scholarly journals The Effects of Participating in a Research Team During the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Educational Routine and Mental Health of Medical Students: a Study Protocol for a Web Based Survey. (Preprint)

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Debora Cerqueira Calderaro ◽  
Barbara Stadler Kahlow ◽  
Gabriela Araújo Munhoz ◽  
Samuel Elias Basualto Dias ◽  
João Vitor Ziroldo Lopes ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Medical Training ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Research Project ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Stress Scale ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Stress Domains

BACKGROUND Background: The COVID-19 pandemic has provided social isolation with a potential negative impact on the educational routine, including the suspension of face-to-face appointments, and mental health of medical students. The Mario Pinotti II study (MPII) is a 24-week observational study with scheduled telephone calls every 2 weeks to verify the occurrence of the COVID-19 in rheumatic patients on hydroxychloroquine chronically (from 29th, March, 2020 to 30th, September, 2020). The effects of voluntary participation in a research project, which foresees interaction by telephone contact with patients, professors, rheumatologists, and colleagues on the daily life and mental health of medical students requires evaluation. OBJECTIVE Objectives: Considering that medical students are professionals in training with a high level of responsibility to handle emotional and physical aspects related to several diseases, this study has the aim of evaluating the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and participation in the MPII study, on the educational routine and mental health of medical students. METHODS Methods: A web-based survey was carried out to perform a cross-sectional comparative assessment between medical students participating in the MPII study and other their colleagues who are not involved in this research project, matched to sex, age and medical school. The web questionnaire was developed by a panel composed of graduate medical students, rheumatologists, medical school professors, and a psychology professor and it included details on demographic and life habits data, as well as evaluation of participants' impression about the MPII study and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their educational routine and medical training. In addition, the depressive, anxiety, and stress domains were evaluated using the DASS-21 (Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale), Brazilian version, and, lately, the scores were grouped as low, moderate and high risk for mental distress. This project was approved by the Federal University of São Paulo Ethics Committee (CAAE: 30246120.3.1001.5505). RESULTS Results: Data collection was applied for all 2 medical student groups from July 20th to August 31st, 2020. Data extraction is ongoing. Analysis is scheduled to start after extraction is completed. CONCLUSIONS Conclusions: This study will bring light into the effects of participating in a research project on depressive, anxiety, and stress domains by using the DASS-21 (Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale) in large sampling of medical students and the evaluation of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on students educational routine and medical training. CLINICALTRIAL This is not a clinical trial.

scholarly journals Impact of COVID-19 on the Mental Health of Medical Students in Portugal

2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (10) ◽  
pp. 986
Author(s):  
Ricardo Campos ◽  
Vânia Pinto ◽  
Daniela Alves ◽  
Celina Pires Rosa ◽  
Henrique Pereira
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Statistical Processing ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Face To Face ◽  
Anonymous Questionnaire ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Academic Year

(1) Background: The purpose of this article is to assess the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the mental health of medical students in Portugal in the period after returning to face-to-face classes during the COVID-19 pandemic, in the 2020/2021 academic year. (2) Methods: We conducted an observational, descriptive, and cross-sectional study, between December 2020 and February 2021 with a representative sample of Portuguese medical students (n = 649), applying an anonymous questionnaire which was composed by a sociodemographic characterization, The Brief Symptoms Inventory–18, The Fear of COVID-19 Scale and the Negative Impact Assessment Scale. For statistical processing, Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS ©) was used. (3) Results: 65.3% of participants said that self-perceived relevant anxiety symptoms, and around 10% said that they had a physical or a mental illness diagnosis. Significant differences (p < 0.05) were found for Fear of COVID-19, Somatization, Anxiety and Overall Mental Health, indicating that women, students from the 1st and last years of training had higher scores. Age, year of training, Fear of COVID-19 and Negative Impact of COVID-19 were significant predictors of overall mental health. (4) Conclusion: In our sample of Portuguese medical students, age, year of training, but mostly fear of COVID-19 and the negative impact of COVID-19 contributed to mental health symptoms.

scholarly journals Comparison of the Impact of Wikipedia, UpToDate, and a Digital Textbook on Short-Term Knowledge Acquisition Among Medical Students: Randomized Controlled Trial of Three Web-Based Resources (Preprint)

2017 ◽  
Author(s):  
Michael A Scaffidi ◽  
Rishad Khan ◽  
Christopher Wang ◽  
Daniela Keren ◽  
Cindy Tsui ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Knowledge Acquisition ◽  
Controlled Trial ◽  
Secondary Outcome ◽  
Short Term ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Canadian Medical School ◽  
Digital Textbook ◽  
The Impact

