Sleep quality among undergraduate medical students in Rwanda: a comparative study

On average, it is recommended that adults get between 7 and 9 hours of sleep per night and that teenagers should get 9.5 hours. Deviating from these recommended amounts can lead to sleep disorders and other negative health consequences. Medical students, in particular, need good sleep quality to have optimal cognitive function and memory, as well as good decision-making skills, to excel in their studies. Factors that contribute to poor sleep quality among medical students include stress from intensive studies, a full academic course load with hospital rotations, and emotional events such as dealing with severely suffering or dying patients.

Medical students in post-conflict, low-income countries like Rwanda may be particularly at risk for poor sleep quality due to high rates of mental health disorders and trans-generational trauma. The current study by Amon Nsengimana and colleagues (2023) aimed to determine the prevalence of sleep quality among undergraduate medical students in Rwanda and to compare the sleep quality between different years of study. The scientists hypothesized that first-year students will have worse sleep quality due to the challenges they face, including new schedules, unfamiliar environments, and academic demands.

This study used the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) to evaluate the sleep quality of undergraduate medical students in Rwanda and compare it between different years of study. The results showed a high prevalence of poor sleep quality, with 80% of students reporting poor sleep. Furthermore, there was a significant difference between classes, with 86.2% of final-year students and 80.8% of first-year students reporting poor sleep quality.

These findings are similar to those of studies conducted in Kazakhstan and Brazil, which reported that 79.2% and 80.95% of medical students had poor sleep quality, respectively. However, the current study's prevalence of poor sleep quality is higher than reported in similar studies in Malaysia and Saudi Arabia, where 44.23% and 63.2% of medical students, respectively, reported poor sleep quality.

The results also showed that the majority of participants slept fewer than 7 hours per night, with 87% sleeping less than this amount. Additionally, more than half (53.5%) of participants had difficulties falling asleep and reported taking longer than 15 minutes to do so. Mild to moderate sleep disturbances were reported by 84.5% of students, and there was a significant difference in the prevalence of sleep disturbances between classes, with 90.5% of final-year students and 81.6% of first-year students reporting such disturbances.

The study recommends further research to identify the causes of poor sleep quality among medical students in Rwanda and to develop interventions to improve sleep quality and reduce the risk of negative outcomes associated with poor sleep.

References:

Nsengimana, A., Mugabo, E., Niyonsenga, J., et al. (2023). Sleep quality among undergraduate medical students in Rwanda: a comparative study. Scientific Reports, 13, 265. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-27573-9