Online learning: depression, anxiety, stress symptomatology among students of Wah Medical College during covid-19 quarantine

Abstract

Introduction: The students faced new worries and issues with the discontinuation of on- campus teaching and the change to online education during the COVID-19 quarantine. This significant change had a detrimental effect on their mental health and cognitive functioning. Objectives 1. To assess depression, anxiety & stress among medical students during online learning. 2. To determine the association of depression, anxiety & stress with gender & residential status of the students. Material and Methods: This was a cross-sectional study, done at Wah Medical College in Wah Cantt between December 2020 and May 2021. Data collection was done by Google Forms, using DASS21questionnaire (Cronbach alpha >0.70). The Google form link was shared with all 500 MBBS students through their class WhatsApp groups. Only 180 students submitted the response giving a response rate of 37%. SPSS version 26 was used for data analysis. The descriptive variables were determined as Means & Standard Deviation (SD), frequencies & percentages. The Chi-square test executed the inferential analyses, with a predetermined alpha (α) < 0.05. Results: Male students were 60(33.3 %) and 120(66.6%) were female students. The proportion of rural students was 32 (17.8%) and 148 (82.2%) were urban students. Stress was more reported among the students than anxiety and depression. Gender did not significantly correlate with depression, anxiety, or stress (p-value>0.5). Depression was significantly more reported among rural students than urban students (p-value <0.05). Conclusion: In terms of mental health, both male and female students were equally affected by online learning during the quarantine period of COVID-19. Keywords: Anxiety, COVID-19, Depression, e-learning, Medical students, Online learning, Stress.