Surveys and Questionnaires
Wisconsin / epidemiology
Young Adult