The level of the stigma of medical students at King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences, towards mentally ill patients

Aim: The study aimed to measure the level of the stigma of medical students at King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS), Riyadh campus, towards mentally ill patients.

Material and methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted in King Saud bin Abdulaziz University for Health Sciences (KSAU-HS), Riyadh. The data collection was started in July 2017 till March 2018. The students completed a self-administered questionnaire consisting of sociodemographic data and the Community Attitudes toward the Mentally Ill (CAMI) Scale.

Results: The sample size was realized as 274 participants. There were no significant differences in all CAMI subscales for the different academic years except for Authoritarianism which showed a significant increase in the level of stigma (P-value = 0.04). Male gender, previous psychiatric treatment, and having a relative with psychiatric illness were associated with higher Authoritarianism and Social Restrictiveness scores and lower Benevolence and CMHI scores.

Discussion: More stigma was observed among the 4^th year students and it might be due to insufficient academic preparation as well as more exposure to psychiatric rotations.

Conclusion: The results support the importance of implementing anti-stigma programs throughout the medical program to improve the healthcare provided to mentally ill patients.