Abstract:
Background. Chronic stress among medical students affects academic performance of students and leads to depression, substance
use, and suicide. There is, however, a shortage of such research evidence in Ethiopia. Objective. We aimed to estimate the prevalence
and severity of stress and its association with substance use and academic performance among medical students. Methods. A crosssectional survey was conducted on a sample of 329 medical students at Jimma University. Data were collected using the General
Health Questionnaire (GHQ-12), Medical Students Stress Questionnaire (MSSQ-20), and Drug Abuse Surveillance Test (DAST).
Data were analyzed using SPSS version 20.0. Logistic regression analysis and Student’s 𝑡-test were applied. Results. The mean age of
the respondents was 23.02 (SD = 2.074) years. The current prevalence of stress was 52.4%. Academic related stressor domain was
the main source of stress among 281 (88.6%) students. Stress was significantly associated with khat chewing [AOR = 3.03, 95% CI
(1.17, 7.85)], smoking [AOR = 4.55, 95% CI (1.05, 19.77)], and alcohol intake [AOR = 1.93, 95% CI (1.03, 3.60)]. The prevalence of
stress was high during the initial three years of study. Stress was significantly (𝑝 = 0.001) but negatively (𝑟 = −0.273) correlated with
academic achievement. Conclusion. Stress was a significant problem among medical students and had a negative impact on their
academic performance. Year of study, income, and substance use were associated with stress. Counseling and awareness creation
are recommended.
