Impact of Self-awareness in Medical Students

NCT05313971 | Completed

• 1 other identifier: 096/2019
• Study Type: interventional
• Target: 46
• Locations: 1 country
• Sites: 1

Brief Summary

Objectives: The goal of this study is to understand whether self-knowledge, using the Enneagram, has a long-term impact as a modifying factor of the quality of life, self-compassion and compassion of medical students. Methods: An initial sample of 48 medical students answered, before, immediately after and 9 months after an intervention, an online questionnaire with 6 scales. The intervention group took a self-knowledge and communication course based on the Enneagram. The control group was recruited by matching the sociodemographic variables with the intervention group. The data obtained was subject to descriptive and inferential statistical analysis and qualitative content analysis.

Conditions

Burnout, Student; Stress, Psychological; Compassion; Self-Perception

Outcome Measures

Primary Outcomes (3)

• stress symptoms change

  Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10: Perceived Stress Scale; Cohen, Kamarck \& Mermelstein, 1983 (Cohen et al., 1983); Portuguese version by Trigo et al, 2010) (Trigo et al., 2010). Composed of 10 items, it allows to understand how the unpredictability, uncontrollability or excessiveness of life events are perceived as generators of stress by the individual. Each item is assigned a rating between 0 ("never") and 4 ("very often"). To calculate the final score, it is necessary to reverse the rating of items referring to positive situations (items 4, 5, 7 and 8). Thus, a result between 0 and 40 points is obtained, with values between 0 and 13 being defined as low levels of stress, 14 to 26 medium levels and 27 to 40 high levels. In the Portuguese population, the PSS-10 version has good internal consistency (α=0.87)

  Change from Baseline at 2 months and 11 months

• burnout risk change

  Maslach Burnout Scale for Portuguese students: Its original version is, to date, the most used burnout rating scale. The version adapted for students (MBI - Student Survey), focusing on feelings and emotions in a school context, comprises 3 subscales, which assess the dimensions Emotional Exhaustion, Disbelief and Professional Effectiveness with 5, 4 and 6 items, respectively. Respondents must rate each of the 15 items between 0 ("never/never") to 6 ("always/everyday"). The final scores are interpreted in the 3 subscales, after the sum of their items, allowing the diagnosis of burnout syndrome when the respondent is simultaneously above the 66th percentile of the Emotional Exhaustion and Disbelief scores and below the 33rd percentile of the Professional Efficacy score, relative to the studied group.

  Change from Baseline at 2 months and 11 months

• Quality of life change percieved in visual analogue scale

  Visual Analogue Scale for Perceived Quality of Life (EQ-VAS: European Quality of Life - Visual Analogue Scale; EuroQol Group, 1990; Portuguese version by Ferreira, Ferreira \& Pereira, 2014) (Ferreira et al., 2013). It is an integral part of the EuroQoL-5Dimension scale (EQ-5D), which comprises two components: a descriptive system, subdivided into 5 dimensions, and a numerical system, achieved through a visual analogue scale - the EQ-VAS thermometer. This offers the possibility for the respondent to quantify their health status on a scale from 0 ("worst imaginable health status") to 100 ("best imaginable health status"), at that moment. In the Portuguese version, the EQ-VAS showed good internal consistency (α=0.862)

  Change from Baseline at 2 months and 11 months

Secondary Outcomes (3)

• compassion change

  Change from Baseline at 2 months and 11 months

• self-compassion change

  Change from Baseline at 2 months and 11 months

• self-reflection and insight change

  Change from Baseline at 2 months and 11 months

Study Arms (2)

Intervention

EXPERIMENTAL

3-week recruitment period of portuguese medical students wanting to attend the 28-hour online course

Other: Self knowledge course

Control

NO INTERVENTION

The control group was recruited in order to match the age, gender, academic year and teaching faculty variables with the intervention group and people with these characteristics were invited to participate.

Interventions

Self knowledge course OTHER

The online self-knowledge and communication course, created for the purpose of this clinical trial and taught by professionals with certified training in the area by the Shalom Enneagram Institute (https://iesh.pt/), consisted of providing volunteers with mechanisms for self-knowledge using the enneagram. Three modules were carried out between October and December 2020, spaced in time to allow participants to consolidate knowledge: there was 1 month between the first and second module, and between the second and third, 3 weeks.

Intervention

Eligibility Criteria

• Sex: all
• Healthy Volunteers: Yes
• Age Groups: Child (0-17), Adult (18-64), Older Adult (65+)

You may qualify if:

• to be a medical student enrolled in one of the several Portuguese medical schools.

You may not qualify if:

• \- not participating in 70% of the course (intervention group)

Sponsors & Collaborators

• University of Coimbra: lead

Study Sites (1)

Faculdade de Medicina da Universidade de Coimbra

Coimbra, Portugal

Location

MeSH Terms

Conditions

Burnout, Psychological; Stress, Psychological

Condition Hierarchy (Ancestors)

Behavioral Symptoms; Behavior

Study Officials

• Ines Rosendo, MD PhD

  Assistant professor FMUC

  PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR

Study Design

• Study Type: interventional
• Phase: not applicable
• Allocation: NON RANDOMIZED
• Masking: NONE
• Purpose: OTHER
• Intervention Model: PARALLEL
• Sponsor Type: OTHER
• Responsible Party: PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
• PI Title: Clinical professor

Model Details: After the recruitment period, of the 27 initially enrolled, 24 attended more than 70% of a 28-hour online course, forming the intervention group. The control group was recruited in order to match the age, gender, academic year and teaching faculty variables with the intervention group and people with these characteristics were invited to participate.

Study Record Dates

• First Submitted: March 18, 2022
• First Posted: April 6, 2022
• Study Start: October 1, 2020
• Primary Completion: December 31, 2020
• Study Completion: December 31, 2020
• Last Updated: April 6, 2022

Record last verified: 2022-03

Data Sharing

• IPD Sharing: Will not share

Locations

PT (1)