The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on medical student mental health

TL;DR

This study found that the mental health of US medical students worsened during the COVID-19 pandemic compared to pre-pandemic times.

Contribution

The study provides empirical evidence of pandemic-related mental health changes in medical students across all four years of training.

Findings

Depression, anxiety, and impostor phenomenon scores were significantly higher in 2021 compared to 2019.

Binge drinking and non-cannabis substance use decreased during the pandemic.

Mental health scores generally rose during medical school but declined in the fourth year.

Abstract

The authors studied the impact that the COVID-19 pandemic had on medical students’ mental health.

US medical students received an online survey with questions from standardized rating scales in 2019 and 2021 in the fall prior to matriculation and in the spring of each year in medical school. The authors compared reports of depression, anxiety, stress, obsessive compulsive symptoms, substance use, impostor phenomenon, maladaptive perfectionism and childhood trauma symptoms in medical students pre-pandemic (2019) and during pandemic (2021) across all four years of medical school.

For depression, anxiety, binge drinking, non-cannabis substance use and Impostor Phenomenon, there were significant differences among medical school classes. For many measures, ratings were lowest at pre-matriculation, rose during medical school, and declined in the fourth year. When assessing pre-pandemic vs during pandemic ratings, 2021 scores were significantly higher than in 2019 for depression, generalized anxiety, and Impostor Phenomenon. Binge drinking and non-cannabis use were significantly lower in 2021 than in 2019. There were not significant differences for Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale anxiety (“DASS anxiety), obsessive compulsive symptoms, and adverse childhood events.

Medical school and the COVID-19 pandemic were associated with worsening mental health. During the COVID-19 pandemic, many of the measures of mental health worsened, and the pattern across years remained fairly consistent.

Figures