Objective: To evaluate stress among all students in the clinical years of the undergraduate Dentistry program at University of Lisbon
Materials and Methods: 80 students (36 from the 4th year and 44 from the 5thyear), attending the last 2 years of dental medicine program in 2012-2013 academic year, fulfilled the General Health Questionnaire - GHQ-12. For each 12 items of the questionnaire, 4 values were attributed for the first option (higher level of mental health) and 3, 2, and 1 to the other options in a descendent order (increasing level of psychological stress). Data were analyzed with SPSS software (version 21).
Results: An answer rate of 100% (n = 80) was obtained. The internal consistency (Cronbach’s alpha) for the 12 items of the questionnaire was 0,849. The sample did not have a normal distribution, according to the Kolmogorov-Smirnov’s test (KS test). For gender, the results were statistically significant for items 1, 7, 9 and 11 (p < 0,05). Mean value for GHQ was 3,05 (SD = 0,709), according to the counting method 4-1 (increasing level of psychological stress). When comparing means between genders, female experience higher stress level than males (2,97 and 3,40, respectively). Comparing students’ levels, 4th year students show a mean of 2,97 (SD = 0,7) and the 5thstudents of 3,11 (SD = 0,7).
Conclusion: Although dental students are faced with stress-promoting situations, no significant stress levels were observed in this sample. Educational institutions should be aware of possible stress factors and the importance of stress prevention.