Effect of COVID-19 pandemic on health behaviours of students of medical specialities from the aspect of psychological support based on a Polish example

Introduction and objective: The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic on health behaviours of students of medical specialities from the aspect of psychological support in Poland.

Material and methods: A study was conducted from 6 June - 16 December, 2022 among students of the Collegium Medicum at the Jan Kochanowski University in Kielce (CM UJK), Poland, and the Medical University of Warsaw (WUM). The final analysis covered 517 students of full-time studies - 265 (51.06%) students from CM UJK and 253 (48.94%) from WUM. Health behaviours as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic from the aspect of psychological support were investigated using the standardized questionnaire Health Behaviour Inventory (HBI), and an author-constructed questionnaire. Positive mental attitude, preventive behaviours, and proper eating habits were taken into consideration.

Results: The results indicated greater care for own health among students from CM UJK. It was found that every fifth respondent (178; 34.43%) reported the need for psychological support. A statistically significant relationship was observed between the need for psychological support and low health behaviour in terms of positive mental attitude (p<0.001) and health practices (p<0.001) of the examined students. Those who declared the need for psychological support were characterized by low psychological attitude (p<0.001) and felt lonely during the pandemic, which was the result of isolation and remote classes (p<0.001).

Conclusions: The COVID-19 pandemic exerted a negative effect on the health behaviours of students of medical specialities in the area of psychological health. The feeling of loneliness and lack of social contacts exposed the health behaviours of the examined students.