The mental health status of faculty members and students as the contemporary and future health system providers

Abstract

Purpose

Health is one of the most basic human rights. The mental health of contemporary and future health services providers is of great significance. The purpose of this paper is to investigate the mental health of the faculty members and students of Kurdistan University of medical sciences

Design/methodology/approach

This was an analytical-descriptive and cross-sectional study, which was conducted using the Census method on 249 faculty members and proportionately by using random sampling on 347 students in 2019. Data were collected using the 28-item General Health Questionnaire. Data analysis was done via SPSS 24 software by using statistical tests such as T-test and one-way ANOVA.

Findings

The mean values (standard deviation) of the total score of mental health among students and faculty members were 27.43 (14.37) and 20.17 (11.37), respectively. In total, 57.2% of students and 31% of faculty members had symptoms of mental disorder. The highest mean score among faculty members and students was observed on the subscale of “social dysfunction.” There was a significant relationship between the mental health of students and where they study and the mental health of faculty members and type of faculty member with the faculty in which they work (p < 0.05).

Originality/value

The prevalence of mental disorders’ symptoms among faculty members and students of Kurdistan University of medical sciences was high, and it must be considered by policymakers and managers of the health system to plan appropriate interventions.

Citation

Zarezadeh, Y., Mohamadi-Bolbanabad, A., Safari, H., Azadnia, A. and Piroozi, B. (2022), "The mental health status of faculty members and students as the contemporary and future health system providers", International Journal of Human Rights in Healthcare, Vol. 15 No. 1, pp. 31-40. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJHRH-05-2020-0028