Psychological Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic

The COVID-19 pandemic has had sweeping effects that have disrupted almost every part of society worldwide. In this chapter, we discuss the psychological impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. We begin with a review of psychological distress and psychiatric symptoms arising with the onset of the pandemic, focusing on the general population as well as specific groups such as children, students, parents, medical providers, essential workers, and disadvantaged populations, among others. We then evaluate the potential impact of the pandemic on suicide and how patterns of adverse psychiatric effects have varied over time. We also provide a comprehensive overview of both risk and protective factors for psychological distress and psychiatric disorders during the pandemic. After a discussion of psychiatric manifestations and sequelae reported in those affected by COVID-19, we conclude with an exploration of putative strategies to promote mental health in a world with COVID-19. © The Editor(s) (if applicable) and The Author(s), under exclusive license to Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2022.

51.12 PSYCHOLOGICAL IMPACT OF COVID-19 ON MEDICAL STUDENTS IN NEW YORK CITY

Objectives: The aim of this study is to understand the COVID-19–related psychological distress of medical students and identify risk and protective factors associated with higher distress and resilient trajectories. Methods: A total of 200 students eligible for an MD across all class years completed a self-report survey containing questions regarding volunteerism, level of exposure and impact of COVID-19, and psychological symptom burden. The Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 scale and modified versions of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 and PTSD-Checklist were used as endpoints. Mann-Whitney and Kruskal-Wallis tests with Bonferroni corrections were used for group comparisons. Results: Thirty-one percent of participants were between 18 and 24 years old, while 69% were between 25 and 29 years old. Compared to those who did not volunteer (n = 36), students who did volunteer (n = 164) had higher ratings of depressive (u = 3592.000;p = 0.041) and anxious (u = 3629.500;p = 0.031) symptoms. Differences also existed by class year for PTSD (H[5] = 19.542;p = 0.002) and depressive (H[5] = 17.425;p = 0.004) symptoms, with third-year students (n = 63) having significantly lower PTSD scores than first-year students (n = 44;p = 0.031) and students in their PhD years (n = 10;p = 0.020). Students in their PhD years also had significantly higher PTSD scores than fourth-year students (n = 38;p = 0.041). Third-year students also had significantly lower depressive symptoms than first-year students (p = 0.045). Gender differences were also seen;females (n = 111, 56%) had significantly higher ratings of both depressive (H[2] = 20.389;p = 0.000) and anxious symptoms (H[2] = 21.871;p = 0.000) compared to males (n = 85, 43%). Conclusions: The results of this study suggest that volunteerism, female gender, and medical school class year are associated with higher ratings of depressive, anxious, and PTSD symptomatology. Upper-class students appear to have experienced less of a mental health impact, potentially suggestive of a protective effect of their education and training. It is critical to understand the consequences of COVID-19 on medical students to develop comprehensive resources to manage the inevitable mental health impact of the pandemic. RF, DS, COPI