Perceived stress and related factors among assistant physicians working at aydin Adnan Menderes University faculty of medicine: A cross-sectional study

Background and Aim: Stress factors such as heavy workload, poor working conditions, social and economic problems that assistant physicians are exposed to during their specialty training negatively affect physicians. High stress levels negatively affect the lives of physicians on the one hand, and the implementation and quality of healthcare services on the other. This study aimed to determine the perceived stress level of assistant physicians at Aydın Adnan Menderes University Faculty of Medicine and the factors affecting it. This study can be considered as a preliminary study in terms of improvement studies for changeable factors that may cause stress. Materials and Method: Our cross-sectional, descriptive study was completed between October and December 2022 with 332 assistant physicians working at Aydın Adnan Menderes University Faculty of Medicine. Assistant physicians who were actively working between the specified dates and who stated that they approved to participate in the study were included in the study. The sociodemographic data form and the Perceived Stress Scale, which included the descriptive characteristics of the participants and was prepared by scanning the literature, were administered to the participants face-to-face. The data were analyzed using the SPSS statistical program. Results: The average age of the participants was 28.65±2.57 (between 24-41 years), 53.9% (n=179) were female and 63.3% (n=210) were single. The average Perceived Stress Scale score of the participants was determined as 27.54±7.62. When the scale was divided into two categories and 28 points were taken as the cut-off point, it was observed that the total proportion of participants with a scale score ≥28 and considered stressed was 52.1%. It was determined that some of the participants' sociodemographic, psychological and business-related characteristics and thoughts were related to their perceived stress level. Conclusion: Half of the assistant physicians had high perceived stress levels. It is important to improve the working conditions of groups with high stress levels and to carry out stress management programs by providing psychological support to these groups, as they can also affect public health.