Explaining Medical Students' Experiences of the Challenges of Clinical Education during the COVID-19 Pandemic: a Qualitative Content Analysis

Introduction: The conditions of the COVID-19 disease epidemic have had an undeniable role in the education of students, especially health students, including nurses, and it can potentially affect the clinical competence of these students as a workforce in the future. Therefore, the current study will be conducted to explain the medical students' experiences of the challenges they have experienced in their clinical education during this period. Method: The present qualitative study was conducted using the contractual content analysis method in 2023 in Saveh Medical Sciences Faculty. 17 students were selected purposefully and, the data were collected using in-depth semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Granheim and Lundman's approach. Results: Interviews with participants were conducted individually with 17 students during 3 months. The average duration of the interview was 30 minutes. The findings included one category (lost learning) and five subcategories (fear preventing learning, limitations of the educational system, confusion in interactions and communication, limited clinical learning, and discouragement towards educational conditions). Conclusion: Considering that it is impossible to teach in the hospital environment without encountering infectious diseases, it is necessary to prevent harm to the learning of students of various fields by formulating rules and guidelines. Also, the use of educational methods such as movies and animations, as well as other methods of virtual education, can help to improve the level of students' learning in cases where they can't be present at the patient's bedside.