Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Ophthalmology Trainees in Southern India - A Prospective Observational Study

Abstract

BACKGROUND COVID-19, caused by a new strain of corona virus 2019-nCoV led to a global pandemic after first manifesting in humans in December 2019 in Wuhan, China. The government of India ordered a nationwide lockdown for 21 days, which was then extended. Hence, ophthalmology, being a branch which largely deals with elective surgeries, was majorly affected. We need to evaluate the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on ophthalmology trainees during pandemic in India. METHODS A prospective, observational study in which an online questionnaire (on Google forms) was circulated between 9 th September and 15th September 2020 among ophthalmologists in training. RESULTS 260 of the 550 training ophthalmologists who were approached responded. They were given 31 questions to answer. The average age of the respondents was 27.39 ± 1.92 years of which 72.69 % (189 / 260) were females. 68.08 % (177 / 260) of the respondents had been posted on COVID-19 related duties. 76.5 % (198 / 260) of the respondents agreed that the outpatient load had dropped to < 50 patients per day and 100 % (260 / 260) of the respondents stated that there had been a reduction in number of patients posted for elective surgery. As a result, 64.23 % (167 / 260) responded that it had led to a loss of interest in their daily activities. 74.23 % reported different levels of stress, 73.46 % reported anxiety and some 24.23 % even experienced sleep deprivation. CONCLUSIONS This study has demonstrated that majority of the training ophthalmologists were affected psychologically during the COVID-19 pandemic to varying degrees which included both groups of training ophthalmologists who did or did not perform any COVID related duties. The study therefore has highlighted the increased need for psychologists to identify and help these individuals who may suffer from severe depression, insomnia and high stress levels and provide the necessary help. KEYWORDS COVID-19, Pandemic, Psychological Impact, Ophthalmology Trainees