scholarly journals The IMPACT OF COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON LEARNING OF UNDERGRADUATE MEDICAL STUDENTS: A CROSS-SECTIONAL STUDY FROM KARACHI

2020 ◽  
Vol 70 (6) ◽  
pp. 1902-07
Author(s):  
Adina Anwar ◽  
Erum Khan ◽  
Munizha Nisar ◽  
Rameesha Qutub ud Din ◽  
Syed Rubaba Azim ◽  
...  

Objective: To assess the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on learning of undergraduate medical students ofKarachi. Study Design: A cross-sectional, observational study. Place and Duration of Study: Study was conducted at conducted at the different public and private medicalcolleges, Karachi, from Mar to Apr 2020. Methodology: Google survey form based cross-sectional study conducted at the different public and privatemedical colleges, Karachi from March till April 2020. Non-probability consecutive sampling technique was used.This questionnaire consisted of 13 items which focused on the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the learning ofundergraduate medical students from Karachi. Results: The study was conducted on 110 undergraduate students. Out of which, majority of the participantswere from third year 45 (41%) and second year of MBBS 25 (23%). It was found that almost 71% of the undergraduate students had less likely to remember and understand material taught in online class and 60% had less likely to get answers to their queries as compared to regular classes. The results also showed that 49% of the undergraduate students were disturbed by technical issues during online classes. Furthermore, it was also found that learning of 54 out of 110 undergraduate students was always affected due to loss of clinical rotations. Strong association were also found in between online satisfaction and stressful condition due to online classes. Conclusion: It was concluded that COVID-19 pandemic greatly affected the learning of the undergraduatemedical students and have negatively impacted their satisfaction level towards their studies.

Author(s):  
Jagdish Hundekari ◽  
Rishendra Sisodiya ◽  
Lokendra Kot

Introduction: Smartphone vision disorder is a complex of eye and vision related problems associated with close work during use of digital screen. It is one of the rising wellbeing concerns identified with innovation (phones and tablets) because of constant utilisation of Smartphones among medical undergraduates particularly during the last five months due to COVID-19 pandemic for attending online classes. Aim: To investigate the impact of online classes on development of Digital Vision Syndrome (DVS) among undergraduate medical students. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in 280 undergraduate medical students from 1st and 2nd professional MBBS course attending online classes regularly from the last five months. The authors evaluated the student’s perception based on the symptoms experienced in the last five months through a pre-tested questionnaire related to DVS which are caused due to two mechanisms: (i) accommodative mechanism; (ii) ocular surface mechanism by using 5-point Likert scale. The association between development of DVS symptoms and risk factors like distance of eyes from the screen, refractive errors, duration of exposure and size of screen was analysed by factor analysis and ANOVA through EpiInfoTM for windows version 7.2.4. Results: In the present study, 78.2% of students were using smartphones and 21.8% were using large screen for reading and attending online classes during the lockdown period. It was observed that the descriptive statistics elaborates the overall mean of approximately score 3 in all 280 students on Likert scale. In regard to distance at which digital screen was kept, students who kept less distance (> arm and forearm length) are at higher risk of DVS development (p<0.001). In case of refractive error, the negative correlation shows that impact with spectacles is less compared to emmetropic eye (p<0.01 and p<0.001). About 75% of the total students score range between occasionally to always which indicates that the majority of the students got DVS. Authors assess the impact of duration of digital screen used and revealed that accommodative and ocular mechanisms responsible for development of DVS were significantly affected as duration of exposure to digital screen increases (p<0.001). We analysed the impact of digital screen size on DVS symptoms and found that participants using small screen are at higher risk (p<0.001) for development of smartphone vision syndrome as compared to large screen digital devices. Conclusion: The students attending online classes are more prone to development of smartphone vision syndrome. This study had shown association between DVS and the risk factors associated with it: duration of exposure, distance from the screen and size of screen used.


Author(s):  
Aditi Agrawal ◽  
Sanjay Gehlot ◽  
Ashok Singhal ◽  
Amandeep .

Background: People with mental illnesses experience extreme stigmatization and discrimination despite their ubiquitous presentation. Studies have reported that these negative stereotypes are shared by health care professionals too. Attitude of undergraduate medical students towards psychiatry is vital as it reflects their willingness to deal with psychiatric and behavioral disorders in general practice.Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted in a government medical college in Rajasthan to explore the impact of sociodemographic variables and undergraduate psychiatry training on the attitude of medical students towards mental illness and psychiatry. 105 first year MBBS students and 75 interns participated in the study. Attitude towards mental illness (AMI) scale and attitude towards psychiatry-30 (ATP-30) scale were used to document AMI and ATP respectively. Data collected were analyzed using SPSS statistical software and appropriate tests were used to compare mean scores of both groups.Results: There was no statistically significant difference on AMI and ATP scores between the undergraduate medical students and interns. Females, students belonging to urban setting and more educated families had a favorable attitude towards psychiatric patients. A notable shift in scores on ATP scale towards positive side was reflected between male MBBS students and interns and among students coming from rural background with exposure to medical curriculum.Conclusions: No attitude change was observed in majority of participants indicating need for greater emphasis on mental health and psychiatry. 


