Life satisfaction of nursing, midwifery and emergency medicine students during the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has affected life satisfaction of students of medical and health science. The aim of this study was to assess the level of life satisfaction among undergraduate students of nursing, midwifery and emergency medicine during the COVID-19 and to evaluate the impact of adherence to COVID-19 disease prevention measures on their level of life satisfaction. Material and methods: The study was conducted using a self-constructed questionnaire and a standardized psychological questionnaire, the Satisfaction with Life Scale, among students of nursing, midwifery and emergency medicine in the Pomeranian Voivodeship during the COVID-19 pandemic. Results: A total of 37 men and 238 women participated in the study. The mean age of all students was 21.5 (SD±3.83, min-max 19-39). The number of 93% of respondents reported avoiding people who coughed and had a cold, and 85.5% avoided large gatherings. When it comes to 84% of the students, they were vaccinated. As far as 73% of the students are concerned, they estimated that they had a medium level of knowledge about SARS-CoV-2 infection. Most students had a low (39.3%) and medium (32.7%) level of life satisfaction. A total number of 28% of the students reported a high satisfaction with life. There was not evidence of the influence of gender, field of study, year of study and the preventive behaviours on their level of life satisfaction. Conclusions: Most Polish students of nursing, midwifery and emergency medicine had a low and medium level of life satisfaction during the COVID-19 pandemic. Of the possible preventive behaviours, Polish students most often avoided people who coughed and had a cold, and they avoided large gatherings. Not all students registered for vaccination. Keywords: students, life, COVID-19, personal satisfaction