Prevalence and Factors Associated with Depression among Public Health students, Mae Fah Luang University, Thailand

Main Article Content

Nida Boonsri
Pawanrat Mingmaung
Bunyakan Ubonphaisan
Pimmada Vila
Nadtakridta Janpoo
Supaporn Trongsakul
Siwarak Kitchanapaiboon
Suphaphorn Utsaha
Pilasinee Wonngnuch

Abstract

Introduction: Depressive symptoms is a sign of a mental health problem that causes a persistent feeling of sadness and a loss of interest in activities, and it can cause emotional, functional and physical problems and progress to severe depression. Objectives: This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of and identify the factors associated with depressive symptoms among students attending a life science program at a university located in Chiang Rai Province, Thailand. Methods: An analytic cross-sectional study was conducted from September to December 2019. A random method was used to select the participants. A validated questionnaire was used to collect socioeconomic information about the participants, and a health questionnaire (PHQ-9) was used to assess the participants’ depressive symptoms. Logistic regression was applied to determine the association between the variables at a significance level of a=0.05. Results: Of 270 students, 160 participants were recruited for the study; 87.5% were female, 43.8% reported that they did not have enough money to support their daily life, 10.0% had a family conflict, 30.6% had been subjected to bullying, and 15.6% reported that they did not consult anyone when facing a problem. The prevalence of depressive symptoms was 20.6%. After controlling for sex and age, two variables were found to be associated with depressive symptoms: family conflicts and having experienced being bullied by peers. Those who had a family conflict were more likely to have depressive symptoms than those who did not (AOR = 4.90, 95% CI = 1.46–16.38), and those who had been bullied were more likely to have depressive symptoms that those who had not (AOR = 3.24, 95% CI = 1.39–7.54). Conclusion: Improvements in family member relationships and minimizing bullying among peers at the university are urgently required interventions for preventing depressive symptoms among university students in Thailand.

Article Details

How to Cite
Boonsri, N. ., Mingmaung , P. ., Ubonphaisan , B. ., Vila , P. ., Janpoo , N. ., Trongsakul , S. ., Kitchanapaiboon , S. ., Utsaha , S., & Wonngnuch, P. (2020). Prevalence and Factors Associated with Depression among Public Health students, Mae Fah Luang University, Thailand. Journal of Health Science and Alternative Medicine, 2(3), 7–11. Retrieved from https://he01.tci-thaijo.org/index.php/jhealthscialternmed/article/view/244376
Section
Original Article

References

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