Assessing depression, anxiety, stress, and occupational decision regret levels among resident physicians working at Ankara University Faculty of Medicine Hospital

Περίληψη

Background/aim: Physicians work under high stress levels due to factors such as excessive workload, emotional factors, and economic variables. This situation leads to various health problems such as depression, burnout, fatigue, and hopelessness, resulting in decreased interest in a medical career and an increase in career choice regret. Materials and methods: 300 volunteer resident physicians from Ankara University Medical Faculty Hospital participated in the study. The data for the research was collected using a survey form prepared by reviewing the literature. The survey consisted of three parts, which questioned the physicians' socio-demographic characteristics and professional choices, including the Depression, Anxiety, Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21) items and the Decision Regret Scale.Results: 216 physicians (72.0%) had chosen the medical faculty because it was their preference. The percentage of those who were not regretful about their career choice was 14.3% (n=43). Those not regretful about their career choice had fewer years in the profession than other physicians. According to the categorical assessment of DASS-21, 73.7% (n=221) of the physicians had depressive symptoms ranging from mild to severe, 78.7% (n=236) had anxiety symptoms ranging from mild to severe, and 57.7% (n=173) had stress symptoms ranging from mild to severe.Conclusion: In our study, mental health problems such as depression, anxiety, and stress were found to be common among resident physicians independent of their socio-demographic characteristics, and this was also found to be associated with the level of career regret. Improving working conditions and personal benefits, addressing economic and other issues for physicians, ensuring their well-being, preventing the development of mental health problems, early screening and rehabilitation of those affected not only have personal benefits but also contribute positively to job satisfaction, strengthen the patient-physician relationship, and have a significant impact on healthcare services.