Your browser doesn't support javascript.
Psychological distress among health professional students during the COVID-19 outbreak.
Li, Yuchen; Wang, Yue; Jiang, Jingwen; Valdimarsdóttir, Unnur A; Fall, Katja; Fang, Fang; Song, Huan; Lu, Donghao; Zhang, Wei.
  • Li Y; Mental Health Center, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
  • Wang Y; West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
  • Jiang J; Mental Health Center, West China Hospital of Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
  • Valdimarsdóttir UA; West China Biomedical Big Data Center, West China Hospital, Sichuan University, Chengdu, China.
  • Fall K; Department of Medical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
  • Fang F; Center of Public Health Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, University of Iceland, Reykjavík, Iceland.
  • Song H; Department of Epidemiology, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Boston, Massachusetts, USA.
  • Lu D; Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, School of Medical Sciences, Örebro University, Örebro, Sweden.
  • Zhang W; Institute of Environmental Medicine, Karolinska Institutet, Stockholm, Sweden.
Psychol Med ; 51(11): 1952-1954, 2021 08.
Article in English | MEDLINE | ID: covidwho-1882703
ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND:

Due to the drastic surge of COVID-19 patients, many countries are considering or already graduating health professional students early to aid professional resources. We aimed to assess outbreak-related psychological distress and symptoms of acute stress reaction (ASR) in health professional students and to characterize individuals with potential need for interventions.

METHODS:

We conducted a prospective cohort study of 1442 health professional students at Sichuan University, China. At baseline (October 2019), participants were assessed for childhood adversity, stressful life events, internet addiction, and family functioning. Using multivariable logistic regression, we examined associations of the above exposures with subsequent psychological distress and ASR in response to the outbreak.

RESULTS:

Three hundred and eighty-four (26.63%) participants demonstrated clinically significant psychological distress, while 160 (11.10%) met the criterion for a probable ASR. Individuals who scored high on both childhood adversity and stressful life event experiences during the past year were at increased risks of both distress (ORs 2.00-2.66) and probable ASR (ORs 2.23-3.10), respectively. Moreover, internet addiction was associated with elevated risks of distress (OR 2.05, 95% CI 1.60-2.64) and probable ASR (OR 2.15, 95% CI 1.50-3.10). By contrast, good family functioning was associated with decreased risks of distress (OR 0.43, 95% CI 0.33-0.55) and probable ASR (OR 0.48, 95% CI 0.33-0.69). All associations were independent of baseline psychological distress.

CONCLUSIONS:

Our findings suggest that COVID-19 related psychological distress and high symptoms burden of ASR are common among health professional students. Extended family and professional support should be considered for vulnerable individuals during these unprecedented times.
Subject(s)
Keywords

Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Students, Health Occupations / Stress Disorders, Traumatic, Acute / Psychological Distress / COVID-19 Type of study: Cohort study / Observational study / Prognostic study / Qualitative research Limits: Humans Country/Region as subject: Asia Language: English Journal: Psychol Med Year: 2021 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: S0033291720001555

Similar

MEDLINE

...
LILACS

LIS


Full text: Available Collection: International databases Database: MEDLINE Main subject: Students, Health Occupations / Stress Disorders, Traumatic, Acute / Psychological Distress / COVID-19 Type of study: Cohort study / Observational study / Prognostic study / Qualitative research Limits: Humans Country/Region as subject: Asia Language: English Journal: Psychol Med Year: 2021 Document Type: Article Affiliation country: S0033291720001555