Effect of COVID-19 Pandemic Lockdown on the Mental Health of Medical Students in Gujarat, India

Abstract

Background: Following the COVID-19 pandemic, a nationwide lockdown was announced in India in March 2020; wherein medical institutes throughout the country were closed. Various factors like physical inactivity, lack of social interaction, media news, uncertainty regarding examinations and course completion were expected to affect the mental health of medical students. This study was undertaken to understand the effect of COVID-19 lockdown on the mental health of medical students in Gujarat, India.Settings and Design: This was an analytical cross-sectional study conducted over 26 medical colleges in Gujarat.Method: An online survey was carried out over a period of ten days through Google Forms which included demographic details and the Depression, Anxiety and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21). MedCalc software was used as a statistical software for data analysis.Results: 2021 students (1107 males and 914 females) across 26 medical colleges participated in the survey. More than two-thirds (68.1%) of total students reported being physically less active during the lockdown. Around half of the participants reported some severity of depression (50.27%), anxiety (51.46%) and stress (41.61%). Significant difference was found in terms of gender, physical exercise, meditation for the severity of depression, anxiety and stress. Females reported more severe depression and stress. Physical exercise and meditation were found to be having a positive impact on the mental health of the students.Conclusion:The lockdown has negatively affected the mental health of medical students in terms of increased depression, anxiety, stress among them.