Objective: The purpose of this study was to investigate if COVID-19 lockdown affected stress-perception and burnout in chiropractic students from our institution.
Methods: Stress and burnout in students were assessed using the Perceived Stress Scale and the Maslach Burnout Inventory. The surveys were sent out electronically in March 2020 to chiropractic students enrolled at our college. Data were analyzed with descriptive statistics and t test or analysis of variance to determine statistically significant differences between variables. Data were compared with that obtained in 2018, under no lockdown conditions.
Results: The survey had an overall response rate of 48.94%. Women presented statistically significant higher values for stress (p = .002) and exhaustion (p = .007). Younger students tended to suffer more stress than their older peers. When comparing lockdown data with that of 2018, students presented significantly lower stress levels but higher cynicism.
Conclusion: Women presented higher values for stress and exhaustion than the men. When comparing data with a prior study in 2018 with no lockdown situation, current students appeared to have lower levels of stress but increased cynicism.
Keywords: Chiropractic; Competency-Based Education; Health Occupation Students; Professional Burnout; Psychological Stress; COVID-19
This abstract is reproduced with the permission of the publisher. Click on the above link for free full text.
