Abstract
OBJECTIVES:This study aims to assess the symptoms of burnout, depression, and anxiety in Brazilian medical residents during the COVID-19 pandemic and to compare residents’ beliefs and clinical practices related to COVID-19 patients among all six years of medical residency training in Brazil.METHODS:A quantitative study was conducted in April 2020 with a convenience sample of medical resident volunteers from an anonymous online survey. This investigation collected sociodemographic information and used the Oldenburg Burnout Inventory (OLBI) to measure burnout, the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) to measure depression, and the General Anxiety Disorders (GAD-7) to measure generalized anxiety disorder. This study also developed a COVID-19 Impact Questionnaire (CIQ-19) to assess the residents’ beliefs and clinical practices related to COVID-19 patients.RESULTS:Our sample comprised 3071 respondents. Depressive symptoms were the most common among second-year residents (70.5%), followed by anxiety symptoms (56.0%) and burnout (55.2%) among fourth-year residents. We also observed burnout symptoms (55.1%) among second-year residents.CONCLUSION:The COVID-19 pandemic increased the risk of mental illnesses in some years of residency. Our study could not conclude the reasons why the incidence varies among levels of physician training. Final year medical residents have avoided seeing COVID-19 patients.
Highlights
Brazil instituted medical residency in 1977 as the most appropriate form of training for specialist physicians
This study aims to assess the symptoms of burnout, depression, and anxiety in Brazilian medical residents during the COVID-19 pandemic and compare residents’ beliefs and clinical practices related to COVID-19 patients among all six years of medical residency training in Brazil
This study developed a COVID-19 Impact Questionnaire (CIQ-19) to assess the residents’ beliefs and clinical practices related to COVID-19 patients, their behaviors concerning disease prevention, and their mental health care
Summary
Brazil instituted medical residency in 1977 as the most appropriate form of training for specialist physicians. The country has numerically expanded the training capacity of these physicians in recent years. In 2019, 53,776 physicians studied medical residency in 4,862 programs offered by 809 accredited institutions in Brazil [1]. In Brazil, the duration of medical specialties varies according to the chosen medical field. There are physicians in training in the country who spend up to six years in medical residency [1]. COVID-19 was identified in China with a high infectivity and transmissibility rate with a reproductive number greater than one. The world started a very atypical pandemic process as of December 2019 [2,3]. Physicians of various specialties were called up to work in the fight against
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