Home > Depression, suicidality and alcohol abuse among medical and business students.

Curran, Terry Ann and Gawley, Emily and Casey, Patricia and Gill, Michael and Crumlish, Niall (2009) Depression, suicidality and alcohol abuse among medical and business students. Irish Medical Journal, 102, (8),

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We determined the prevalence and correlates of depression, alcohol abuse and suicidal idea-tion among medical and business students in Trinity College, Dublin and University College, Dublin. We rated depression and suicidal ideation in the past month with the Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) and alcohol abuse with the CAGE. Of 539 students registered, 338 (62.7%) re-sponded. 47 (13.9%) students were depressed, scoring ≥10 on the BDI. 83 (24.6%) students had an alcohol use disorder (CAGE =2). Alcohol abuse was more common among business students than medical students (AOR=2.9; 95% C.I.=1.7-5.1); there were no other inter-faculty differences. 20 (5.9%) students reported suicidal ideation in the last month. Suicidal ideation correlated positively with stressful life events (AOR=1.4; 95% C.I.=1.1-1.7), and negatively with social support (AOR=0.6; 95% C.I.=0.5-0.7). These findings suggest that students are a vulner-able group, and underscore the need for mental health education and psychosocial support ser-vices in universities.


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