Medical education during the coronavirus disease pandemic and students' mental health: A one-year follow-up

BackgroundThe coronavirus disease (COVID-19) pandemic has affected medical education and psychosomatic health of medical students. In this follow-up study, conducted 1 year after the transition to online learning (OL), we aimed to investigate changes in student mental health and identify factors associated with academic burnout and changes in medical education caused by the pandemic. Materials and methodsThis study compares the burnout rate and psychosomatic status (depression, anxiety, somatic symptoms) of medical students at Astana Medical University using an online questionnaire-based repeated cross-section design of the pre-pandemic period (September-November 2019), the initial period of the pandemic (April 2020), and the current study (March 9-30, 2021). In the pre-pandemic period, students studied only in a face-to-face format. Moreover, the current study (March, 2021) analyzed factors associated with academic burnout and changes in medical education caused by the pandemic. Statistical methods included mean comparison, frequency, and regression analysis. ResultsData from a representative sample of undergraduate students were analyzed (n = 975, 58% of them participated in the previous study). The burnout rate was found to be lower compared with the period of traditional education (pre-COVID-19) and did not significantly differ from the initial period of the introduction of online learning (the initial period of the COVID-19 pandemic). The levels and prevalence of depression and anxiety also showed similar patterns. The prevalence of somatic symptoms has increased compared to the initial period of the pandemic, although it has not reached the level obtained in the pre-COVID-19 period. The negative changes caused by OL in medical education and learning effectiveness have been associated with burnout. Factors associated with burnout, learning effectiveness, dissatisfaction with the quality of OL organization, and deterioration of medical education have been identified. ConclusionThe medical education and mental health of medical students has undoubtedly undergone changes in the transition to OL due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Factors such as changing the content of education, the organization of the educational process and support from the school, the nature of student-teacher, student-school and student-student relationships, the possibility of mastering various skills and financial problems caused by the pandemic, played a significant role in the academic life of students. The results obtained have potential applications in organizing and improving the quality of continuing medical education in an era of global healthcare crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic.

Organization of the activities of medical organizations in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Literature review

Introduction. During the COVID-19 outbreak, the entire world, including Kazakhstan, was focused on emergency care for patients with coronavirus infection. Closure of routine hospitalization for patients with chronic diseases in March 2020 resulted in increased demand for emergency medical services. Aim. To examine global best strategies for organizing health care organizations in the COVID-19 pandemic by conducting an informative literature search. Search Strategy. A 2-year in-depth literature review on the organization of hospital operations in the COVID-19 pandemic was conducted. Key words for the search of full-text open-access articles in the PubMed database: COVID-19, inpatient care, primary care, infection control, infection prevention and control. Inclusion criteria: Evidence level A, B publications: meta-analyses, systematic reviews, cohort and cross-sectional studies. Exclusion criteria: expert opinion in the form of short communications, promotional articles. Results. Analysis of the literature showed that the organization of outpatient and inpatient care was an urgent problem during/after the pandemic, studied globally. Primary healthcare services were under threat during the COVID-19 pandemic and great emphasis was placed on inpatient care, particularly intensive care units. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, polyclinics and hospitals faced organizational and financial problems against the background of increased burden on the health care system. Therefore, due to lockdown today, telemedicine communication has become the dominant method of health care delivery. Conclusions. Thus, at this point in time of changing approaches to health care delivery, the health care system needs to be transformed with the digitalization era and COVID-19.

Development and implementation of nursing documentation on coronavirus infection (COVID-19) at the level of the nursing process

Introduction: The coronavirus infection COVID-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2 continues to spread rapidly around the world. On March 11, 2020, the World Health Organization declared an outbreak of coronavirus infection a pandemic. The first case in Kazakhstan was registered on March 13, 2020. On March 16, a state of emergency was declared in Kazakhstan. Since March 19, quarantine has been introduced in Nur-Sultan and Almaty. From March 20, confirmed cases of COVID-19 began to be registered in other regions of the country. Since March 30, quarantine has been introduced in other cities of the country. Therefore, the maintenance of nursing documentation on coronavirus infection at the nursing level plays an important role. Purpose: improve the level of care at the nursing level in the context of the global coronavirus infection (COVID-19) pandemic by introducing nursing documentation.