Quality of life in medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic
Quality of life in medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic

Summary/Abstract: The main objective of this study was to determine the quality of life (QoL) of undergraduate medical students and its associations in face of the COVID-19 pandemic. This was a cross-sectional study conducted by an online survey using the World Health Organization Quality of Life tool (WHOQOL-BREF). A total of 281 completed responses were obtained with an average age of 22.3±3.9 years and 77.5% were female. The scores of physical, psychological, social and relationship and environmental WHOQOL-BREF domains measuring quality of life were 62.7±16.5, 54.9±18.7, 59.8±22.3 and 61.4±17.5, respectively, which were independent of gender. QoL mean scores were significantly lower for dental students compared to their medical counterparts in all domains (p<0.05 for all). Final year (year 5) students had a significantly smaller mean physical domain score when compared to year 4 students (56.2±15.8 vs. 68.8±17.2, p=0.008) Being a foreigner was associated with reduced odds of self-reported good QoL compared to local students (OR: 0.39, 95%CI: 0.16-0.94). There were statistically significant decreases in mean psychological and environmental scores in 2020 compared to a similar pre-COVID19 survey done in 2019 (p<0.001 for all). Dental, foreign, and final year students emerged as high-risk groups in this study on reduced quality of life. Additionally, the COVID-19 pandemic also contributed to reductions in environmental and psychologic quality of life. Screening of students is advocated to identify those who may benefit from supportive interventions.

• Details
• Contents