Disparities in well-being outcomes among medical students: a comparative study between medical students with and without disability.

Henry J Seaborne, Lara Z Chehab, Nikhil Rajapuram, Amanda Sammann

Abstract readComparative StudyObservational Study

In one paragraph

Observational study in BMC medical education, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 1 paper.

0numbers the graph read from it

0cells of the map it votes in

1citing papers in PubMed

–field-weighted citation impact

1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

1 citing paper in PubMed.

Screening Medical Students for Depression Risk: The Effects of Disability Status.Academic psychiatry : the journal of the American Association of Directors of Psychiatric Residency Training and the Association for Academic Psychiatry · 2026
Article

4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Henry J SeaborneThe Better Lab, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA. hjohnseaborne@berkeley.edu.

Lara Z ChehabThe Better Lab, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.

Nikhil RajapuramThe Better Lab, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.

Amanda SammannThe Better Lab, University of California San Francisco, San Francisco, CA, USA.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundThe strenuous demands of medical education often lead to adverse mental health outcomes among students. Despite extensive research on medical student distress, the unique challenges faced by students with disabilities remain understudied. This study aims to investigate the well-being of medical students with and without disabilities, by comparing levels of distress, risk and protective factors, and modifiable variables' impact on distress.

methodsFrom September 2019 to February 2020, we implemented an exploratory observational study to survey medical students across the US, US territories, and Caribbean. Participants completed the Medical Student Wellbeing Survey (MSWS), which was used to assess well-being and capture extensive demographic data on these students. We retrospectively sorted participant data into cohorts based on disability status, then compared them using rates of well-being outcomes, logistic regression, and interaction analyses. We conducted logistic regression analyses to identify significant predictors of severe distress, burnout, and depression.

resultsOf the 3162 medical student participants, 277 identified as having a disability. Respondents with disabilities reported significantly higher rates of severe distress (65%) compared to their non-disabled peers (51.3%). Additionally, burnout and depression rates were higher among disabled students, with 80.41% experiencing burnout and 54.84% experiencing depression. Logistic regression revealed that certain identities, as well as high debt and tuition costs, were significant predictors of severe distress across cohorts. Uniquely, marital status emerged as a protective factor specifically for students with disabilities.

conclusionMedical students with disabilities exhibit higher levels of severe distress, burnout, and depression than their non-disabled counterparts. Current interventions and modifiable factors are insufficient in lessening severe distress for these students. These findings highlight the necessity for tailored support strategies and structural interventions to improve the well-being of medical students with disabilities, especially for those with intersecting vulnerable identities.

trial registrationThis study does not report the results of a health care intervention on human participants, so trial registration is not required.

Indexed as

Burnout, ProfessionalDepressionPersons with DisabilitiesStress, PsychologicalStudents, MedicalAdultCaribbean RegionFemaleHumansMaleRetrospective StudiesRisk FactorsSurveys and QuestionnairesUnited StatesYoung AdultBurnoutDepressionDisabilitiesDistressIntersectionalityInterventionsLogistic regressionMedical studentMental healthWell-being

Identifiers

PMID39920641

DOI10.1186/s12909-025-06770-2

PMCPMC11804037

What OpenQuestion holds

Textmetadata

LicenceCC BY

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Registered trials

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Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.