The Psychological Well-Being of ‘Houseman’ Medical Officers in Malaysia

Abstract

‘Housemanship’ is one of the most challenging phases for a person who wants to become a doctor and wants to choose medicine as his or her career. This paper aims to discuss the psychological well-being issues that are often faced by ‘houseman’ medical officers throughout their undergoing housemanship. Literatures search was conducted based on previous studies related on well-being and psychological well-being issues faced by ‘houseman’ medical officers. This initial literature reviews’ study confirmed that many ‘houseman’ doctors experienced considerable stress, anxiety, depression and burnout. The source of stress was multi-faceted, but workload wass the most significant stressor. Having good coping strategies help them to overcome their problem and might relief stress and could foster good psychological well-being during their training duration.