Prevalence and Comorbidity of Generalized Anxiety and Depression among Medical Students at Selected Universities in Lusaka, Zambia

Research shows that medical students suffer from anxiety and depression, which are the 2 biggest mental health disorders, and their health only deteriorates upon entering the medical field. Although studies have been conducted to investigate their existence, very few to none have explored their prevalence and association amongst medical students in Zambia. This study will therefore investigate on the prevalence and comorbidity of both anxiety and depression amongst medical students in Zambia. A cross-sectional study was conducted on 376 medical students from 2 medical universities which were selected using a combination of convenience and voluntary sampling techniques. The Patient health questionnaire was used to assess depression whilst the Generalised Anxiety Disorder Scale was used to assess anxiety amongst medical students. The data was analyzed using both Descriptive statistics, specifically measures of central tendencies and cross-tabulation were used to explain the study participant in relation to study variables. The study employed inferential statistics, specifically, the Pearson’s Product Moment correlation coefficient (r) was used to measure the correlation between anxiety and depression. The study revealed that the prevalence of depression amongst the participants was 68% and the comorbidity of anxiety and depression was found to be 60.4% (p < 0.001). The study revealed high prevalence and comorbidity of anxiety and depression. Universities should collaborate with non-governmental organizations to treat, educate and improve on the management of anxiety and depression among medical students.