Turkiye Klinikleri Journal of Medical Sciences

.: ORIGINAL RESEARCH
Medical Interns' Perceptions and Attitudes During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Qualitative Study
Tıbbi İntörnlerin COVID-19 Pandemisi Sırasındaki Algı ve Tutumları: Niteliksel bir Çalışma
Abdullah ALMAQHAWIa, Abdulsattar KHANa, Mohammed ALBARQIa, Abdullah ALMULHIMa, Sayed Ibrahim ALIa,b
aDepartment of Family Medicine and Community, College of Medicine, King Faisal University, Saudi Arabia
bCollege of Education, Helwan University, Egypt
Turkiye Klinikleri J Med Sci. 2023;43(1):112-8
doi: 10.5336/medsci.2022-89488
Article Language: EN
Full Text
ABSTRACT
 Objective: This study was designed to explore the potential association between the severity of the impact of the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on perceptions and attitudes among medical interns. Material and Methods: The study was carried out as qualitative key informant semi-structured interviews, and were enrolled from September-October 2020 using a convenience sampling was used to recruit nine medical interns at King Faisal University College of Medicine, Saudi Arabia. Data were analyzed qualitatively using framework analysis. Semi-structured interviews were performed in Microsoft Teams (online) for an average of 21 minutes, and the English language was utilized. A thematic analysis was done to identify the main concerns of the interns about education loss. Results: Nine participants (4 male medical interns and 5 female interns) were interviewed. The interview time averaged 18.4 minutes (range 17-21 minutes) and the mean age of the sample was 24 (standard deviation 0.707) years. Interns were more likely to be anxious, panic-ridden, horrified, depressed, stressful and disorganised due to the influence of the COVID-19 pandemic. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic has had an impact on interns' organization of hospital rotation schedules. Furthermore, there is disagreement on the impact of the COVID-19 epidemic on preparation for the Medical Licensing Exams. Conclusion: It should be ensured that the pandemic does not affect any more interns on medical rotations, by raising awareness through a bundle of educational courses.

Keywords: COVID-19; stress; anxiety; medical intern; qualitative researc
ÖZET
 Amaç: Bu çalışma, koronavirüs hastalığı 2019 (COVID-19) pandemisinin etkisinin şiddeti ile intörnlerin algı ve tutumları arasındaki potansiyel ilişkiyi araştırmak amacıyla tasarlanmıştır. Gereç ve Yöntemler: Çalışma, nitel anahtar bilgilendirici yarı-yapılandırılmış görüşmeler olarak yürütülmüştür ve Suudi Arabistan King Faisal Üniversitesi Tıp Koleji'nden dokuz uygun intörn toplamak için uygunluk örneklemesi kullanılarak Eylül-Ekim 2020 arasında kayda alınmıştır. Veriler, çerçeve analizi kullanılarak niteliksel olarak analiz edilmiştir. Yarı-yapılandırılmış görüşmeler Microsoft Teams (çevrimiçi) platformunda, ortalama 21 dakika sürecek şekilde İngilizce dili kullanılarak gerçekleştirilmiştir. İntörnlerin eğitim kaybı hakkındaki temel endişelerini belirlemek için bir tematik analiz yapılmıştır. Bulgular: Dokuz katılımcı (4 erkek tıbbi intörn ve 5 kadın intörn) ile görüşme yapılmıştır. Görüşme ortalama 18,4 dakika sürmüş (17-21 dakika arası) ve ortalama yaş 24'tür (standart sapma 0,707). İntörnler COVID-19 pandemisi etkisinden dolayı daha çok kaygılı, panik halinde, korkmuş, stresli ve düzensiz haller sergilemişlerdir. Ek olarak, COVID-19 pandemisinin intörnlerin hastane rotasyon programları organizasyonu üzerinde de etkileri olmuştur. Dahası, COVID-19 epidemi etkisi Tıbbi Lisans Sınavı hazırlıklarında da anlaşmazlık yaratmıştır. Sonuç: Bir dizi eğitim kursu ile farkındalık yaratılarak, pandeminin tıbbi rotasyonlardaki intörnleri daha fazla etkilememesi sağlanmalıdır.

