VCOM Louisiana Research Day Program

COVID-19 & Epidemiology

Ghazal Becker, OMS-II; Emily Ranta, OMS-II; Riddhi Shah, OMS-II; Victoria Reyes, MD; Alexis Stoner, PhD; Dean Sutphin, PhD Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine, Monroe, Louisiana; Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine, Spartanburg, SC; Universidad Tecnológica de Honduras 36 GLOBAL IMPACT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC ON MEDICAL STUDENTS IN 2021 AND 2022

The COVID-19 pandemic affected medical students in the U.S. as well as internationally. This pandemic has affected medical student’s education, learning experiences, personal health, family’s health, finances, mental health and limited their social interactions both in 2020 and 2021. As medical students with an osteopathic focus, we questioned how our peers in the U.S. and in international settings have been impacted over the course of the pandemic. This study focuses on comparing testimonials from students enrolled in four U.S. and three international medical schools during the COVID-19 pandemic, specifically from 2021 to 2022. To determine the pandemic’s impact, a survey- based qualitative study was conducted in 2021 and 2022 and the responses were collected via a web-based software, Qualtrics. Survey questions were open-ended and asked for medical students’ personal beliefs and knowledge of the COVID-19 pandemic, students’ opinions on social media, informative news outlets and their thoughts on restrictions and policies placed in their region versus other areas. The survey questions were developed by a panel of experts, including a retired CDC infectious disease physician with 8 years of experience in Central America. US physicians

and international physicians provided “content validity” instrument items to match research objectives. Participation was voluntary and subjects were selected from cohorts of medical students enrolled in a course entitled “Global Seminar for Health and Environment” during the 2021 and 2022 academic years. Eligible students maintained enrollment at one of the following medical schools: Edward Via College of Osteopathic Medicine (VCOM) campuses in the U.S. including in Virginia, South Carolina, Auburn, and Louisiana and three medical schools in Central America and the Caribbean including El Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo, Universidad Evangélica de El Salvador, and Universidad Tecnológica Centroamericana. This study was approved by the VCOM IRB. Results from this study indicated that medical students’ perspectives changed based on three themes: COVID-19 Restrictions and Policies, Social Media/Informative News Outlets, and Personal Beliefs/Knowledge of the virus. With regards to the COVID-19 restrictions, the responses indicated 2022 U.S. students found themselves in a divided country and the 2022 responses showed a more pronounced negative view of the political impact on COVID-19 initiatives. With regards to social media and

news outlets, both years appreciated the utility of social media and the CDC as a source of information. However, when compared to 2021 student responses, 2022 responses held a negative view of social media which was attributed to political influence. Lastly, with regards to personal beliefs and knowledge, the major contrast was between U.S. and international students. U.S. students indicated a greater impact in academic opportunities in 2022 than those of 2021. In international students, however, this trend was reversed with fewer limitations in 2022 as compared with 2021. In conclusion, medical students globally have been impacted in different ways during the course of this pandemic.

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