ABSTRACT
Background: Since the declaration of the COVID-19 pandemic on 11th March 2020, the public health recommendations have applied lockdowns and restrictions to limit the spread of the disease. These measures determined outdoor activities and access to many forms of exercise. Objective: The primary objective of this study was to examine the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the physical activity (PA) of the Jordanian population. Methods: A cross-sectional online survey was designed using Google Forms services and distributed on social media platforms during the first two weeks of November 2020 to evaluate the exercise activity changes during the COVID-19 pandemic in the study population. In this research, we included those who perform any form of physical activity (n = 1103). The data collected were analyzed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26 (IBM SPSS Corp, SPSS Statistics ver. 26, USA). The categorical variables were summarized as frequencies and proportions and were compared using the Chi-square. For all analyses, P-value less than 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: A total of 1103 out of 2,511 (43.9%) respondents who participated in the survey were physically exercising during the COVID-19 pandemic. 41.8% were exercising at an irregular frequency, while 21.5% were exercising daily, 16.8% were exercising three to five times a week, and 19.9% were exercising once or twice a week. Moreover, 282 (25.6%) respondents started doing some form of exercise during the pandemic. Those significantly were less than 18-year-old, male gender, were single, were non-smokers, and had a diploma or bachelor's degree in a health-related major. These changes in the level of exercise have been attributed by 57.8% of respondents to the health aspects where they realized the importance of exercising in strengthening the immune system against diseases, including COVID-19. Conclusion: The current study showed that lockdown, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, had a positive impact on the healthy lifestyle of the Jordanian population which was attributed to their feeling of the importance of sports practice on the immune system and the availability of time for those activities. However, the younger and individuals were more aware of the importance of these practices which highlights the importance of considering other age groups in future studies of healthy behaviors.
ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Diversity in the specialties is essential to provide optimal health care. Future career specialties chosen by the students had great significance for balanced doctor's distribution in different specialties, as it determines the composition of the physician workforce. Therefore, there has been a deeper interest in the issues of career preference among medical students. We aimed to determine and assess the factors perceived to be significantly attractive when choosing a future specialty. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional-based study was conducted among undergraduate medical students from all of the medical schools in Jordan from April to September 2021. The data was collected using a structured online questionnaire through social media platforms and completed by 1556 students. The questionnaire consisted of three sections. The first section included the sociodemographic data of the participants, while the other two sections included questions about future specialty and the factors that influence the student's choice. Informed consent was taken from the participants. RESULTS: Of the participants, (64%) were female. The mean age of the students was 20.9 years. Regarding the future specialty, 664 students (42.7%) preferred surgery as future specialty (females = 364, males = 300). While 505 students (32.5%) preferred specialty in medicine (females = 365, males = 140). Moreover, 349 students had no decision until now regarding their future specialty (females = 238, males = 111). Generally, the surgical specialty was the most preferred specialty, while the basic science specialty was the least preferred. Specialty in medicine and surgery was the most preferred specialty among females and males respectively. CONCLUSION: Surgery in general was the most popular specialty among medical students. Other common choices were neurosurgery, internal medicine, and pediatrics. The more attractive factors were the appeal of being in the specialty, the influence on patient's lives, the potential for patient interactions and the high income. While the least attractive factor was having a long-term relationship with the patients.