BACKGROUND Web-based resources are commonly used by medical students to supplement curricular material. Three commonly used resources are UpToDate (Wolters Kluwer Inc), digital textbooks, and Wikipedia; there are concerns, however, regarding Wikipedia’s reliability and accuracy. OBJECTIVE The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of Wikipedia use on medical students’ short-term knowledge acquisition compared with UpToDate and a digital textbook. METHODS This was a prospective, nonblinded, three-arm randomized trial. The study was conducted from April 2014 to December 2016. Preclerkship medical students were recruited from four Canadian medical schools. Convenience sampling was used to recruit participants through word of mouth, social media, and email. Participants must have been enrolled in their first or second year of medical school at a Canadian medical school. After recruitment, participants were randomized to one of the three Web-based resources: Wikipedia, UpToDate, or a digital textbook. During testing, participants first completed a multiple-choice questionnaire (MCQ) of 25 questions emulating a Canadian medical licensing examination. During the MCQ, participants took notes on topics to research. Then, participants researched topics and took written notes using their assigned resource. They completed the same MCQ again while referencing their notes. Participants also rated the importance and availability of five factors pertinent to Web-based resources. The primary outcome measure was knowledge acquisition as measured by posttest scores. The secondary outcome measures were participants’ perceptions of importance and availability of each resource factor. RESULTS A total of 116 medical students were recruited. Analysis of variance of the MCQ scores demonstrated a significant interaction between time and group effects (P<.001, ηg2=0.03), with the Wikipedia group scoring higher on the MCQ posttest compared with the textbook group (P<.001, d=0.86). Access to hyperlinks, search functions, and open-source editing were rated significantly higher by the Wikipedia group compared with the textbook group (P<.001). Additionally, the Wikipedia group rated open access editing significantly higher than the UpToDate group; expert editing and references were rated significantly higher by the UpToDate group compared with the Wikipedia group (P<.001). CONCLUSIONS Medical students who used Wikipedia had superior short-term knowledge acquisition compared with those who used a digital textbook. Additionally, the Wikipedia group trended toward better posttest performance compared with the UpToDate group, though this difference was not significant. There were no significant differences between the UpToDate group and the digital textbook group. This study challenges the view that Wikipedia should be discouraged among medical students, instead suggesting a potential role in medical education.

scholarly journals Mental health and illness of medical students and newly graduated doctors during the pandemic of SARS-Cov-2/COVID-19

PLoS ONE ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 16 (5) ◽  
pp. e0251525
Author(s):  
Lis Campos Ferreira ◽  
Rívia Siqueira Amorim ◽  
Fellipe Matos Melo Campos ◽  
Rosana Cipolotti
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Alcohol Intake ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Cross Sectional Study ◽  
Physical Distance ◽  
Anxiety Symptoms ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Health And Illness ◽  
The Impact

Introduction: SARS-Cov-2 virus pandemic causes serious emotional consequences. It has occurred widespread medical courses suspension, and graduations were anticipated. Field hospitals, set up to treat patients with mild to moderate COVID-19, were the main workplaces of newly graduated doctors. Objective: To assess the impact of SARS-Cov-2/COVID-19 pandemic on mental health of medical interns and newly graduated doctors. Method: This is a cross-sectional study performed using a digital platform. Links to forms were sent in two moments: moment 1 (M1), at the beginning of the pandemic, in the first half of April/2020 and moment 2 (M2), after six months of pandemic, in the second half of September/2020. All students from the medical internship and all doctors graduated since 2018 from the three medical schools in Sergipe-NE-Brazil were invited. Results: 335 forms were answered in April and 148 in September. In M1 88.9% considered themselves exposed to excess of information about COVID-19, which was associated with anxiety symptoms (p = 0.04). Long family physical distance was also associated with these symptoms, as increased appetite (p = 0.01), feeling shortness of breath (p = 0.003) and sweating (p = 0.007). Fear of acquire COVID-19 was reported as intense by almost half of participants, and of transmitting by 85.7% in M1. In M2 41.2% reported the death of friends or relatives. Psychiatric illness was described by 38.5% and psychotropic drugs use by 30.1% in M1, especially those who lived alone (p = 0.03) and the single ones (p = 0.01). Alcohol intake was reported by 54.3%, and among doctors graduated in 2020 it increased from 50% in M1 to 85% in M2 (p = 0.04). Conclusion: The pandemic had a negative impact on the mental health of medical students and newly graduated doctors. Exposure to excessive COVID-19 information and family physical distance were associated to anxiety symptoms. Among doctors graduated in 2020, alcohol intake increased during pandemic evolution.

