ALCOHOL USE AMONG ENTRANTS TO A HONG KONG UNIVERSITY

Prevalence of medical students' burnout and its associated demographics and lifestyle factors in Hong Kong

BACKGROUND

Burnout causes personal suffering and adverse professional consequences. It is prevalent among medical students, although the relationship between burnout and lifestyle factors are understudied in Chinese medical students. Thus, this study aims to (i) estimate the prevalence of burnout among medical students in Hong Kong (HK) and (ii) delineate the relationship between burnout and various lifestyle factors.

METHOD

1,341 students were invited to complete a questionnaire from September to December 2017. Burnout was measured by the Maslach Burnout Inventory. Lifestyle factors including drinking habit, sleep habit and quality, and exercise level were assessed by validated instruments, including Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT-C), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), and Godin-Shephard Leisure-Time Physical Activity (GSLTPA), respectively. Smoking status and use of self-medications were also inquired into, while demographic data was self-reported. Prevalence of burnout with confidence intervals was calculated. Difference in lifestyle and demographic data in students with or without burnout, were compared by t-test and Chi-square/Fisher's exact test. From this, all associations with significant p-value at p<0.1 were entered into the multiple logistic regression model.

RESULTS

731 students (55.6%) responded to the questionnaire. Prevalence of burnout was 27.9% (95%CI: 24.6%-31.5%). Only 3 students in the whole sample smoked; and 6.6% of students drank weekly but rarely drank more than 2 drinks per week. 6.3% and 2.3% self-medicated themselves with medications to improve their sleep and concentration, respectively. Using a multiple logistic regression model, only sleep quality and exercise level were significantly associated with the presence of burnout.

CONCLUSION

Around a quarter of medical students in HK suffered from burnout. Burnout was found to be significantly associated with sleep quality and physical exercise. The study also highlighted that HK medical students lived very different lifestyles from those from other countries. More research is needed to design and establish the effectiveness of lifestyle interventional programs that enhance exercise level and sleep quality.

Psychometric properties of a Chinese version of the Brief Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire (B-YAACQ)

AIM

This study evaluated the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of the Brief Young Adult Alcohol Consequences Questionnaire (B-YAACQ).

METHOD

In this study, 1616 Chinese university students (male = 58.66%; M_age = 19.88) reporting past-year drinking experience voluntarily completed an anonymous questionnaire. Rasch analysis, reliability analysis, and linear modeling were performed to examine the psychometric properties of the Chinese version of B-YAACQ.

RESULTS

Results of Rasch analysis and reliability analysis supported the assumption of uni-dimensionality, local independence, and internal consistency of the 24-item B-YAACQ in our Chinese sample. However, six items had marginal outfit statistics and/or potential gender bias; therefore, a model with 18 items was also tested after removing these items. The 18-item model showed excellent fit to the uni-dimensional model with no gender bias. However, the Pearson correlation between the 24-item and 18-item versions was r = 0.98, suggesting highly similar measurement. Both versions demonstrated concurrent validity through positive association with the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test (AUDIT) subscales, even after controlling for the effects of age and gender.

CONCLUSION

This study is the first to validate a measurement tool for negative drinking consequences for university students in China. Despite some limitations, the original 24-item B-YAACQ was shown to have satisfactory psychometric properties when applied to Chinese university students. We recommend the shorter 18-item version without significant gender bias for testing gender differences.

Factors influencing Chinese college students' preferences for mental health professionals

BACKGROUND

Transition from high school to college can be particularly difficult and stressful for Chinese college students because of parent expectations.

AIMS

The purpose of this study was to examine therapist variables influencing Chinese college students' preferences for mental health professionals using conjoint analysis.

METHOD

Two hundred fifty-eight community college students in Hong Kong were asked to rate the profile of 55 mental health professionals representing a combination of therapist characteristics (i.e., gender, age, race/ethnicity, professional background, and training institutions) from the most to least preferred therapist from whom to seek psychological counselling.

