Peer mentoring for medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic via a social media platform.

Abstract

In many contexts, medical students collaborate with health care workers to deliver patient management and care in emergencies such as the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic. Notwithstanding this, medical students are experiencing an unintended pause in education as a result of global university closure over COVID-19 concerns. In both situations, students find themselves having to cope with mental and emotional issues, including stress, anxiety and fear, that may require significant psychological and physical effort. Therefore, it is important that medical schools not only care about student mental health, but also implement strategies to support students’ understanding of crisis management, self-mental care and other principal measures in order to strengthen the students' coping skills and mental preparedness. In collaboration with students at Shiraz University’s medical school, a social media platform that employed the near-peer mentoring method1 was created. It involved senior medical students in instructing junior medical students in coping with the anxiety and stress brought about by the COVID-19 pandemic. These senior students had received about 40 hours of training in teaching and learning methods, communication skills and effective consulting techniques under the supervision of faculty staff during the preceding 3 years.1 A total of 371 junior students joined this group. Students communicated with one another, exchanging thoughts and feelings about mental and psychological issues. A total of 10 senior students, under the supervision of expert faculty members, offered suitable solutions to psychological concerns and supported junior students in managing his or her emotions about this highly contagious disease. The senior students recommended stress management and relaxation techniques, engagement in exercise, the maintenance of online contact with family and friends, and the use of time management techniques during quarantine. General discussion about the best learning strategies for online classes also took place. A valid and reliable questionnaire, based on our previous study,1 was used to measure the effects of this activity. Overall, 71% of junior medical students believed the social media platform had a significant impact in terms of helping them adjust faster to the present emergency conditions. The only challenge students mentioned was that some were not sure how to apply the information gained to personal situations as the students continued to desire real and practical face to face consultation. Nonetheless, students generally described the participation in this initiative as a unique experience that was beneficial to professional growth. The provision of care and support has a critical role in promoting mental health in medical students. Building a peer mentoring group can help. With the experience achieved through working with junior students in this crisis, senior medical students found themselves increasingly able to provide timely and appropriate psychological advice for others. The experience, therefore, appeared to be as important for professional growth as it was for the psychological relief of more junior students. In resonance with the maxim that ‘teaching is learning twice,’ we have learned that by taking on peer mentoring leadership responsibility, senior students can further develop the skills needed to be competent physicians.