COVID-19 Anxiety, Academic Burnout and Academic Achievement Among Medical Stagers and Interns at Guilan University of Medical Sciences, in 2020

Background: Medical students, as part of the healthcare team, are directly exposed to challenging conditions during the COVID-19 epidemic. This study investigated COVID-19 anxiety, burnout, and academic achievement in stagers and interns of Guilan University of Medical Sciences. Materials & Methods: The present analytical cross-sectional study was conducted on medical students and interns studying at Guilan University of Medical Sciences in the 2020-2021 academic year. Of whom, 150 students participated in this study. Corona Disease Anxiety Scale (CDAS) and Maslach Burnout Inventory-Student Survey (MBI-SS) were used to measure anxiety and academic burnout of the students, respectively. Measuring students’ academic achievement was based on Grade Point Average (GPA). Data analysis was performed using chi-square, Mann-Whitney U test, and partial Spearman correlation Coefficient. Results: The participation rate in this study was 92%. The results showed that 6.5% of students had high anxiety, 18.8% reported high academic burnout, and 79% reported the average level of burnout score. Also, the participants’ GPA was 16.76±1.30. The academic burnout score was significantly higher in male students than female ones (t=-2.01; P=0.04). The GPA was significantly higher in students under 24 years old than in older students (t=4.71; P=0.01). The partial correlation coefficient adjusted for sex showed a positive and significant correlation between CDAS and MBI-SS (r=0.346; P<0.001). Conclusion: The present study results showed that medical stagers and intern students had high academic burnout during the COVID-19 epidemic, and there was a weak and direct correlation between academic burnout and COVID-19 anxiety. Accordingly, to reduce the consequences of the COVID-19 epidemic, appropriate therapeutic and educational interventions should be provided to empower stagers and intern students.