Evaluation of the Level of Anxiety and Future Anxiety in Kafkas Unıversity Faculty of Medicine Interns Physcians During the Covid-19 (Coronavirus) Pandemic

Year 2025, Volume: 2 Issue: 2, 58 - 65, 15.08.2025

Gülşen Taşdemir Sancı , Hülya Çakmur

https://doi.org/10.62425/jmefm.1660321

Abstract

Objective: The COVID-19 pandemic, which started on December 31, 2019, with the first case in Türkiye on March 11, 2020, has significantly impacted the education system. The transition from face-to-face to remote learning has particularly disrupted medical faculties and their practical training. This study evaluated the anxiety levels experienced by final-year medical students during the pandemic and their potential effects on their future careers.
Methods: This study included 6th-year students from the Faculty of Medicine at Kafkas University during the 2020–2021 academic year. Of the 44 eligible students, 40 participated. The participants completed a sociodemographic form, an internship program questionnaire, the Beck Anxiety Scale, and the Beck Hopelessness Scale. T tests and ANOVA were used to evaluate the differences in scale scores according to demographic characteristics.
Results: Of the 40 intern physicians, 45% were aged 23-24 years, 65% were male, 95% were single, and 92.5% had no chronic illnesses. Before the pandemic, educational participation averaged 24–40 hours per week, decreasing to 16–24 hours during the pandemic. The average number of hospital hours per week before the pandemic was 56-72 and increased to over 72 hours after the pandemic. The average Beck Hopelessness Scale score was 7.00 (mild hopelessness), and the average Beck Anxiety Scale score was 33.75 (severe anxiety). Interns aged 25-26 years reported greater anxiety than those aged 27-28 years did.
Conclusion: The pandemic has negatively impacted medical education and heightened concerns about the future, underscoring the need to reassess medical training systems and enhance remote education practices.

Keywords

anxiety, Covıd-19, medical faculty, pandemics

Ethical Statement

The study was approved by the Kafkas University Faculty of Medicine Ethics Committee on 23 September 2022 (approval number: 80576354-050).

References

• Guan W, Ni Z, Hu Y, et al. Clinical characteristics of coronavirus disease 2019 in China. N Engl J Med. 2020;382(18):1708-1720.
• World Health Organisation. Coronavirus disease (COVID-19). Accessed: April 10, 2024. https://www.who.int/health-topics/coronavirus#tab=tab_1
• T.C. Sağlık Bakanlığı (2021) ‘Sağlık Kurumlarında Çalışma Rehberi ve Enfeksiyon Kontrol Önlemleri’, T.C. Sağlık Bakanlığı, p. 171. Accessed: April 12, 2024. https://covid19.saglik.gov.tr/Eklenti/40282/0/covid19-saglikkurumlarindacalismarehberiveenfeksiyonkontrolonlemleripdf.pdf
• Oosterhoff B, Palmer CA, Wilson J, Shook N. Adolescents' motivations to engage in social distancing during the COVID-19 pandemic: associations with mental and social health. J Adolesc Health. 2020;67(2):179-185.
• Türkiye Cumhuriyeti Cumhurbaşkanlığı Mevzuat Bilgi Sistemi. Milli Eğitim Bakanlığı İdari İzin Mevzuatı. Accessed: April 21, 2024. https://mevzuat.meb.gov.tr/dosyalar/1627.pdf
• Ulusoy M, Sahin NH, Erkmen H. Turkish version of the Beck Anxiety Inventory: psychometric properties. J Cogn Psychother. 1998;12(2):163.
• Seber G, Dilbaz N, Kaptanoğlu C, Tekin D. Umutsuzluk ölçeği: Geçerlilik ve Güvenirliği. Kriz Dergisi. 1993;1(3):139-142.
• Durak A, Palabıyıkoğlu R. Beck Umutsuzluk Ölçeği Geçerlilik Çalışması. Kriz Dergisi. 1994;2(2): 311-319.
• Sahu AK, Amrithanand VT, Mathew R, et al. COVID-19 in health care workers–A systematic review and meta-analysis. Am J Emerg Med. 2020;38(9):1727-1731.
• Atılgan B. COVID-19 salgınının intörn hekimlerin yaşamlarına ve eğitim süreçlerine etkisi. Sürekli Tıp Eğitimi Dergisi. 2022;31(2):142-153.
• Atılgan SBÇ, Temizayak F, Çağıran T, et al. The views of senior medical students' about the medical skills traning at the hacettepe university faculty of medicine. Tıp Eğitimi Dünyası. 2020; 19(57):5-25.
• McKinley GP. We need each other: Social supports during COVID‐19. Soc Anthropol. 2020;28(2):319-320.
• Mian A, Khan S. Medical education during pandemics: a UK perspective. BMC medicine. 2020;18: 1-2.
• Tang W, Hu T, Hu B, et al. Prevalence and correlates of PTSD and depressive symptoms one month after the outbreak of the COVID-19 epidemic in a sample of home-quarantined Chinese university students. J Affect Disord. 2020;274:1-7.
• Wang C, Pan R, Wan X, et al. Immediate psychological responses and associated factors during the initial stage of the 2019 coronavirus disease (COVID-19) epidemic among the general population in China. Int J Environ Res Public Health. 2020;17(5):1729.
• Xiong J, Lipsitz O, Nasri F, et al. Impact of COVID-19 pandemic on mental health in the general population: A systematic review. J Affect Disord. 2020;277:55-64.
• Lee SA. Coronavirus Anxiety Scale: A brief mental health screener for COVID-19 related anxiety. Death Stud. 2020;44(7):393-401.
• Çırakoğlu OC. Domuz gribi (H1N1) Salgınıyla Ilişkili Algıların, Kaygı ve Kaçınma Düzeyi Değişkenleri Bağlamında İncelenmesi. Türk Psikoloji Dergisi. 2011;26(67):49-64.
• Leung GM, Ho LM, Chan SKK, et al. Longitudinal assessment of community psychobehavioral responses during and after the 2003 outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome in Hong Kong. Clin Infect Dis. 2005;40(12):1713-1720.
• Balkhy HH, Abolfotouh MA, Al-Hathlool RH, Al-Jumah MA. Awareness, attitudes, and practices related to the swine influenza pandemic among the Saudi public. BMC Infect Dis. 2010;10:1-7.
• Naushad VA, Bierens JJLM, Nishan KP, et al. A systematic review of the impact of disaster on the mental health of medical responders. Prehosp Disaster Med. 2019;34(6):632-643.
• Kadıoğlu FG, Üstdal Güney A, Çam OY. COVID-19 Küresel Salgınının Ortodontik Tedavi Gören Ergenlere Etkisi: Hastalık Kavramı Bağlamında Bir Değerlendirme. Türkiye Biyoetik Dergisi. 2023;10(1):9-17.
• Erdal N, Çevik Akkuş G, Bakın D. Perceptions of Individual Anxiety and Job Satisfaction During Covid -19 Pandemic. IJLRHSS. 2021;4(4):1-17.
• Appukuttan DP. Strategies to manage patients with dental anxiety and dental phobia: literature review. Clin Cosmet Investig Dent. 2016;8:35-50.
• Özdin S, Bayrak Özdin Ş. Levels and predictors of anxiety, depression and health anxiety during COVID-19 pandemic in Turkish society: The importance of gender. Int J Soc Psychiatry. 2020;66(5):504-511.
• Tomasoni D, Bai F, Castoldi R, et al. Anxiety and depression symptoms after virological clearance of COVID‐19: a cross‐sectional study in Milan, Italy. J Med Virol. 2021;93(2):1175-1179.