Pharmacy Student Stress and Time Use in Pre-Clinical and Clinical Students

Literature has identified high levels of stress in pharmacy students; however, more information is needed to understand how student stress relates to time use. This study explored the causes of stress and its relationship to time use in pre-clinical and clinical pharmacy students, which were compared, as previous literature has found differences in time management and stress in these groups.

In this observational, mixed methods study, pre-Advanced Pharmacy Practice Experience students completed a baseline and final stress assessment, recorded daily time use and stress levels for 1 week, and participated in a semi-structured focus group. Predetermined time use categories were used to collect and analyze time use data. Inductive coding was used to determine themes from focus group transcripts.

Pre-clinical students were found to have overall higher baseline and final stress scores and spent more time on stress-inducing activities (ie, academics) than clinical students. Both groups reported spending more time on activities related to pharmacy school during the week and increased time on activities of daily life and discretionary activities during the weekend. Common sources of stress for both groups included academics, cocurriculars, and ineffective stress management techniques.

Our findings support the hypothesis that time use and stress are linked. Pharmacy students acknowledged having many responsibilities and too little time to participate in stress-relieving activities. Understanding sources of student stress, including demands on students' time, and the relationship between the two is needed to support student stress management and academic success of both pre-clinical and clinical pharmacy students.