Psychological Impact of COVID-19 on Doctors and Medical Students of Punjab, Pakistan: A Logistic Regression Analysis

Background: This study was carried out to find the awareness level, prevalence of anxiety and depression, and their associated factors among doctors and medical students during the COVID-19 pandemic in Punjab province, Pakistan.

Materials and methods: An online questionnaire-based cross-sectional study was conducted; data were collected regarding the demographic profile, awareness of COVID-19, anxiety symptoms using a self-rating anxiety scale (SAS), and depression symptoms using a self-rating depression scale (SDS). A total of 504 responses were obtained. The Chi-square test was used to compare groups and the logistic regression model for the association of factors with anxiety and depression.

Results: A total of 504 medical students and doctors responded to the questionnaire. The mean age of participants was 25.66 ± 6.71 years. The awareness rate of COVID-19 was 97.6%. The prevalence rate of anxiety and depression was 3.4% and 15.1%, respectively. According to the logistic regression model, those with low awareness levels (≤6 points) and spending more time on the news (>3 hours) had higher levels of anxiety, while higher levels of depression symptoms were reported in females, young people, and medical students.

Conclusion: Doctors and medical students had a high level of awareness of COVID-19 and a low level of anxiety and depression. However, female gender and younger age group were the most vulnerable groups significantly associated with depression.