Anahtar Kelimeler: COVID-19; stres; kaygı; tıbbi intörn; niteliksel çalışma
REFERENCES:
  1. World Health Organization [Internet]. © 2021 WHO [Cited: August 18, 2021]. Novel Coronavirus (‎2019-nCoV)‎: situation report, 3. Available from: [Link] 
  2. Wilder-Smith A, Chiew CJ, Lee VJ. Can we contain the COVID-19 outbreak with the same measures as for SARS? Lancet Infect Dis. 2020;20(5):e102-e7. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  3. Hui DS, I Azhar E, Madani TA, Ntoumi F, Kock R, Dar O, et al. The continuing 2019-nCoV epidemic threat of novel coronaviruses to global health - The latest 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak in Wuhan, China. Int J Infect Dis. 2020;91:264-66. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  4. World Health Organization [Internet]. © 2021 WHO [Cited: January 5, 2021]. Weekly epidemiological update-5 January 2021. Available from: [Link] 
  5. Lu W, Wang H, Lin Y, Li L. Psychological status of medical workforce during the COVID-19 pandemic: A cross-sectional study. Psychiatry Res. 2020;288:112936. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  6. Zhang WR, Wang K, Yin L, Zhao WF, Xue Q, Peng M, et al. Mental health and psychosocial problems of medical health workers during the COVID-19 epidemic in China. Psychother Psychosom. 2020;89(4):242-50. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  7. Kang L, Li Y, Hu S, Chen M, Yang C, Yang BX, et al. The mental health of medical workers in Wuhan, China dealing with the 2019 novel coronavirus. Lancet Psychiatry. 2020;7(3):e14. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  8. Ahorsu DK, Lin CY, Imani V, Saffari M, Griffiths MD, Pakpour AH. The fear of COVID-19 scale: development and initial validation. Int J Ment Health Addict. 2022;20(3):1537-45. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  9. Brooks SK, Webster RK, Smith LE, Woodland L, Wessely S, Greenberg N, et al. The psychological impact of quarantine and how to reduce it: rapid review of the evidence. Lancet. 2020;395(10227):912-20. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  10. Tasnim S, Rahman M, Pawar P, Chi X, Yu Q, Zou L, et al. Epidemiology of sleep disorders during COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic scoping review protocol. Published online 2020. [Crossref] 
  11. Hossain MM, Tasnim S, Sultana A, Faizah F, Mazumder H, Zou L, et al. Epidemiology of mental health problems in COVID-19: a review. F1000Res. 2020;9:636. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  12. Omrani AS, Al-Tawfiq JA, Memish ZA. Middle East respiratory syndrome coronavirus (MERS-CoV): animal to human interaction. Pathog Glob Health. 2015;109(8):354-62. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  13. Alghamdi AMS. Challenges of continuing medical education in Saudi Arabia's hospitals [PhD thesis]. Australia: Newcastle University; 2012. [Cited: August 18, 2021]. Available form: [Link] 
  14. Rahman S. The advantages and disadvantages of using qualitative and quantitative approaches and methods in language "testing and assessment" research: A literature review. J Educ learn Res. University of Plymouth. 2020. [Link] 
  15. Pope C, Mays N. Reaching the parts other methods cannot reach: an introduction to qualitative methods in health and health services research. BMJ. 1995;311(6996):42-5. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  16. Robinson OC. Sampling in interview-based qualitative research: A theoretical and practical guide. Qual Res Psychol. 2014;11(1):25-41. [Crossref] 
  17. Saks M, Allsop J. Researching Health: Qualitative, Quantitative and Mixed Methods. 2nd ed. London: SAGE Publications Ltd; 2012.
  18. Denzin NK, Lincoln YS. The SAGE Handbook of Qualitative Research. 4th ed. California: Sage Publications; 2011.
  19. Braun V, Clarke V. Using thematic analysis in psychology. Qual Res Psychol. 2006;3(2):77-101. [Crossref] 
  20. Lai J, Ma S, Wang Y, Cai Z, Hu J, Wei N, et al. Factors associated with mental health outcomes among health care workers exposed to coronavirus disease 2019. JAMA Netw Open. 2020;3(3):e203976. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  21. Hu KS, Chibnall JT, Slavin SJ. Maladaptive Perfectionism, Impostorism, and Cognitive Distortions: Threats to the Mental Health of Pre-clinical Medical Students. Acad Psychiatry. 2019;43(4):381-5. [Crossref]  [PubMed] 
  22. Al-Jabir A, Kerwan A, Nicola M, Alsafi Z, Khan M, Sohrabi C, et al. Impact of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on surgical practice - Part 2 (surgical prioritisation). Int J Surg. 2020;79:233-48. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  23. Gupta S, Federman DG. Hospital preparedness for COVID-19 pandemic: experience from department of medicine at Veterans Affairs Connecticut Healthcare System. Postgrad Med. 2020;132(6):489-94. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  24. Tay K, Kamarul T, Lok WY, Mansor M, Li X, Wong J, et al. COVID-19 in Singapore and Malaysia: rising to the challenges of orthopaedic practice in an evolving pandemic. Malays Orthop J. 2020;14(2):7-15. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  25. Liang ZC, Ooi SBS, Wang W. Pandemics and their impact on medical training: lessons from Singapore. Acad Med. 2020;95(9):1359-61. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  26. Jeleff M, Traugott M, Jirovsky-Platter E, Jordakieva G, Kutalek R. Occupational challenges of healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic: a qualitative study. BMJ Open. 2022;12(3):e054516. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  27. Vera San Juan N, Aceituno D, Djellouli N, Sumray K, Regenold N, Syversen A, et al. Mental health and well-being of healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK: contrasting guidelines with experiences in practice. BJPsych Open. 2020;7(1):e15. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  28. Vindrola-Padros C, Andrews L, Dowrick A, Djellouli N, Fillmore H, Bautista Gonzalez E, et al. Perceptions and experiences of healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in the UK. BMJ Open. 2020;10(11):e040503. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  29. Salman M, Asif N, Mustafa ZU, Khan TM, Shehzadi N, Hussain K, et al. Psychological impact of COVID-19 on Pakistani university students and how they Are coping. medRxiv. 2020. [Crossref] 
  30. Tavolacci MP, Delay J, Grigioni S, Déchelotte P, Ladner J. Changes and specificities in health behaviors among healthcare students over an 8-year period. PLoS One. 2018;13(3):e0194188. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 
  31. Khan AH, Sultana MS, Hossain S, Hasan MT, Ahmed HU, Sikder MT. The impact of COVID-19 pandemic on mental health & wellbeing among home-quarantined Bangladeshi students: A cross-sectional pilot study. J Affect Disord. 2020;277:121-8. [Crossref]  [PubMed]  [PMC] 

