Objective:

To study the perception of the teaching staff of the medical school at the Universidade Federal de Minas Gerais (FMUFMG) concerning the psychological distress of the students.

Method:

A cross-sectional quantitative study carried out with the faculty of the UFMG medical school. The sample of 102 teachers was obtained by random draw and divided into four groups: males with up to ten (10) years of teaching, males with more than ten (10) years, females with up to ten (10) years of teaching, and females with more than ten (10)years. A self-applied 28-item questionnaire with a 5-point Likert scale from strongly agree to strongly disagree was prepared. For the data analysis four indicators were elaborated: psychological distress perception indicator (IPSP), commitment of the teacher to the student emotional difficulties indicator (ICDE), performance in the face of psychological distress indicator (IAPS) and a general indicator (IG). Quartile analysis was carried out and the difference among the groups was calculated using nonparametric tests. Five questions that were not included in the indicators were independently analyzed.

Results:

Seven teachers refused to participate and 79 answers were collected. The results showed varying degrees of concern among the groups in relation to the psychological distress of students. For the IG, the female teachers with longer teaching experience obtained a higher median in relation to the men with less teaching experience (p<0.05). For the other indicators, despite the difference between the quartiles, the comparison of the medians showed no statistically significant differences. For questions not included in the indicators, it was shown that 85% of the sample had perceived psychological distress among their students. Male teachers more frequently deny psychological distress among students. 16.5% of the teachers did not know of any instances of institutional psychological care. The occurrence of bullying failed to be noted by more than 50% of the teachers. Only 28% of the teachers admitted that their actions or attitudes could precipitate a student's psychological distress. When questioned about emotional support for teachers, 75.9% would appreciate some institutional support.

Conclusion:

The present study, despite its limitations, is unique in assessing the perception of the medical teaching staff in relation to the psychological distress of the students. Teaching experience and being female seem to play an important role in the teacher's perception of psychological distress among students. A significant portion of the teaching staff ignores the existence of psychological support programs for students.

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