FINDINGS

Results indicated that students' preference formation was based largely on professional background and training institution of the mental health professionals. Clinical psychologists and clinical social workers were preferred over educational psychologists (school psychologists), counsellors, and psychiatrists. Mental health professionals who received training from more prestigious schools were preferred over those trained at less prestigious schools.

CONCLUSIONS

Understanding clients' preference formation for choosing mental health professionals could be the first step to gain insights for developing effective educational and outreach strategies to promote help seeking behavior and mental health service utilization among Chinese college students.

Lifestyle Health Behaviors of Hong Kong Chinese

Sociodemographics affect health through pathways of lifestyle choices. Using data from a survey of 467 Hong Kong Chinese, this study aims to examine the prevalence of their lifestyle behaviors, identify profiles based on their sociodemographic and lifestyle variables, and compare differences among the profile groups. Two-step cluster analysis was used to identify natural profile groups within the data set: only 37% of the participants engaged in regular physical exercises, and less than 50% monitored their dietary intake carefully. The analysis yields 2 clusters, representing a “healthy” and a “less-healthy” lifestyle group. The “less-healthy” group was predominantly male, younger, employed, and had high-to-middle levels of education. The findings reveal the lifestyle behavior patterns and sociodemographic characteristics of a high-risk group, which are essential to provide knowledge for the planning of health promotion activities.

A qualitative descriptive study of risk reduction for coronary disease among the Hong Kong Chinese

OBJECTIVES

Achieving optimal control and reduction in coronary heart disease (CHD) risks in Hong Kong (HK) remains significant and requires exploring. This article addresses the ability to reduce CHD risks among the HK Chinese.

DESIGN AND SAMPLE

Through secondary analysis, a qualitative descriptive design using focus group interviews and content analysis were adopted. Older and younger adults were invited for the study.

MEASURES

An interview schedule was used to guide discussions during focus group interviews.

RESULTS

Four categories emerged from the data: planning of health actions, control of risk-reducing behavior, perceived opportunities for understanding CHD, and chest pain appraisal.

CONCLUSIONS

Local culture and population needs play a central role in disease perception and prevention. The findings are essential to target strategies for initiating health acts for younger adults and establish public education resources that underscore understanding of CHD risk, symptom recognition, and disease management, particularly among those middle-aged and older people at high risk and with the diseased populations.

Alcohol consumption and sleep problems in Hong Kong adolescents

OBJECTIVE

We aimed to investigate the relationship between alcohol consumption and sleep problems among Hong Kong adolescents.

METHODS

In the 2006 and 2007 Hong Kong Student Obesity Surveillance project, 33,692 secondary students completed an anonymous questionnaire on lifestyles and health. Alcohol consumption was categorized as nondrinkers (reference group), those who drank less than 1day per week (less than weekly drinkers), and those who drank 1 to 7 days per week (weekly drinkers, including some daily drinkers). Students reported if they had any sleep problems in the past 30 days, including difficulty initiating sleep (DIS), difficulty maintaining sleep (DMS), early morning awakening (EMA), snoring, and difficulty breathing during sleep (DBS). Insomnia was defined as any reports of DIS, DMS, or EMA. Logistic regression was used to assess the association between alcohol and each sleep problem. Multiple imputations were used to impute missing data.

RESULTS

Compared with nondrinkers, less than weekly and weekly drinkers were more likely to report snoring with adjusted odds ratios (AOR) of 1.64 (95% confidence interval [CI], 1.40-1.92) and 1.82 (95% CI, 1.55-2.14), respectively (P<.001). The corresponding figures were 1.24 (95% CI, 1.02-1.50) and 1.50 (95% CI, 1.24-1.82) for DBS (P<.001) and 1.12 (95% CI, 1.02-1.22) and 1.15 (95% CI, 1.04-1.27) for insomnia (P=.002). Weekly drinking was positively associated with DMS but negatively associated with DIS and EMA. Less than weekly drinking was positively associated with DIS, DMS, and EMA.

