Mental Health and Academic Performance in Postgraduates Studying Traditional Chinese Medicine: A Three-Year Longitudinal Study

Abstract

Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is one of the two mainstream medical practices in China's healthcare system. Postgraduate students largely determine the development and advancement of TCM; therefore, their mental health and academic achievement are vital to their performance as practitioners. We conducted a longitudinal study to provide information on the changes in mental health before and after TCM training and the relationship between mental health and academic performance among postgraduate students. All participants were enrolled in full-time programs at a TCM university in China, and they completed our questionnaire in the first month of registering as postgraduate students and at the end of training 3 years later. The results showed that the rate of positive symptoms for mental distress among TCM postgraduates was higher (12.2%) at the beginning of the first postgraduate year than at the end of training (10.4%). Previous mental health status and comprehensive academic performance were predictors of mental health status at the second measurement. Implications of the findings are discussed.