"Mentorship" a stride towards maintenance of medical student's well being

To evaluate the effectiveness of mentorship programme with respect to emotional wellness of medical students.

The cross-sectional questionnaire-based survey was carried out from March 2009 to February 2013 comprising first year medical students of five consecutive batches from two medical colleges. They were divided into two groups; Group A had non-mentored students from a medical college in Karachi, while Group B had mentored students of Bahria University Medical and Dental College, Karachi. Responses on aspects of emotional wellness was taken on a 4-point Likert scale; never, sometimes, mostly and always. Predictive Analysis Software version 18 was used for statistical analysis.

Out of the 500 questionnaires distributed to each batch, 423(84.6%) were returned filled in Group A and 450(90%) in Groups B. Overall, 873(87.3%) responses were obtained. Group A had 275(65%) females whereas in Group B there were 275(61%) females. The mean age of the overall study population was 20±2 years. The scores of emotional wellness were better in Group A compared to Group B 21.36±4.54 vs. 20.54±4.340 (p<0.028). The feeling of being cheerful and helpful was valued by 212(50%) students of Group A and 180(40%) of Group B (p<0.008). The satisfaction of being needed by family members and recognising stresses of life was significant in Group A (p<0.0001 vs. p<0.014). Group B had low emotional wellness scores yet 369(82%) had never consulted psychologists and psychiatrists compared to 13(0.03%) of Group A (p<0.02). Help from family members was also acquired by non-mentored students (p<0.003).

Emotional support provided by mentoring programme of Bahria University Medical and Dental College minimised the stress, limited consultation by psychologists or psychiatrists, and reduced reservations of parents and students of first year medical education.