PERCEIVED STRESS OF BHUTANESE DENTIST; A SURVEY STUDY

Abstract

The dental profession is commonly considered one of the most stressful fields. Dentists experience considerable stress from patient care and from ergonomic difficulties, ultimately lead to various health problems. Bhutan is recognized globally for placing greater importance to Gross National Happiness. The objective of study was to assess stress level among Bhutanese dentists and its associations. Methods: Self -administered questionnaires containing 2 sections, sociodemographic data and Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) were distributed online and 71 out of 85 dentists (50.7% female and 49.3% male) responded. Fisher’s exact test was used to assess the association between demographic data and PSS score. Results: Most responders were 77.5% general dentists, predominantly Generation Y (1981-1997) group which reported moderate levels of PSS score. An association between PSS score and working experience was found at p = 0.004. Conclusion: A substantial percentage (88.7%) of Bhutanese dentists are under moderate stress and only work experience factor showed a significant association with perceived stress levels.