The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on underrepresented early-career PhD and physician scientists.

Jamie M Doyle,Maya S Thakar,Chelsea N Proulx,Doris M Rubio,Gretchen E White,Natalia E Morone,Natalia E Morone,Andrew D Althouse,Audrey J Murrell

doi:10.1017/cts.2021.851

Abstract

Underrepresented minorities have higher attrition from the professoriate and have experienced greater negative impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this study was to compare the impact of COVID-19 on the lives of 196 early-career physician-scientists versus PhD researchers who are underrepresented in biomedical research. Participants in the Building Up study answered questions on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on their personal and professional lives, and a mixed-methods approach was used to conduct the analysis. While most participants experienced increases in overall stress (72% of PhD researchers vs 76% of physician-scientists), physician-scientists reported that increased clinical demands, research delays, and the potential to expose family members to SARS-CoV-2 caused psychological distress, specifically. PhD researchers, more than physician-scientists, reported increased productivity (27% vs 9%), schedule flexibilities (49% vs 25%), and more quality time with friends and family (40% vs 24%). Future studies should consider assessing the effectiveness of programs addressing COVID-19-related challenges experienced by PhD researchers and physician-scientists, particularly those from underrepresented backgrounds.

Highlights

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated longstanding issues in public health and the biomedical research enterprise
As COVID-19 cases escalated during the Spring of 2020, research studies halted, laboratories temporarily shuttered, and many scientists pivoted their research to COVID-19 and addressing pressing public health needs brought by the pandemic [1]
Using a mixed-methods approach, the purpose of this study is to compare the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on early-career physician-scientists and PhD researchers who are underrepresented in biomedical research

Summary

Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated longstanding issues in public health and the biomedical research enterprise. As COVID-19 cases escalated during the Spring of 2020, research studies halted, laboratories temporarily shuttered, and many scientists pivoted their research to COVID-19 and addressing pressing public health needs brought by the pandemic [1]. Early-career physician-scientists faced unique challenges during the pandemic, with many being redeployed to clinical duties at the expense of their research [3]. At the same time that research studies were halted, physicians had increased clinical hours and/or saw patients via telehealth [5,6]. Physicians responded to the pandemic by working more shifts, working longer hours, adding COVID-19 specific outpatient clinics to their schedules, and covering for their colleagues when they fell ill with COVID-19

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