Evaluation of the anxiety caused by the COVID-19 in medical students and its relationship with GPA (Grade Point Average) at Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz

Document Type : Original Article

Authors

1 Department of Physiology, School of Medicine, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran

2 Department of medical Education, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran

3 Master in Computer Engineering, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran

Abstract

Background: One of the high-risk groups for contracting coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19), are students of basic sciences and internships in the field of medicine. Therefore, the study was designed to determine the anxiety level of medical students and its relationship with their GPA (grade point average) at Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences (AJUMS) during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Method: This descriptive-analytical study was conducted in the academic year of 2020-2021 on medical students. Required information, including demographic characteristics, educational level, and level of anxiety was collected from a standard questionnaire. The reliability of the questionnaire was using Cronbach's alpha method (α=0.919). The significance level was deemed p<0.05.
Results: This study included 158 female students (47.4%) and 175 (52.6%) male participants. The average age of students was 22.65 years and the GPA was 15.36. The level of anxiety in female students was 48.1% higher than the male students 29.7% (p=0.001). Age had an inverse relationship with anxiety level (P<0.001). GPA had an inverse relationship with anxiety level (P=0.014) as well. The level of anxiety in basic science students was 68.5% more than internship students by 2.6% (P<0.001).
Conclusion: Anxiety caused by the COVID-19 in medical students at AJUMS showed an inverse relationship with GPA, and as the grade point average increased, the anxiety score decreased.Anxiety was higher in basic science students than intern students. The most concern of the students in both levels was related to the possibility of transmitting the COVID-19 to the people around them.

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References

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Future of Medical Education Journal
Volume 13, Issue 4
December 2023
Pages 7-13

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