Environmental disruption, psychological resilience, and perceived stress coping among health trainees during sudden institutional relocation

Abstract Background Sudden relocation from established housing is a recognized situational stressor that disrupts daily routines and reduces perceived control. While academic stress is well documented, research rarely examines institution mandated infrastructure failure where trainees must sustain performance despite losing residential stability. This study assessed perceived stress and coping mechanisms among health trainees at a Training Institute Ministry of Health Malaysia Kota Kinabalu in Sabah following a structural safety crisis. Methods Using a cross-sectional census design, 250 Nursing and Medical and Health Sciences trainees were surveyed following the evacuation of a male hostel. Participants were redistributed to crowded facilities, including the institute prayer hall and multipurpose hall, for several weeks before permanent relocation. Perceived stress was measured using the 10 item Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-10) with scores ranging from 0 to 40, while coping responses were assessed using a 24 item measure of adaptive and maladaptive coping strategies. Results The mean stress score was 14.76 ± 7.43, indicating that most trainees experienced moderate stress. Specifically, 56.4% reported moderate stress and 40.8% reported low stress. No significant difference in stress levels existed between programs ( p = 0.425), suggesting environmental disruption acted as a universal stressor. Trainees primarily employed adaptive coping, with positive reframing and religious practices showing significant negative correlations with stress. Conclusion Institutional relocation due to infrastructure failure creates a system level stressor that overrides disciplinary differences. Although trainees demonstrated resilience through culturally grounded coping, wellbeing remains tied to residential stability as a critical recovery environment. Findings underscore the need for institutions to integrate psychosocial support into infrastructure risk management.