Medical Students’ Commitment during the SARS-CoV-2 Pandemic: Preparedness, Motivation, and Impact on Students’ Skills

2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lukas Müller ◽  
Markus Heymanns ◽  
Laura Harder ◽  
Julia Winter ◽  
Stephan Gehring ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Health Care ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Medical Curriculum ◽  
Medical Center ◽  
Care Staff ◽  
Health Care Staff ◽  
Web Based ◽  
The University ◽  
The Impact

Abstract Background: During the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic, many authors have suggested a commitment of medical students to support overworked health care staff. However, whether the students are prepared for such an occupation remains unclear. Therefore, the aim of this study was to evaluate medical students’ preparedness for a commitment in the pandemic and to assess the impact on their skills and attitudes.Methods: In April 2020, the CoronaPreventMainz (CPM) study was initiated to test 3300 employees with direct patient contact at the University Medical Center Mainz. To accomplish the huge logistic effort, medical students were recruited as support staff.Using a web-based questionnaire, the participating students were asked 27 questions covering six different topics.Results: Of the 75 recruited students, 63 (84.0%) participated in this survey. The median age was 24 years, and 66.6% (n = 42) were female. The vast majority agreed that students should be used as voluntary helpers during this crisis (87.3%) and had the feeling of contributing in the fight against the pandemic (90.5%). Most of the students (80.6%) even reported an improvement in their practical skills. Fear of self-infection was low (7.9%), and overextending situations occurred for just 3.2%. However, less than one-fifth (19.4%) of the students felt prepared for the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic by medical school, and two-thirds (67.7%) demanded special preparation. Conclusion: Through their commitment, the medical students felt that they were taking part in the fight against the pandemic. However, only a few felt well-prepared by medical school and the students’ need for special preparation courses is huge. Therefore, single-center initiatives can only be the beginning. Dedicated courses on how to support health care staff in natural disasters should be integrated into the medical curriculum to better prepare medical students for the next crisis.

scholarly journals Stigma and Attitudes towards Psychiatric Patients in Portuguese Medical Students

2015 ◽  
Vol 28 (6) ◽  
pp. 715 ◽  
Author(s):  
Diogo Telles-Correia ◽  
João Gama Marques ◽  
João Gramaça ◽  
Daniel Sampaio
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Mentally Ill ◽  
Psychiatric Patients ◽  
Self Report ◽  
Psychiatric Education ◽  
Cross Sectional Survey ◽  
Community Attitudes ◽  
The Impact

<p><strong>Introduction:</strong> This study aims to assess the impact of psychiatric education on attitudes of medical students towards psychiatric patients.<br /><strong>Material and Methods:</strong> A cross-sectional survey of medical students was conducted at the biggest Portuguese medical school. The students completed an anonymous self-report questionnaire, including sociodemographic data, family history of psychiatric illness, and the Community Attitudes toward the Mentally Ill scale.<br /><strong>Results:</strong> Of the 2 178 students, 398 answered the survey, representing 18.2% of the whole medical school. There was a significant improvement in all Community Attitudes toward the Mentally Ill scale dimensions along the medical course. The higher scores were in Restrictiveness subscale (38.01), and the lower scores were for Authoritarianism (36.13). The best improvement along the course was for Authoritarianism (5th year score - 1st year score = 2.03), and the worse was for Benevolence (5th year score - 1st year score = 0.39). The biggest improvement, in all scores, was found at the end of the 3rd year.<br /><strong>Discussion: </strong>The authors propose that the better attitudes found on third year students were due to a very specific anti-stigma module on the theoretical discipline ‘Introduction to Mental Health’. After that, this positive effect was lost, with fourth and fifth year medical students showing a worsening of their attitudes.<br /><strong>Conclusion:</strong> Our results highlight the importance of anti-stigma specific education modules in order to improve students’ attitudes toward mental health. Thus more anti-stigma preventive measures can be taken onward, on preparing the best way possible, the next generation of doctors.</p>

scholarly journals Study protocol for the ETMED-L project: longitudinal study of mental health and interpersonal competence of medical students in a Swiss university using a comprehensive framework of empathy

BMJ Open ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (12) ◽  
pp. e053070
Author(s):  
Alexandre Berney ◽  
Valerie Carrard ◽  
Sylvie Berney ◽  
Katja Schlegel ◽  
Jacques Gaume ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Longitudinal Study ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical School ◽  
Clinical Skills ◽  
Reciprocal Relationship ◽  
Simulated Patients ◽  
Interpersonal Competence ◽  
Comprehensive Framework ◽  
The Impact

