Medical training is an intense process that brings considerable responsibilities. Contact with death, a competitive environment, deprivation of leisure and a sense of technical insecurity are typical characteristics of the student's experience. This study aims to describe the different processes that affect psychological distress among students at all the medical schools in Ceará state. The study followed 40 second to sixth year students from the State University of Ceará (UECE) and 20% of the other students admitted by regular means to the other schools in Ceará. The Self-Report Questionnaire-20 was used to evaluate slight mental disorders (SMD) . Suspected cases of SMD were most prevalent at UECE, 53.3% of the students, and 20% had sought psychological help. In the other schools, there were 48.5% suspected cases, and 18.2% who had sought help. Psychological suffering was found to be engaged by depression, insomnia, personal problems, deprivation of leisure and technical insecurity. Medical education is a period of doubts, fears and tensions. The curricula need to consider how students deal with their own training. Schools should improve the integration between their support services and the implementation of the curricula, focusing on the last two years of study, offering support for personal and family tensions.
Student Doctors; Mental Health; Medical Training
