Medical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis

Aim: Medical training is undergoing a dramatic shift toward alternative training methods due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. This study is the first to examine medical students' expectations, experiences, and mental burden related to volunteering in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services u...

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Autores principales:	Nikendei, Christoph, Dinger-Ehrenthal, Ulrike, Schumacher, Florian, Bugaj, Till J., Cranz, Anna, Friedrich, Hans-Christoph, Herpertz, Sabine C., Terhoeven, Valentin
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	DE EN
Publicado:	German Medical Science GMS Publishing House 2021
Materias:	covid-19 pandemic medical education clinical assignment psychological support Special aspects of education LC8-6691 Medicine R
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/c5d3823fd99741768102e4d1d90688a7
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:c5d3823fd99741768102e4d1d90688a72021-11-25T07:17:01ZMedical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis2366-501710.3205/zma001516https://doaj.org/article/c5d3823fd99741768102e4d1d90688a72021-11-01T00:00:00Zhttp://www.egms.de/static/en/journals/zma/2021-38/zma001516.shtmlhttps://doaj.org/toc/2366-5017Aim: Medical training is undergoing a dramatic shift toward alternative training methods due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. This study is the first to examine medical students' expectations, experiences, and mental burden related to volunteering in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services using semi-structured interviews.Methods: In May 2020, all 194 Heidelberg University Medical School students involved in volunteer COVID-19 support and treatment services were invited to participate in a cross-sectional, qualitative interview study. The semi-structured interviews were digitally recorded, transcribed, and then analyzed using Mayring's principles for content analysis.Results: We interviewed 12 medical students (8 female, mean age 23.2 years, mean medical training 3.7 years) working in Heidelberg COVID-19 crises management services, i.e., the Heidelberg Medical Hospital COVID-19 inpatient and outpatient units. The analysis revealed two key themes: “Expectations and structural barriers” and “Experiences and mental burden”. The participants reported uncertainty and apprehension before starting their voluntary work. Although they initially found volunteering to be somewhat disorganized, their roles became clearer with time. In addition, they reported good team cohesion, which helped reduce initial concerns and uncertainties. The participants also felt that working in the field had helped them maintain their professional identification while standard medical classes and bedside learning were suspended due to the COVID-19 crises. Overall, they reported little volunteer work-related mental burden.Conclusions: The participants felt that volunteering during the COVID-19 crisis had benefited their professional development. A designated liaison person, psychosocial support, and introductory and accompanying courses could help alleviate initial concerns and interim difficulties in future crisis-related assignments.Nikendei, ChristophDinger-Ehrenthal, UlrikeSchumacher, FlorianBugaj, Till J.Cranz, AnnaFriedrich, Hans-ChristophHerpertz, Sabine C.Terhoeven, ValentinGerman Medical Science GMS Publishing Housearticlecovid-19 pandemicmedical educationclinical assignmentpsychological supportSpecial aspects of educationLC8-6691MedicineRDEENGMS Journal for Medical Education, Vol 38, Iss 7, p Doc120 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	DE EN
topic	covid-19 pandemic medical education clinical assignment psychological support Special aspects of education LC8-6691 Medicine R
spellingShingle	covid-19 pandemic medical education clinical assignment psychological support Special aspects of education LC8-6691 Medicine R Nikendei, Christoph Dinger-Ehrenthal, Ulrike Schumacher, Florian Bugaj, Till J. Cranz, Anna Friedrich, Hans-Christoph Herpertz, Sabine C. Terhoeven, Valentin Medical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis
description	Aim: Medical training is undergoing a dramatic shift toward alternative training methods due to the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic. This study is the first to examine medical students' expectations, experiences, and mental burden related to volunteering in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services using semi-structured interviews.Methods: In May 2020, all 194 Heidelberg University Medical School students involved in volunteer COVID-19 support and treatment services were invited to participate in a cross-sectional, qualitative interview study. The semi-structured interviews were digitally recorded, transcribed, and then analyzed using Mayring's principles for content analysis.Results: We interviewed 12 medical students (8 female, mean age 23.2 years, mean medical training 3.7 years) working in Heidelberg COVID-19 crises management services, i.e., the Heidelberg Medical Hospital COVID-19 inpatient and outpatient units. The analysis revealed two key themes: “Expectations and structural barriers” and “Experiences and mental burden”. The participants reported uncertainty and apprehension before starting their voluntary work. Although they initially found volunteering to be somewhat disorganized, their roles became clearer with time. In addition, they reported good team cohesion, which helped reduce initial concerns and uncertainties. The participants also felt that working in the field had helped them maintain their professional identification while standard medical classes and bedside learning were suspended due to the COVID-19 crises. Overall, they reported little volunteer work-related mental burden.Conclusions: The participants felt that volunteering during the COVID-19 crisis had benefited their professional development. A designated liaison person, psychosocial support, and introductory and accompanying courses could help alleviate initial concerns and interim difficulties in future crisis-related assignments.
format	article
author	Nikendei, Christoph Dinger-Ehrenthal, Ulrike Schumacher, Florian Bugaj, Till J. Cranz, Anna Friedrich, Hans-Christoph Herpertz, Sabine C. Terhoeven, Valentin
author_facet	Nikendei, Christoph Dinger-Ehrenthal, Ulrike Schumacher, Florian Bugaj, Till J. Cranz, Anna Friedrich, Hans-Christoph Herpertz, Sabine C. Terhoeven, Valentin
author_sort	Nikendei, Christoph
title	Medical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis
title_short	Medical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis
title_full	Medical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis
title_fullStr	Medical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis
title_full_unstemmed	Medical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis
title_sort	medical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in covid-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis
publisher	German Medical Science GMS Publishing House
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/c5d3823fd99741768102e4d1d90688a7
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Medical students’ mental burden and experiences of voluntary work in COVID-19 patient support and treatment services: a qualitative analysis

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