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (2) ◽  
pp. 64-67
Author(s):  
Nagasrilatha Bathala ◽  
Anjaneyulu Kammineni

: COVID-19 is referred as pandemic due to its severity and fierceness also as the greatest global health crisis since after centuries in human civilization. This made many schools and colleges to remain shut down for an indefinite time as the only option left to prevent transmission of virus in the institutions. At the same time, teaching concepts have changed with a similar speed than the evolution of the Internet, social media and digital technology. In these circumstances online teaching has become the only option left to fulfill the academic necessities of the students. This study will help to find out the students' opinion and attitude towards online classes during COVID – 19 Pandemic. : An Anonymous Cross sectional study is conducted among undergraduate medical students of various colleges affiliated to DRNTRUHS, AP regarding their opinion and attitude towards online teaching classes conducted during Covid 19 pandemic period by sharing the link for Google document. 432 under graduate medical students were participated in the study. 313 participants (72.41%) opined that online teaching is helpful. Majority of participants opined that online teaching is helpful (72.41%); comfortable (61.63%); they are able to interact (73.7%). 68.74% of participants have troubles to attend online classes. Very less participants (13.79%) showed their preference for online classes after this period. All the participants strongly mentioned that their practical skills will be affected badly due to this type of teaching.The deadly and infectious disease Covid-19 has deeply affected the educational system globally. In our present study majority of students strongly opined that online teaching is helpful; they are also comfortable and able to interact with their faculty also. When COVID 19 resolves, transformative changes are expected in medical education through the use of emergent technology.


2019 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sirisa Karki ◽  
Sameer Timilsina ◽  
Jaya Prasad Singh

Abstract Introduction Increasing smartphone use among adolescents in todays’ world has made this handy device an indispensable electronic tool, however, it comes at a price of problematic overuse or addiction. We aimed to investigate the prevalence of smartphone addiction among undergraduate medical students and explore its association with various demographic and personal factors.Methods A pool of 250 undergraduate students enrolled at Chitwan Medical College were included in this cross-sectional study conducted between August to November 2018. A preformed demographic porforma along with 10-point Smartphone Addiction Scale-Short Version was used to collect participant information.Results Smartphone addiction among medical students was estimated at around 36.8% with higher percentage of male smartphone addicts. Prevalence rates of smartphone related tolerance was reported in 42.8% participants, 37.6% reported phubbing and 60.8% participants reported overuse. Statistically significant association was observed between smartphone addiction and gender, self-acknowledgement of addiction and overuse.Conclusion This study provides preliminary insights into smartphone use, smartphone addiction and various factors predicting smartphone addiction among early undergraduate medical students from Nepal, which should be extended in future studies. Some fruitful programs and strategies to promote students’ knowledge and awareness about using smartphone seems to be the need of the hour.


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Abeer Abuzeid Atta Elmannan ◽  
Saleh A Alrebish ◽  
Rahaf Khalid Alqarzai ◽  
Atheen Ahmad Alshubrmi ◽  
Abdulrahman Yousef Alammar ◽  
...  

Abstract Background It is vital for healthcare practitioners to have the necessary skills and competence to review the literature and critically appraise research evidence. However, medical students` engagement in research activities continues to be below the expectation. In this study we aimed to investigate students` views about research, and to identify the barriers preventing them from participation in research projects. Methods A cross-sectional study was carried out in the College of Medicine in Qassim University. A total of 230 students were included. Data were collected online through a self- administered questionnaire .The perceptions of students were assessed using a 16-item questionnaire organized as ; Students` attitudes towards research, Students` perception of research benefits, Students` willingness to participate in research, and Students` perception of research barriers. The mean scores of these four subscales were compared between students using Mann-Whitney test .Factors associated with students` perception of research barriers were analyzed using four separate logistic regression models. Results The overall response rate was 89.4%. The results indicate that the students generally possess a moderately positive attitude towards research with a mean score of 14.8 ± 2.7 (range: 5–25). A substantial number of participants reported their willingness to take part in any research-related task (77.0%). However, the participants highly agreed that lack of time (70.4%), lack of supervision and guidance (72.6%), lack of research training and support (73.9%), and lack of research exposure and opportunities (75.2%) were major barriers to their participation in research .We found that students having lower CGPA ranks are almost three times more likely to indicate lack of time as a challenge (AOR: 2.94; 95% CI: 1.09,7.94; p.value = 0.033). Overall, female students were more likely to report concerns about research training and availability of research opportunities, while male students were more likely to indicate lack of time and lack of supervision as research barriers. Conclusions The barriers addressed in the current study —both discretely and cumulatively—are highly demotivating for students, and negatively affect their participation in research. Efforts should be invested to shift the focus from providing superficial research exposure to incorporating more in-depth and effective research training for undergraduate students