CONCLUSIONS

Both less than weekly drinking and weekly drinking were associated with snoring, DBS, and insomnia. The association of individual symptoms of insomnia with drinking varied with the frequency of consumption.

Psychosocial correlates of hazardous alcohol use among undergraduates in southwestern Nigeria

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to examine the relationship between alcohol use and psychological well-being among undergraduates of a Nigerian tertiary institution. The objectives included determining the prevalence and pattern of problematic alcohol use and ascertaining the association between alcohol use and some sociodemographic variables.

METHOD

The Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT) was used to evaluate for alcohol-related problems in 443 students of a university in southwestern Nigeria. A questionnaire was also used to obtain data on sociodemographic variables while psychological well-being was assessed with the General Health Questionnaire-28.

RESULTS

The prevalence of alcohol use was 40.6% while alcohol-related problems were found in 14.9% of the students using the AUDIT questionnaire with a cutoff score of 5. Heavy episodic alcohol use was reported by 31.1% while alcohol-related injury had occurred in 8.9% of the students. Male gender (χ2=4.54; P<.05), older age (χ2=3.92; P<.05) and higher paternal education (χ2=4.40; P<.05) were associated with problem drinking. In addition, psychological distress was significantly associated with heavy episodic drinking (χ2=9.58; P<.05) and history of alcohol-related injury (χ2=3.96; P<.05).

CONCLUSION

The significant relationship between hazardous drinking and mental ill health among undergraduates in the institution suggests the need for integrating mental health services in screening, brief intervention and referral to treatment services in Nigerian university settings.

Developmental issues of university students in Hong Kong

Four domains of developmental issues of university students in Hong Kong are examined in this paper. First, behavioral and lifestyle problems of university students are identified, including alcohol consumption, Internet addiction, cyber-pornography, irregular sleep patterns, and interpersonal violence. Second, the mental health problems of university students, including suicidal ideation, depression and anxiety problems, are outlined. Third, issues on self-determination (including establishment of personal goals), self-confidence, and materialism of the students are reviewed. Fourth, issues related to students' connection to the society, including egocentrism and civic engagement, are discussed. The views of employers about university graduates in Hong Kong are also examined. With the emergence of developmental issues among Hong Kong university students, it is argued that promoting the psychosocial competencies of university students via positive youth development programs is an important strategy in addressing such issues.

The epidemiology of alcohol consumption and misuse among Chinese college students

AIMS

To understand alcohol-related risk behaviours among Chinese college students.

METHODS

As part of the first China National Youth Risk Behaviour Survey, undertaken in 2009, 52,150 students at 119 colleges were randomly sampled. Information was obtained from self-administered questionnaires.

RESULTS

Prevalences were: lifetime drinkers 80.8%, current drinkers 49.3% (drank alcohol in past 30 days) and binge drinkers 23.5% ('binge drinkers' reporting at least five alcoholic drinks on a single occasion at least six times during the past 30 days). Multinomial logistic analysis revealed the contribution of sociodemographic factors to three high-risk drinking behaviours: odds ratio (95% confidence interval) = 3.64 (2.69-4.60) with frequent drinking; 3.27 (1.82-4.72) with binge drinking; and 5.48 (3.20-7.77) with heavy binge drinking. These three rates were greater among males than females, in the Western more than the Eastern region, among students living off-campus and among those whose mothers had higher education. Heavy drinking was linked to lower academic self-rating.

CONCLUSION

There is a trend towards risky drinking among Chinese college students. Measures such as a minimum drinking age, advertisement restrictions, taxation, drunk-driving penalties and campaigns to heighten public awareness of alcohol-related health risks should be instituted in order to improve the situation on college campuses where alcohol abuse is particularly prevalent.

Alcohol misuse is rare among Hong Kong medical students

INTRODUCTION AND AIMS

High rates of hazardous alcohol consumption have been reported among medical students in several countries. This study aimed to determine the degree of self-reported alcohol use among medical students in Hong Kong, and to compare this with published data from medical students elsewhere.

