Psychological Morbidities among Trainee Pharmacists in Major Government Hospitals in Sarawak
Abstract
Introduction: Trainee pharmacists in Malaysia are required to undergo a one-year training program during which they have to fulfill the requirements of their training logbooks. The logbook outlines the jobs and tasks that should be performed by the trainee pharmacists during their attachment at various pharmacy units. Upon the completion of their internship, they should acquire adequate professional knowledge, skills, and attitudes in order to prepare themselves to deal with life-long professional challenges independently. Objective: The objectives of this study were to determine the prevalence of depression, anxiety and stress among trainee pharmacists in major government hospitals in Sarawak, to compare the level of psychological morbidities among trainee pharmacists among training centers, and to explore the factors associated with the psychological morbidities during pharmacy training. Method: This was a cross-sectional study involving 55 trainee pharmacists in major government hospitals in Sarawak over a period of two months, from 24th December 2019 to 28th February 2020, using a validated questionnaire, the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale (DASS 21). Additional questions regarding socio-demographic variables were also included in the survey. Results: The prevalence of psychological morbidities for trainee pharmacists was found to be 14.5% for depression, 38.2% for anxiety, and 7.2% for stress, respectively. Local program graduates had 5.41 times higher odds of developing depression as compared to foreign or twinning program graduates. Furthermore, non-Sarawakian trainee pharmacists had 7.9 times higher odds for developing anxiety as compared to trainee pharmacists who originated from Sarawak. Conclusion: Anxiety was found to be the most common psychological symptom experienced by trainee pharmacists in Sarawak training centers. The origin of trainees and place of graduation were significantly associated with anxiety and depression,n respectively. Attention should be focused on the early recognition of psychological morbidities among healthcare professionals.