Effects of Counseling for Stress and Depression in Pharmacy Students at Mahasarakham University

Abstract

The aims of this study were to evaluate the stress and depression screening scores, and the quality of life in the part of physical and mental health scores after counseling and follow-up between the study group (the counseller was educated) and the control group (regular system). The first to fifth year students in the Faculty of Pharmacy, Mahasarakham University were screened between July 2007-Febuary 2008, using questionnaires from the Mental Health Department, Ministry of Public Health, and the Short Form-12. Students who had stress and/or depression were divided into 2 groups: the study (n=34) and the control (n=57) groups. Most of them were female both in the study group (73.5%) and in the control group (84.5%). The average age was 19.8±1.54 years in the study group and 19.9±1.54 years in the control group. The screening stress and depression scores in both groups were significantly reduced from baseline (p < 0.05). However, there was no significant difference between two groups. The physical health scores did not improve from baseline in both groups and there was no significant difference between the two groups. The scores of stress were positively related with the scores of depression. The scores of stress and depression were negatively related with the scores of quality of life both in physical and mental parts. This study proposes that the university should arrange an effective counseling system and continue to follow-up the students, establish a mental counseling center and hot-line to help and resolve problems for students.