DESIGN AND METHODS

111/137 (81%) final year medical students from the Chinese University of Hong Kong were recruited and anonymously completed the World Health Organization's Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test, a screening tool which assesses alcohol consumption, dependence and alcohol-related problems. Results are graded as low risk (score 1-7) or harmful and hazardous (8 or more).

RESULTS

The rate of ever drinking among this group of Hong Kong medical students is relatively high (74%) but few students reported at-risk drinking patterns (1.8%). Most students who drank did so less than once per month and most reported typically drinking only one to two drinks when they did drink alcohol.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

While rates of alcohol drinking among this group of Hong Kong medical students are comparable to those reported in Europe and North America, rates of problem drinking are much lower.

Alcohol consumption and alcohol-related problems among Vietnamese medical students

INTRODUCTION AND AIMS

This study examined prevalence and predictors of alcohol consumption and alcohol problems in a sample of medical students in Vietnam.

DESIGN AND METHODS

A cross-sectional survey using a multi-stage cluster sampling approach was conducted in 2007 in two universities in Vietnam. The students (n = 619, 100% response rate) completed questionnaires based on the Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test. A score of >or=8 defined presence of alcohol problems. Data analyses adjusted for the cluster sampling approach.

RESULTS

Overall 65.5% of students had drunk alcohol during the previous year while alcohol problems were detected in 12.5%. Male students, students who reported that their family members drank and students who reported that their flat mates were drinking were more likely to be current drinkers. Male students were 14.3 times more likely to have an Alcohol Use Disorder Identification Test score of >or=8 compared with female students (P = 0.005).

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS

Intervention programs focusing on male students and their social environment are warranted. As Vietnamese society rapidly modernises prevention programs for female students may also be needed.

Binge drinking aggravates the outcomes of first-attack severe acute pancreatitis

OBJECTIVES

To study the association of binge drinking and the outcomes of severe acute pancreatitis (SAP).

METHODS

This retrospective study included 347 patients with first-attack SAP from January 2001 to February 2004. On the basis of the history of binge drinking or not, the patients were divided into the alcohol (n = 77) and the control groups (n = 270). Clinical data of the 2 groups were compared.

RESULTS

Patient age and comorbidity were similar between the 2 groups. There were more men (64, 83.1%) than women (13, 16.9%; P < 0.05) in the alcohol and the control groups (111, 41.1%; P < 0.05). The 2 groups had significant differences in admission serum triglyceride levels (5.0 +/- 5.0 vs 3.0 +/- 3.5, P < 0.05), Balthazar computed tomographic score (6.3 +/- 5.4 vs 4.2 +/- 4.5, P < 0.05), and Acute Physiology and Chronic Heath Evaluation II score (19.1 +/- 5.1 vs 16.2 +/- 6.0, P < 0.05). Total mortality and the incidences of complications were higher in the alcohol group than in the control group (P < 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Binge drinking might be a contributor to the aggravation of first-attack SAP.

University binge drinking patterns and changes in patterns of alcohol consumption among chinese undergraduates in a Hong Kong university

OBJECTIVE

To examine patterns of binge drinking and changes in drinking patterns among Chinese university students.

PARTICIPANTS AND METHODS

Responses to an anonymous questionnaire were compared between a random sample of 411 second year Chinese undergraduate students in 2006 and 2,630 first year students from the previous year. Students reporting any symptoms of alcohol abuse were classified as alcohol abusers whereas those reporting repeated inability to curtail use were categorized as alcohol dependent.

RESULTS

After 1 year of university, greatly increased rates of past-month drinking of different degrees were found in both genders. Binge drinking among second year undergraduates was significantly correlated with male gender, living in a student residence hall, smoking, drinking to relieve stress, and having friends who frequently drank.

CONCLUSIONS

Alcohol misuse is a health hazard to Chinese students in a university environment. Proactive policies aimed at preventing harmful alcohol use should be considered by university authorities.