Dr. Sandeep Kaur Chawla, Ms Amandeep Kaur, Dr. Raminder Singh Nagpal, Dr. Sanjeev Jain, Ms Simran Kaur Anand
Objectives:
Dental institutes confronted unprecedented challenges since the World Health Organization declared Covid-19 as pandemic two years ago. Our study intends to assess the impact of pandemic on the mental health of dental students so that adaptations can be made to help students cope with stress during public health emergencies.
Methods:
This cross-sectional study was conducted among undergraduate dental students of Guru Nanak Dev Dental College (GNDDC), Sunam, Punjab,using a well-structured online questionnaire. Student’s stress levels and sources of stress were evaluated by a validated Covid-19 Student Stress Questionnaire. The survey also included questions about student’s demographics and experiences regarding the pandemic.
Results:
A total of 160 out of 204 students participated. Most of the students reported moderate (52.50%) and high (28.13%) stress levels due to Covid-19 pandemic. Female students and those who had lost their family members, showed significant levels of stress with p-value of 0.014 and 0.001 respectively. Majority (74.38%) of the students cited stress from academic work as the main source of stress which was attributed to shift to online learning. Most of the students (68.59%) belonging to final year and interns reported that the pandemic adversely affected their clinical skills. Fear of Covid-19 infection to themselves and their loved ones was the second most stressful factor, followed by social restrictions. Majority (95.33%) were of the view that classroom teaching can never replace online teaching.
Conclusion:
Covid-19 pandemic has been a period of upheaval for dental students and has negatively impacted their mental health. The authors emphasize the need for psychological interventions to reach out and support the students.
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