106 Medical student and faculty perceptions of the COVID-19 pandemic on medical education and personal well-being

Devito, J. R.; Cheung, C.; Stuparich, M.; Nahas, S.; Behbehani, S.

Objectives: This is a retrospective questionnaire study which aims to highlight the effects coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID -19) has had on medical education and personal well-being on medical student and faculty in California. Materials and Methods: An email was sent to all 16 California medical institutions in early July of 2020. The medical student questionnaire consisted of 18 questions, and the faculty questionnaire consisted of 15 questions. Results: There were 151 medical student and 31 faculty responses. Forty-six percent of students were first to second years and 54% were third to fourth years. The majority of students were in the age group 25-34 (67%) and female (64%). When looking at reported mood symptoms, 52% had depressed mood. Forty-seven percent believed their medical education was negatively affected by COVID-19, 49% strongly agree that lack of in person communication has negatively affected medical education, 42% reported feeling competent with the clinical aspect and 46% reported feeling competent with the knowledge aspect of medical education. When asked to compare the quality of the online curriculum to their pre-COVID courses, the majority of students answered it was lower quality (51%). Thirty-one percent reported the online curriculum did not enhance their medical education. Comparing first and second year to third and fourth year students, those in the last 2 years of medical school 1.8% vs 6% reported not feeling competent with their education (P = 0.002). The majority of faculty were in the age group 35-54 (54%), female (49%), and have had >10 years of practice (44%). When looking at reported mood symptoms, 29% expressed depressed mood. Fifty-two percent answered they strongly agree medical education has been negatively affected by COVID-19, 46% somewhat agree that lack of in person communication has negatively affected clinical education, and 46% and 49% are neutral about how competent they feel medical students are with the knowledge and clinical aspects of medical education, respectively. Forty-three percent felt students are competent with the clinical aspect of medical education received during COVID-19. The majority of faculty (65%) reported they had to hold online classes, 68% had to utilize live online lectures, 54% reported that they have experienced increased fatigue with the use of online platforms used for lectures and meetings, and only 3% reported none of the above. When asked to compare the quality of the online curriculum to that of the curriculum before the pandemic, the majority of faculty answered that it is of lower quality (54%). Conclusion: Medical students and faculty have expressed mood symptoms related to their education. Forty seven percent of students feel that the pandemic has negatively affected their education, and 43% of faculty feel that medical students are competent with their clinical education. Therefore, one can conclude that reverting to an online curriculum during COVID is not viewed as better quality, but students are still viewed as competent from COVID-19 medical training.