ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND: Psychiatric disorders are associated with a more severe course of COVID-19. COVID-19 can also lead to psychiatric symptoms. AIM: To gain insight into vulnerabilities and protective factors for the course of COVID-19 in a Dutch (neuro)psychiatric population. METHOD: Patients were divided into three groups: patients with pre-existent mental disorders without and with new (neuro)psychiatric symptoms (NPS) during COVID-19 and patients without pre-existent mental disorders who developed de novo NPS during COVID-19. We summarize the characteristics of each group and compare the subgroups with inferential statistics. RESULTS: 186 patients were included in the case register. Patients with NPS showed a more severe course of COVID-19. Mortality in patients with NPS was higher in patients with pre-existent mental disorders compared to patients without pre-existent mental disorders. The most frequently reported de novo psychiatric symptoms during COVID-19 were delirium (46-70%), anxiety (53-54%) and insomnia (18-42%). CONCLUSION: NPS might be an expression of a more severe COVID-19 episode. In patients who developed NPS during COVID-19 we found evidence for a higher mortality risk in patients with pre-existent mental disorders. Extra vigilance for neuropsychiatric symptoms during COVID-19 is warranted.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Mental Disorders , Sleep Initiation and Maintenance Disorders , Humans , Mental Disorders/epidemiology , Mental Disorders/psychology , Anxiety/epidemiology , Anxiety/psychology , Anxiety DisordersABSTRACT
Background The COVID-19 pandemic changes the training of residents and could offer new opportunities. Aim Gaining insight in the effects of the impact of the COVID-19-pandemic on psychiatry residents. Method A digital questionnaire was designed to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on educational activities. The experience of residents with regards to safety in the workplace, social cohesion with their peers and the involvement of supervisors were examined. Results We approached 34 training institutions. 24 chief residents of the resident group completed the questionnaire. The quality of regional education was considered unchanged by 20% and local education by 33%. Digital communication increased the participation of psychiatrists in the general report and education activities and ensured less travel time. Nevertheless, respondents missed contact with their peers, safety of residents was compromised at five institutions and half of all respondents indicated a lack of personal protective equipment. Conclusions A majority of the psychiatry residents are satisfied with their training during this historic pandemic, but the quality of local and regional education was considered changed, and not being beneficial. The challenge remains for stimulating contact with peers, monitoring the quality of education in general as in psychotherapy and providing personal protective equipment. Tijdschrift voor Psychiatrie 63(2021)1, 16-21.
Subject(s)
COVID-19 , Education, Medical/trends , Internship and Residency/trends , Psychiatry/education , Humans , Netherlands , Pandemics , Surveys and QuestionnairesABSTRACT
Course of covid-19 infections and impact on mental health; setting up a national case register.
Subject(s)
Betacoronavirus , Coronavirus Infections/psychology , Mental Disorders/etiology , Mental Health , Pneumonia, Viral/psychology , Registries , COVID-19 , Coronavirus Infections/complications , Humans , Netherlands , Pandemics , Pneumonia, Viral/complications , SARS-CoV-2ABSTRACT
OBJECTIVE: To gain insight in the career development of Utrecht medical school graduates. DESIGN: Retrospective cohort study. METHOD: In November 2015, we investigated the achieved academic title, occupation and position for 281 graduates who had started their medical education at University Medical Centre Utrecht (UMCU) in the academic year 2003-2004. Information was gathered from the BIG-register for medical professionals, through social media and Google, and if necessary through private messaging. We compared our results to those from previous cohort studies on the career paths of medical graduates from University Medical Centre Groningen (UMCG) and Leiden University Medical Centre (LUMC), both dating back twenty years. RESULTS: On average five years after graduation, 52% of all 281 graduates was in residency, 11% was occupied as general practitioner and 7% was a medical specialist. Among residents, the most frequently chosen specialties were general practice (12%), internal medicine (10%), psychiatry and radiology (both 7%). This distribution of residents amongst these specialties was largely consistent with distributions found in the Groningen and Leiden cohorts. In our cohort, 21% of graduates had achieved a PhD and an additional 16% was a PhD student, whilst only 13% of the Groningen cohort had achieved a PhD. CONCLUSION: A relatively large number of UMCU medical school graduates become a medical specialist. The distribution of UMCU graduates amongst different medical specialty residencies is consistent with the distribution observed nationally. A notable rise in PhD graduates and students is noted in our cohort, when compared to the UMCG cohort analysed 20 years earlier.
