The Prevalence, Causes, and Consequences of Experiencing a Life Crisis During Medical School

Background: Little is known about the prevalence, causes, and consequences of experiencing a major life crisis during medical school. Purpose: The objective is to describe the prevalence, causes, and consequences through internship of experiencing a major life crisis while enrolled as a medical student at Uniformed Services University (USU). Method: USU graduates from 1980 to 1999 were surveyed regarding their experiences at USU and career milestones. Predictor markers were obtained from the USU Admissions, Promotions, and Registrar's office. Outcome data were derived from a survey of intern program directors from the years 1993 to 1999. Results: There were 1,807 (67%) of USU graduates who responded to our survey. There were 394 (22%) who reported experiencing a major life crisis during medical school. Graduates reporting a major life crisis performed slightly poorer in terms of basic science GPAs (2.95 vs. 2.85, p .001), USMLE exam scores, and performance ratings by their program directors than did graduates who did not experience a crisis. Conclusions: A large fraction of medical students experience major life crises. The effects of these crises may persist throughout internship.