Aims: To quantify student debt owed by first-year house officers at graduation, and to describe the effects of student debt on their lives.
Methods: A questionnaire was sent was to all 296 New Zealand-graduate first-year house officers practicing in New Zealand. The survey included questions on demographics, level of debt, student support received, repayment since graduation, psychosocial and financial impact of debt, and career intentions.
Results: The response rate was 53%. Ninety-two percent of respondents had some form of student debt, with 85% having a government student loan. The average total debt from all sources (excluding mortgages) at graduation was NZ65,206 dollars. Seventy-five percent of respondents owed more than 50,000 dollars and 13% had owed more than 100,000 dollars. Eighty-eight percent of respondents reported increased levels of stress as a result of their student loan, with 31% reporting that they worried about their student loan 'often' or 'always'. Eighty-three percent reported that their student loan had made it more difficult to save for their future, such as for a house deposit or for their retirement, and 42% stated that their student loan debt had influenced their decision whether to have children (or more children).
Conclusion: Student debt has a major negative impact on the lives of house officers in New Zealand. These data provide a baseline for studying how changes in medical education affect junior doctors.