Medical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis

Nikendei, Christoph; Dinger-Ehrenthal, Ulrike; Schumacher, Florian; Bugaj, Till Johannes; Cranz, Anna; Friedrich, Hans-Christoph; Herpertz, Sabine C.; Terhoeven, Valentin

doi:10.3205/zma001516

Cited by 4 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 27 publications

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“…The theme of voluntarily taking care for Covid-19 patients, which emerged in the material, was previously described by Mu ¨hlbauer et al [42], who identified the wish to help and a sense for duty as the most important reasons. Nikendei et al [43] reported on the benefits of taking part in the care of Covid-19 patients in terms of personal growth and identification with the profession, which could be partly found in our material. The reported lack of fear of becoming infected and experiencing a severe course is in line with findings from the United States [44], which reported a comparably lower perceived risk in young adults with academic education.…”

Section: Plos Onesupporting

confidence: 56%

Medical education during the Covid-19 pandemic long-term experiences of German clinical medical students

Gottschalk,

Milch,

Albert

et al. 2023

PLoS ONE

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Introduction Due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the accompanying hygiene regulations, medical students in Germany faced multiple educational and personal challenges. The challenges included the cancellation and digitalisation of courses, the closing of university institutions such as libraries, a decrease in social contacts, and the risk of a Covid-19 infection. The aim of this study was to understand medical students’ pandemic experiences as well as the consequences of these experiences for the students’ future work as physicians. Materials and methods We performed 15 guided, one-on-one interviews with clinical medical students (third to fifth year) at the Otto-von-Guericke-University Magdeburg. Interviews were recorded, transcribed, and anonymised. We performed a qualitative content analysis in accordance with Mayring and thereby formed an inductive category system. The Consolidated Criteria for Reporting Qualitative Research (COREQ) were applied. Results Five categories were inductively formed: “Changes in the teaching experience”, “negative effects on the learning experience”, “decrease in personal social contacts”, “contact with covid-19”, and “pandemic-associated stress increase”. The participating students reported higher levels of stress due to isolation and uncertainty regarding their educational future. Furthermore, students welcomed the digitalisation of lectures, developed individual coping strategies, and voluntarily took part in the care of Covid-19 patients. Limitations to social interactions were perceived as the major restrictive factor to their educational structure, their perceived learning success and personal development. Conclusion This study identified social restrictions as well as didactic and academic structural challenges as relevant factors contributing to perceived stress and fear for medical students during the Covid-19 pandemic, especially as regards their learning experience. Students’ acceptance of digitalised learning may enable regular interaction with university peers and may facilitate a structured educational life. However, the implementation of digital resources could not provide a sufficient substitute for in-person courses.

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Section: Plos Onesupporting

confidence: 56%

Medical education during the Covid-19 pandemic long-term experiences of German clinical medical students

Gottschalk,

Milch,

Albert

et al. 2023

PLoS ONE

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“…Following the positive impression of volunteering activity, three studies found a high level of willingness (73.2–94%) among health professional students regarding participation in the future ( 7 , 49 , 53 ). Regarding mental issues associated with volunteering, four studies found that student volunteers had low psychological stress ( 40 , 44 , 51 , 55 ). The prevalence of anxiety and depression was lower among volunteering students than non-volunteering ones, indicating that it positively influenced general psychological wellbeing ( 40 , 51 ).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Health professional student’s volunteering activities during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic literature review

et al. 2022

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BackgroundThe Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) crisis has forced health and education services to use additional human resources, such as health professional students. Students in the health professions, particularly those in the medical field, can participate in a variety of voluntary activities, both directly and indirectly in health services. The aim of this review was to determine the affecting factors, types of activity, and benefits of undertaking a volunteering role by the health professional student.MethodsA systematic review of health professional student volunteering during the COVID-19 pandemic was conducted using seven databases: Epistemonikos, ProQuest, Scopus, EBSCOhost, JSTOR, Cochrane Library, and PubMed. This literature search included published articles from March 2020 through to December 2021 using the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) 2020 guidelines.ResultWe included 41 studies that met the selection criteria that assessed the factors and specific programs related to health profession students’ volunteering involvement during the COVID-19 pandemic era. The most frequently observed supporting factor of the eagerness to be a volunteer was the feeling of moral responsibility (such as social dedication, sense of duty, and care), potential learning opportunities, personal interest, and financial compensation. Factors that contributed to a person’s refusal to participate in a volunteer position were the fear of COVID-19 itself (such as transmission, risk of being infected, and personal identification as a risk group).ConclusionThe review of available literature has shown that understanding the motivation and barriers to the willingness of health professional students to volunteer and the impact of volunteering activities on their future lives is a key for supporting them.

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“…A previous study showed that volunteers feel uncertainty and apprehension when they started their work in COVID-19 settings. [ 22 ] Moreover, although medical students are vulnerable to mental health problems, health professionals may also develop a nonchalant attitude toward them. [ 23 , 24 ] Importantly, the uncertainty caused by anxiety and the ability to cope with it vary between individuals.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A previous study on the mental burden of medical students in Germany showed that most students would like to have access to more extensive preparation, such as task guidelines or informational videos, which could address their initial uncertainties. [ 22 ] It is therefore necessary to provide students with adequate training and information before they start their work.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Student engagement in voluntary service in response to COVID-19 in Guangzhou, China: Implications for disease control and public health education from a cross-sectional study

Feng,

Huang,

Tan

et al. 2024

Medicine

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Public health students have been seen as a potential force to meet the demand for health workers during the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. However, few studies have provided empirical data. This study was conducted to summarize the experiences of public health students who engaged in voluntary service in response to the COVID-19 outbreak in Guangzhou, China. A cross-sectional study was conducted among postgraduate and undergraduate students at the School of Public Health, Guangdong Pharmaceutical University, in August 2021. A self-designed online questionnaire was used to collect data on the experience of voluntary service during the early stage of the outbreak (in February 2020) and during the normalization stage of the prevention and control of COVID-19 (in June 2021) in China. Among the 96 students, 40 (41.7%) participated in voluntary service in February 2020, and 56 (58.3%) participated in voluntary service in June 2021. Most of the students participated in the voluntary service due to the motivations to help others (55.2%), to apply theoretical knowledge to practice (74.0%), to improve their fieldwork skills (72.9%), and to gain the experience for future careers (80.2%). Most volunteers were driven by professional responsibility (81.3%). More than half (53.1%) of the students felt anxious during their voluntary service. A lower proportion of students felt anxious in June 2021 than in February 2020 (44.6% vs 65.0%, P = .049), while a higher proportion of students found voluntary service harder than expected in June 2021 than in February 2020 (33.9% vs 7.5%, P = .002). Most students improved their knowledge and skills about COVID-19 after the training, but some knowledge and skills still needed improvement after their voluntary service. Public health students could help support the health system during the COVID-19 pandemic by providing adequate training and protection. More efforts should be made to provide psychological support for student volunteers and to optimize the curriculum to bridge the gap in public health education between theoretical knowledge and practical skills in responding to public health emergencies.

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Medical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis

Cited by 4 publications

References 27 publications

Medical education during the Covid-19 pandemic long-term experiences of German clinical medical students

Medical education during the Covid-19 pandemic long-term experiences of German clinical medical students

Health professional student’s volunteering activities during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic literature review

Student engagement in voluntary service in response to COVID-19 in Guangzhou, China: Implications for disease control and public health education from a cross-sectional study

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