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CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 · Eur J Dent 2020; 14(S 01): S91-S96
DOI: 10.1055/s-0040-1721653
Original Article

The Psychological Impact Analysis of Novel COVID-19 Pandemic in Health Sciences Students: A Global Survey

Thelma Farasat Bashir
1   Department of Community Dentistry, Altamash Institute of Dental Medicine, Karachi, Pakistan
,
Sobia Hassan
2   Department of Pathology, Altamash Institute of Dental Medicine, Karachi, Pakistan
,
Afsheen Maqsood
3   Department of Oral Pathology, Altamash Institute of Dental Medicine, Karachi, Pakistan
,
Zafar Ali Khan
4   Department of Oral and Maxillofacial Surgery and Diagnostic Sciences, College of Dentistry, Jouf University, Sakaka, Al Jouf, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
,
Rakhi Issrani
5   Department of Preventive Dentistry, College of Dentistry, Jouf University, Sakaka, Al Jouf, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia
,
Naseer Ahmed 
6   Department of Prosthodontics, Altamash Institute of Dental Medicine, Karachi, Pakistan
7   Scholar Prosthodontics Unit, School of Dental Sciences, University Sains Malaysia, Kubang Kerian, Kelantan, Malaysia
,
Evangel Faraz Bashir
8   Department of Pharmacology, Jinnah Medical and Dental College, Karachi, Pakistan
› Author Affiliations Funding None.
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Abstract

Objective To evaluate the anxiety and depression amid novel coronavirus disease-19 (COVID-19) pandemic in health sciences students around the globe.

Materials and Methods This cross-sectional observational study comprised 523 health science students. A well-structured online questionnaire consisting of closed-ended questions based on student’s general information, Patient Heath Questionnaire (PHQ)-9 and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD)-7 scales were used to assess the psychological impact of COVID-19.

Statistical Analysis SPSS-25 was used to analyze the outcome of this study. Multiple linear regression analysis test was used to assess variables which had impact on PHQ-9 and GAD-7 scores among the participants. A p-value of ≤ 0.05 was considered as statistically significant.

Results Among the 523 participants, 365 (69.55%) students were from developing countries and 158 (30.21%) from developed countries; 424 (81.1%) students were tested negative for COVID-19 and 99 (18.9%) had suffered from severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection during pandemic. The mean GAD-7 and PHQ-9 scores were 7.16 ± 5.755 and 7.30 ± 6.166, respectively. Significant impact on anxiety levels was associated with age, gender, education status, and COVID-19 positive patient, while depression was not significantly associated with gender, COVID-19, and its reported symptoms in participants.

Conclusion As the world is trying to contain the health effects of COVID-19, the psychological effects might take a longer time to be addressed. Our study highlights the dire need to identify mental well-being of health science students as this may have a direct impact on their professional commitments and future responsibilities.

Keywords

health sciences students - psychological impact - novel COVID-19 pandemic


Publication History

Article published online:
26 December 2020

© 2020. European Journal of Dentistry. This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial-License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/).

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