Psychological burden of doctors aspiring for postgraduate training in India during COVID-19 Pandemic

ABSTRACT

Background: Doctors are under tremendous amount of stress during the COVID-19 pandemic. The uncertainty regarding future is compounded by lack of clarity about the postgraduate entrance exam. We assessed aspirants of postgraduate (PG) National Eligibility and Entrance Test (NEET) for psychological burden in domains of depression, anxiety, stress COVID related stress, attitudes towards situation affecting doctors and explored the association between psychological burden and other variables. Method(s) Google form was used to collect data from aspirants who appeared for NEET PG 2021 aspirants. The variables included age, gender, career status, marital status, number of attempts and medical environment related stress. Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale (DASS 21) and COVID-19 Student Stress Scale Questionnaire (CSSQ) scales were used to measure psychological burden. Analysis was done using SPSS version 21.0. Result(s) of 289 participants, two-thirds had very severe depression and anxiety while two-fifths had very severe stress. Most of them were distressed with NEET exam, the postponed Supreme Court verdict, mental health of PG aspirants, and violence against healthcare workers. There is low satisfaction with having chosen medical profession. The distress from the above medical environment was associated with depression and anxiety. Gender and COVID related stress were associated with severe depression, anxiety and stress. Multivariate logistic regression showed female gender and CSSQ score were associated with risk of severe stress and happiness with medical profession was protective Conclusion(s) PG aspirants are undergoing severe psychological burden. Prompt action should be taken to address this crisis.