2021 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mohammad Nour Shashaa ◽  
Mohamad Shadi Alkarrash ◽  
Mohammad Nour Kitaz ◽  
Roaa Rhayim ◽  
Mohammed Ismail ◽  
...  

Abstract Background Sudden cardiac arrest considers one of the most leading cause for death in all over the world. It is important for all medical students to train basic life support. This study evaluated the awareness of basic life support among medical students. Methods An electronic questionnaire based cross sectional study was conducted in November 2020 among 2114 medical student in Syria, Iraq and Jordan. We evaluated BLS skills according to mean score. A chi-squared test was used to determine if there were differences between those who attended a basic life support course and those who did not. Results 1656 of the participants (78.3%) stated that they did not attend a basic life support course. There was a significant difference between the participants from different countries where the mean score in Syria, Jordan and Iraq was 18.3, 24.3 and 18.8 respectively (p < 0.05). The participants were divided into 3 level according to total score; low (0–12), moderate (13–24) and high (25–37). In total, 18.3%, 72.8% and 8.9% of participants had high, intermediate and low level respectively. Conclusions The overall knowledge of basic life support among medical students is not adequate and need significant improvements. This study showed that an attendance a basic life support course previously had an effect on knowledge level. Hence, there is an urgent need to apply basic life support courses into the pre-clinical stage at universities.


Author(s):  
Priyanka . ◽  
R K Pal

Introduction: Excessive use of the Internet affects the academic achievements of students. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence of Internet addiction and the pattern of Internet use among undergraduate medical students. Method: This analytical cross-sectional study conducted on 177 undergraduate medical students in batch 2016, 2017 and 2018, who were included in this study by convenience sampling method. The study tool was  Young’s Internet Addiction Test containing questions regarding the pattern of Internet use. Data entry and analysis was done by using Microsoft excel and SPSS version 21. Qualitative data were described in terms of frequency and percentage while quantitative data were expressed as mean and standard deviation. Chi square test and multiple linear regression were used to find out the relationship between various factors and Internet Addiction (IA).  The significance level was considered 0.05. Results: The mean age of the participants was 20.3 years (± 1.19), and 62 % of the subjects were males. The prevalence rate of Internet Addiction (IA) was found to be 56.5% and 42.9% of them were in mild and 13.6% were in moderate addiction category. Being male (β= -0.143, p=0.038), staying at a hostel (β= 0.167, p=0.018), not having a time preference for using the Internet (β= -0.174, p=0.012), spending more time on the Internet everyday (β= 0.201, p=0.000), being always online (β= 0.276, p=0.000) and more years of using the Internet (β= 0.175, p=0.015) were significantly related with IA in students. Conclusion: A large proportion of medical students were found to be addicted to the Internet. Therefore, this issue should be addressed immediately.


Author(s):  
Khajan Singh ◽  
Brijesh Kumar ◽  
Mahender Singh ◽  
Preeti .

Background: Antibiotic resistance (ABR) has now become a global health problem. It has significantly increased the mortality and morbidity related to infectious diseases as well as the economic burden due to these infections. There is global consensus on development of new strategies for prevention of antibiotic abuse and hence decreasing the prevalence of ABR. Medical students should be given more education during their undergraduate training regarding antibiotic resistance and appropriate prescribing. Therefore, this study was planned to assess Knowledge, attitude and practice (KAP) about antibiotics usage among medical undergraduates.Methods: An observational cross-sectional study was done among 2nd year undergraduate medical students of NC Medical College and Hospital, Israna, Panipat. Data was collected through specifically developed structured questionnaire from 130 students. The data was entered in MS excel 2010 and statistical analysis was done using MS excel 2010 and IBM Statistical package for social sciences (SPSS) version 20.0.0.Results: 93.07% (n=121) of the students were aware that antibiotic resistance has become an important and serious global public health issue. The attitude of the students about antibiotic use and resistance was found to be casual and negligent. 21.53% (n=28) of study participants believed that they should take antibiotics when they have cold to prevent from getting a serious illness. 38.46% (n=50) of students considered taking antibiotics whenever they had fever.Conclusions: This study provides useful information about the knowledge, attitudes and the practices of 2nd year undergraduate medical students about antibiotic resistance and usage.


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