Prevalence and Factors Associated with Depression among Nursing Students

Background: Depression has been recognized as a major morbidity among nursing students and the various factors that have been seriously affected their academic performance and quality of life. Aims The aim of this study was to identify the prevalence& Factors associated with depression among nursing students. Methods A descriptive cross-sectional study with 160 proficiency certificate level nursing students was carried out in two nursing colleges of Butwal, Rupandehi, Nepal. A pretested self-administered questionnaire was used to collect the data. The collected data was analyzed by using descriptive statistical. Results The findings revealed that mean age of the respondents was 19 years. The prevalence of the depression among nursing students was 63 %. More than three-fifth (62 %) of the respondents stated away from home as the social factors associated with depression. Regarding the Psychological factors (62 %) of the respondent stated that stress was the factors associated with depression. More than four-fifth (88 %) of the respondents stated that work load was the factors associated with depression. Majority of the respondents (83 %) stated that clinical assignment was the factors associated with depression. Majority of the respondents (74 %) stated that pressure from teachers, was the factors associated with depression. Conclusion The study findings concluded that the overall prevalence of depression among nursing students was 63 % and the major factors associated with depression were staying away from home, stress, work load, clinical assignment and pressure from teachers. Hence, counseling in the entry phase may help them tackle the preparatory worries& adjustment difficulties.