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First year residency stress: sources and mediators
L W Badger1, M J Chesebro, J A Hartman
1Department of Psychiatry, University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa 35487-6331.
Family Practice Research Journal
|January 1, 1987
Summary
First-year residents experience stress from training demands, but faculty support significantly impacts mood throughout the internship year. Positive faculty interactions reduce stress indicators for family practice residents.
Area of Science:
- Medical Education
- Psychology
- Family Medicine Training
Background:
- Internship year is a critical period for physician development.
- Understanding stressors is vital for resident well-being and effective training.
Purpose of the Study:
- Identify specific stressors in first-year family practice residents' training.
- Examine the relationship between training requirements, faculty interactions, and resident psychological well-being.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study of first-year family practice residents.
- Monthly administration of Profile of Mood States (POMS) and Zung Self-Rating Depression Scale (SDS).
- Correlation analysis of training demands and faculty ratings with stress indicators.
Main Results:
- Training demands (e.g., call frequency, sleep) correlated with stress indicators only in early rotations.
- Faculty commitment, availability, and sensitivity consistently related to resident mood throughout the year.
- Lower faculty ratings correlated with higher stress; higher ratings correlated with reduced stress.
Conclusions:
- While initial training demands contribute to stress, faculty support is a more consistent factor influencing resident well-being.
- Enhancing faculty-resident interactions is crucial for mitigating stress during residency.
- Supportive faculty mentorship can significantly buffer the psychological impact of residency training.