Abstract :
COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in a myriad of the diseases. It has a negative psychological impact. It has affected the general population worldwide, putting additional strain on health-care professionals. Since COVID-19 was declared as a public health emergency, the levels of anxiety, depression and other mental health problems have been ominously rising. The students' mental health was tested using structured questionnaires. Seven hundred and fifty students belonging to I, II, III and final year MBBS batches were enrolled in the study, out of which 590 students completed the questionnaires. Questionnaires for measurement of psychological morbidity included the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS-4), Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) and Generalized Anxiety Disorder questionnaire (GAD-7). An analysis of descriptive statistics was conducted to illustrate the Socio-demographic and other selected variables. Correlational analysis was done using linear correlation analysis for continuous variables and logistic regression analysis for categorical variable. Students with minimal symptoms of depression was 35%, whereas the proportion of students with mild, moderate, moderately severe, and severe depression was 35.3%%, 14.7%, 11.4%, and 3.6%, respectively. Around 45% of the students had minimal symptoms of anxiety, whereas the proportions of students with minimal, mild, moderate, and severe anxiety were 44.2%, 30.3%, 16.4%, and 9.0%, respectively. A quarter (24%) students were under stress as their PSS score was >6. The present study results concluded that first year medical students are found to suffer from higher levels of stress, anxiety and depression, with majority of male students suffering from stress, whereas female students had greater depression and anxiety levels during COVID-19. Student mentoring, which includes academic, psychic, and social counseling, may aid in the prediction and management of stress, as well as the improvement of student performance..
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