The Psychological Well-Being of Medical versus Dental GME residents during the Covid 19 Pandemic: A Cross Sectional Study

Bhalla, Natasha; Suneja, Nishant; Kobryn, Andriy; Lew, Sungyub; Dym, Harry

PURPOSE: Trainees are facing isolation, burnout, due to the fear of contracting and transmitting COVID-19. There has been a reduction in clinical activities of residents. The purpose of this paper is to measure and compare the psychological well-being of dental versus medical residents during the COVID-19 outbreak. METHODS: This is a cross-sectional study whereby trainees of a hospital in New York City were sent a questionnaire. Participants were from the dental and medical departments. Psychological measures of depression and PTSD were assessed utilizing the PHQ-9 and IES-R questionnaire. Other variables compared were age, gender, smoking status, living situation and comorbidities. Data analysis utilized chi-squared (X(2)) and t-tests. Bivariate correlation and linear regression analyses was also utilized. RESULTS: The survey was sent to 19 dental (Dental) and 171 medical (MD) residents. There were 66 participants. The response rate was 63.16 and 35.09% for the Dental and MD residents, respectively. The mean age for the Dental and MD residents, respectively, was 29.62 ± 2.09 and 34.82 ± 9.32 (p=0.014). 81% of the Dental respondents were male and 33.3% of the MD respondents were male (p<0.001). The mean PHQ-9 score was 18.29 ± 2.88 vs 7.24 ± 7.41 for Dental and MD residents, respectively (p<0.001). A higher score represents increased severity of depression. The Dental residents scored 61.9 ± 3.90 on the IES-R vs 30.36 ± 24.67 (p<0.001). A higher score indicates a greater frequency of intrusive thoughts and avoidance. 41.6% of Dental and 13.3% of MD residents tested positive; 25% of Dental and 28.9% of MD residents self-reported symptoms for COVID-19. Being positive or symptomatic resulted in statistically significant higher IES-R and PHQ-9 scores. CONCLUSION: Dental residents and being positive or symptomatic for COVID-19 resulted in higher PHQ-9 and IES-R scores. Being aware of the impact of COVID-19 is an important step in providing intervention.