TY - JOUR AU - Nathaniel A. Jenkins, AU - Damion J. Grasso, PY - 2022/01/06 Y2 - 2024/03/28 TI - Pandemic-Related Experiences and Psychosocial Risk Associations Among U.S. Medical Students JF - International Journal of Medical Students JA - Int J Med Stud VL - 9 IS - 4 SE - Original Article DO - 10.5195/ijms.2021.1146 UR - https://ijms.info/IJMS/article/view/1146 SP - 288-293 AB - <p><strong>Background:</strong> Since the start of the COVID-19 global pandemic there has been a profound impact on the psychosocial health of medical professionals, with heightened risk reported on measures of depression, anxiety, and stress relative to non-healthcare professionals. However, there is limited data on the impact of COVID-19 on the psychosocial health of U.S. undergraduate medical students. The current cross-sectional study aims to examine associations between pandemic-related experiences and psychosocial risk among a sample of medical students attending a Northeastern U.S. allopathic medical school.</p><p><strong>Methods:</strong> One-hundred and seventy-nine students (42.6% of the study body) completed an online survey during the COVID-19 pandemic that included sociodemographic characteristics, the 30-item Brief Epidemic-Pandemic Impacts Inventory (EPII-B), the 2-item Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-2), the 2-item Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD-2), and the Primary Care PTSD Screen for DSM-5 (PC-PTSD-5).</p><p><strong>Results:</strong> Rates of serious adverse pandemic-related experiences (e.g., increased conflict, less physical activity, frequent substance use) were as high as 37.5%. Students with a greater number of adverse pandemic-related experiences reported more time with COVID-19 positive patients and were more likely to screen positive for depression, anxiety, and PTSD (<em>r<sub>s</sub></em> from 0.25 – 0.34, all <em>p</em>s &lt; 0.01).</p><p><strong>Conclusion:</strong> These findings suggest the need for other U.S. medical schools to evaluate and address medical student mental health during the COVID-19 public health crisis.</p> ER -