The Mental Health of Medical Students in Daegu during the 2020 COVID-19 Pandemic

Abstract Background: In February 2020, a local outbreak of COVID-19 occurred in Daegu, South Korea. It was the first outbreak of COVID-19 in South Korea and confirmed cases increased sharply, sparking intense anxiety among residents. In circumstances like this, it is important to assess the effect of an infectious disease pandemic on medical students’ mental health, develop mental health intervention materials at schools, and set the direction for future medical education. This study analyzed the data of a mental health survey on students enrolled at a medical school located in Daegu in 2020. Methods: An online survey was administered to 654 medical school students (pre-medical course: 220 students, medical course: 434 students) from August to October 2020, with 61.16% (n = 400) valid responses. The questionnaire included items about COVID-19 related experiences, stress, stress resilience, anxiety (Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI)), and depression (Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDI-II)) Results: Of the survey participants, 15.5% had experienced unbearable stress, with the most significant stress factors (in descending order) being limited leisure activities, unusual experiences related to COVID-19, and limited social activities. Approximately 28.8% reported psychological distress, and their most experienced negative emotions were helplessness, depression, and anxiety (in descending order). The mean BAI and BDI-II scores were 2.44 and 6.08, respectively, both within normal ranges. Approximately 8.3% had mild or greater anxiety, and 15% had mild or greater depression. For students under psychological distress, the experience of unbearable stress before COVID-19 affected anxiety (OR 0.198, p<0.05), and having an underlying condition affected depression (OR 0.190, p<0.05). With respect to their psychological distress during August–October 2020 compared with that during February–March 2020 (two months from the initial outbreak), anxiety stayed the same while depression increased and resilience decreased at a statistically significant level. Conclusions: It was found that some medical students were suffering from psychological difficulties related to COVID-19, and there were several risk factors for them. This finding suggests that medical schools need to not only develop academic management systems but also provide programs that can help students manage their mental health and emotions in preparation for an infectious disease pandemic.