Assessment of stress among physiotherapy students at Riphah Centre of Rehabilitation Sciences

Objective: To assess stress and psychological morbidity in undergraduate students of physiotherapy at Riphah Centre of Rehabilitation Sciences (RCRS). Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted from 2008 to 2010 at RCRS. Two hundred and thirty one students from first semester to fourth semester were included in the study. The data was collected through a semi-structured proforma and the Student Life Stress Inventory (SLSI) scale. Data was analysed by applying t-test and ANOVA with SPSS version 17. Results: Two hundred and three respondents (88%) reported feeling stressed: 97(42%) students were mildly stressed, 92(40%) were moderately stressed, and 14(6%) were severely stressed. Significant gender differences were found on the total score of stress, stressors and reactions. The findings revealed that females face more stressors especially pressures (p 0.001), physiological, emotional (p 0.01) and behavioural (p 0.05). An analysis of variance on SLSI is significant, F = 3.747 (p .05). Mean difference indicates that prevalence of stress is higher in 4th semester RCRS students.Conclusion: The findings reveal the higher level of stress in undergraduate physiotherapy students. The high psychological morbidity necessitates the need for interventions like counseling and psychological support to improve the quality of life for these allied health care professionals