Fighting COVID-19: Enabling Graduating Students to Start Internship Early at Their Own Medical School

DeWitt, Dawn E.

doi:10.7326/m20-1262

Cited by 54 publications

(53 citation statements)

References 1 publication

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“…Previous studies have shown that public health emergencies have a significant impact on mental health of college students [28,35]. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, a few studies have emerged describing higher levels of anxiety and increased risk perception among college students during COVID-19 pandemic [26,27]. The current study is among the first to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on mental health among undergraduate college students in the U.S. Northern New Jersey has been one of the most severely affected regions in the U.S. by the current pandemic, creating uncertainty, anxiety and stress among a wider population.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on mental health of undergraduate students in New Jersey, cross-sectional study

et al. 2020

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Objective The COVID-19 pandemic has been a period of upheaval for college students. The objective of this study was to assess the factors associated with the increased levels of mental health burden among a sample of undergraduate college students in Northern New Jersey, the region of the U.S. severely impacted by the outbreak of COVID-19. Methods College students (N = 162) enrolled in an introductory core curriculum course completed a cross-sectional survey. The survey collected information on demographics, knowledge levels and sources of COVID-19 information, behavior changes, academic and everyday difficulties, and mental health measurements (depression, anxiety, somatization, and stress). Multivariable regression analysis was performed to identify factors associated with mental health outcomes. Results Descriptive findings indicate that students have a fundamental knowledge of COVID-19 transmission and common symptoms. Students tend to use and trust the official sources and have changed their behaviors in accordance with public health recommendations (i.e., increased hand washing, wearing mask). However, students reported a number of academic and everyday difficulties and high levels of mental health distress. High levels of depression were associated with difficulties in focusing on academic work and with employment losses, while higher levels of anxiety were more likely to be reported by students other than freshmen and those who spend more than one hour per day looking for information on COVID-19. Inability to focus on academic work and an elevated concern with COVID-19 were more likely to be associated with higher levels of somatization, while trusting news sources was associated with lower levels of somatization. Those with higher levels of

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on mental health of undergraduate students in New Jersey, cross-sectional study

et al. 2020

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“…The complexity of the challenges posed is exemplified by the unprecedented necessity of medical schools around the world to restructure their final year assessments, as well as calling on those students to enter the workforce months earlier than usual. [9][10][11][12][13][14] These changes present both a logistical and personal challenge, particularly relevant for those transitioning from student to doctor, an evolution that has long been recognised as challenging. 15 Available evidence suggests that medical students' mental health status is already poorer than that of the general population, 16 with academic stress being a chief predictor of ill health.…”

Section: Student Essaymentioning

confidence: 99%

Medical students and COVID-19: the need for pandemic preparedness

2020

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The COVID-19 pandemic has prompted unprecedented global disruption. For medical schools, this has manifested as examination and curricular restructuring as well as significant changes to clinical attachments. With the available evidence suggesting that medical students’ mental health status is already poorer than that of the general population, with academic stress being a chief predictor, such changes are likely to have a significant effect on these students. In addition, there is an assumption that these students are an available resource in terms of volunteerism during a crisis. This conjecture should be questioned; however, as those engaging in such work without sufficient preparation are susceptible to moral trauma and adverse health outcomes. This, in conjunction with the likelihood of future pandemics, highlights the need for ‘pandemic preparedness’ to be embedded in the medical curriculum.

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“…At the beginning of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic in early 2020, the commitment of medical students as supporters of health care staff and their possible roles in the system were discussed more than ever before (8)(9)(10)(11)(12)(13)19,27). This discussion led us to perform a survey of medical students voluntarily working in a large-scale SARS-CoV-2 cohort study.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…In addition to a bottleneck of urgently needed materials, a lack of health care professionals was critical (2)(3)(4)(5)(6). To deal with this, politicians and scientists suggested involving medical students to prevent a health care system breakdown (7)(8)(9)(10)(11)(12).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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

Müller

Heymanns

Harder

et al. 2020

Preprint

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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.

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Fighting COVID-19: Enabling Graduating Students to Start Internship Early at Their Own Medical School

Cited by 54 publications

References 1 publication

The impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on mental health of undergraduate students in New Jersey, cross-sectional study

The impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on mental health of undergraduate students in New Jersey, cross-sectional study

Medical students and COVID-19: the need for pandemic preparedness

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

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