IntroductionPhysician interpersonal competence is crucial for patient care. How interpersonal competence develops during undergraduate medical education is thus a key issue. Literature on the topic consists predominantly of studies on empathy showing a trend of decline over the course of medical school. However, most existing studies have focused on narrow measures of empathy. The first aim of this project is to study medical students’ interpersonal competence with a comprehensive framework of empathy that includes self-reported cognitive and affective empathy, performance-based assessments of emotion recognition accuracy, and a behavioural dimension of empathy. The second aim of the present project is to investigate the evolution of mental health during medical school and its putative link to the studied components of interpersonal competence. Indeed, studies documented a high prevalence of mental health issues among medical students that could potentially impact their interpersonal competence. Finally, this project will enable to test the impact of mental health and interpersonal competence on clinical skills as evaluated by experts and simulated patients.Methods and analysisThis project consists of an observational longitudinal study with an open cohort design. Each year during the four consecutive years of the project, every medical student (curriculum years 1–6) of the University of Lausanne in Switzerland will be asked to complete an online questionnaire including several interpersonal competence and mental health measures. Clinical skills assessments from examinations and training courses with simulated patients will also be included. Linear mixed models will be used to explore the longitudinal evolutions of the studied components of interpersonal competence and mental health as well as their reciprocal relationship and their link to clinical skills.Ethics and disseminationThe project has received ethical approval from the competent authorities. Findings will be disseminated through internal, regional, national and international conferences, news and peer-reviewed journals.

scholarly journals HOW THE LOCKDOWN CAN AFFECT MENTAL HEALTH AMONG GENERAL POPULATION IN INDIA? A WEB-BASED SURVEY

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-2
Author(s):  
Nijal M. Parmar ◽  
Chetna G Bodar
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
General Population ◽  
Stress Level ◽  
Negative Impact ◽  
Mild Stress ◽  
Severe Stress ◽  
Web Based ◽  
Stress Scale ◽  
Academic Delay ◽  
Moderate Stress

Due to COVID-19, many countries have implemented lockdown to reduce the transmission of the virus and its susceptibility. But this lockdown can be increases the chances of negative impact on mental health on general population. So, the study’s aim is to check how many people can be affected due to lockdown.258 participants were voluntarily involved in the study and with the use of Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), stress level was measured. Out of 258 participants, 21.3% were having mild stress level, 63.2% were considered to suffer moderate stress & 15.5% of respondents were suffering from severe stress. Among general population, mainly students and females respondents having moderate to severe stress level which directly associated with academic delay in institutions or social isolation may be the reasons for negative impact of the outbreaks.

scholarly journals Attitude of Gratitude: Evaluation of a Wellness Program to Improve Dispositional Gratitude Among Medical Students

2020 ◽  
Vol 2 (2) ◽  
pp. 1-5
Author(s):  
Amelia Phillips ◽  
◽  
Farina Klocksieben ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Mental Health ◽  
Medical Students ◽  
Medical Training ◽  
Short Form ◽  
Well Being ◽  
South Florida ◽  
Wellness Program ◽  
Intervention Participant ◽  
Dispositional Gratitude ◽  
The Impact

Introduction: Medical students face significant mental health challenges as they matriculate through medical training. Research has emphasized the need for more interventions that promote physician trainee well-being and resilience during the early stages of training. Recent interventions have shown to be effective in promoting mental health and well-being; however, no interventions have examined the impact that daily gratitude practice, which is linked to increased well-being, may have on dispositional gratitude levels among medical students. Methods: In Spring 2019, medical students at the University of South Florida were invited to participate in a gratitude program. Participants logged three good things that happened to them each day, for a period of 30 days. Their dispositional gratitude levels were assessed using the short-form Gratitude Resentment and Application Test (GRAT) before and after the 30-day intervention. Participant demographics and changes in GRAT scores from baseline to follow-up were examined. Results: Forty-six medical students volunteered to participate in a short-term, gratitude-focused wellness program. Overall levels of dispositional gratitude increased significantly among medical students (p<.001). While a significant increase in GRAT score was found among the thirty-five female participants (p<.001), no significant change was found among the eleven male participants (p=.154). GRAT scores increased significantly among both first- and second-year medical students (p=.001). However, no significant increases were reported among third- and fourth-year students (p=.109). GRAT scores increased significantly regardless of whether students used a tool to practice gratitude at baseline. Conclusion: Our results demonstrate that a 30-day gratitude practice program can improve dispositional gratitude among medical students, particularly among female students and pre-clinical students in years one and two.

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