Perceived Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Psychiatric Training Among Final-Year Medical Undergraduates in Sri Lanka: an Online Survey of Students from Eight Universities

Abstract

Objective This study aimed to assess the perceived impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on undergraduate psychiatry training in Sri Lanka and to explore several potentially associated factors. Methods An online survey was distributed among students from eight medical schools who recently faced their final exam. Their perceptions on the impact of the pandemic on the psychiatry training and exam performance were rated on a 10-point scale. Resilience was assessed using a two-item scale. Results A total of 644 students responded (69.5% female, mean age=27.5 years). Among them, 164 (25.5%) reported being quarantined; 25 (4%) reported becoming infected with COVID-19; and 170 (28.6%) reported ward closure for over a week during the clerkship. Greater impact was reported for patient availability (mean=7.08), mental status assessments (mean=6.3), developing rapport (mean=6.2), and diagnostic skills (mean=5.9), whereas the impact on peer-learning (mean=5.5) and self-study (mean=3.6) was relatively lower. Impact on clinical components of the final exam (mean=6) was rated higher than on theory components (mean=4.5). The majority (70.3%) reported that COVID-19-related stress affected their exam preparations. Higher resilience predicted lower perceived impact on all aspects of training/exam performance. Female gender and ward closure predicted greater impact on diagnostic skills, overall training, and clinical exam performance, whereas being quarantined predicted greater impact on peer-learning and self-study. Conclusion The pandemic has significantly affected the undergraduate psychiatry training in Sri Lanka, particularly its clinical components. Increasing clinical exposure to patients, managing students’ stress, and building their resilience should be key concerns for medical educators during the pandemic.

Current curricular trends after the COVID-19 pandemic: A national survey of psychiatry residency programs

“…The pandemic had impacts on clinical aspects including patient availability, mental status assessments, rapport development, diagnostic skills, and clinical exam components. 25 Although there is limited data specifically involving psychiatry residency training in the United States, psychiatry residency shares some similar clinical aspects of medical training. The pandemic impact on clinical involvement in medical student training suggests the possibility of interruptions in clinical residency training and risks of clinical competency despite further supplementation with virtual and hybrid learning modalities.…”

One year of digital teaching in psychiatry as a response to the COVID-19 pandemic: Knowledge gain and content evaluation of medical students for two summer semesters in 2020 and 2021

“…Statements on knowledge gain or the general evaluation of digital teaching from the students' point of view can only be found sporadically and in few studies: Morris et al were able to show that after the digitization of psychiatric teaching at their university, students felt well prepared with regard to examinations and the following practical forms of teaching [30]. In an online survey of students at eight medical schools in Sri Lanka, students rated digital lecture formats in psychiatry as an effective teaching method [31]. A survey of 24 responsible persons for psychiatric teaching at medical schools in the United Kingdom also indicates a high level of satisfaction with digital teaching in psychiatry on the part of students [32].…”

COVID-19-Related Disruptions Are an Opportunity for Reflection on the Role of Research Training in Psychiatric Residency Programs

“…Reduced opportunities to strengthen clinical skills contributed to deficits in developing rapport with patients, performing mental status examinations, conducting diagnostic interviews, and other clinical skills that are difficult to develop solely through self-study and peerlearning. The scarcity of patients available for clinical training translated to reduced trainee performance in clinical relative to knowledge-based components of examinations [3]. Consequently, many medical schools adapted the Objective Structured Clinical Examination (OSCE) formats, and residents were required to pivot, abruptly in some cases, to teleconsultation to provide clinical services in both training and examination settings [4].…”

“…The COVID-19 pandemic has required rapid, sometimes seismic, modifications of undergraduate and postgraduate medical training [1][2][3][4], especially for teaching programs and residencies that are mainly practice-based and clinically oriented. The challenges presented by the pandemic to postgraduate clinical training have been multifaceted, including reduced in-person hospital visits, suspension of many outpatient and inpatient services, disruptions in clinical placements for residents, and curtailment of elective surgical procedures [3,4]. Moreover, the range of usual opportunities to bolster knowledge and skills for both practice and research has been restricted by the transition to distance learning, suspended research work, disrupted mentoring, and cancelled conferences and workshops [3,4].…”

“…The challenges presented by the pandemic to postgraduate clinical training have been multifaceted, including reduced in-person hospital visits, suspension of many outpatient and inpatient services, disruptions in clinical placements for residents, and curtailment of elective surgical procedures [3,4]. Moreover, the range of usual opportunities to bolster knowledge and skills for both practice and research has been restricted by the transition to distance learning, suspended research work, disrupted mentoring, and cancelled conferences and workshops [3,4]. At the same time, this adversity has offered opportunities to institute or expand innovative teaching strategies (e.g., teleconsultation, videoconferencing, virtual simulations) [4].…”