.: Up To Date

.: Process List

Login

 Forgot your password?

 New Registration  

Contact

Ortadoğu Reklam Tanıtım Yayıncılık Turizm Eğitim İnşaat Sanayi ve Ticaret A.Ş.

.: Address

Turkocagi Caddesi No:30 06520 Balgat / ANKARA
Phone: +90 312 286 56 56
Fax: +90 312 220 04 70
E-mail: info@turkiyeklinikleri.com

.: Manuscript Editing Department

Phone: +90 312 286 56 56/ 2
E-mail: yaziisleri@turkiyeklinikleri.com

.: English Language Redaction

Phone: +90 312 286 56 56/ 145
E-mail: tkyayindestek@turkiyeklinikleri.com

.: Marketing Sales-Project Department

Phone: +90 312 286 56 56/ 142
E-mail: reklam@turkiyeklinikleri.com

.: Subscription and Public Relations Department

Phone: +90 312 286 56 56/ 118
E-mail: abone@turkiyeklinikleri.com

.: Customer Services

Phone: +90 312 286 56 56/ 118
E-mail: satisdestek@turkiyeklinikleri.com

1. TERMS OF USE

1.1. To use the web pages with http://www.turkiyeklinikleri.com domain name or the websites reached through the sub domain names attached to the domain name (They will be collectively referred as "SITE"), please read the conditions below. If you do not accept these terms, please cease to use the "SITE." "SITE" owner reserves the right to change the information on the website, forms, contents, the "SITE," "SITE" terms of use anytime they want.

1.2. The owner of the "SITE" is Ortadoğu Advertisement Presentation Publishing Tourism Education Architecture Industry and Trade Inc. (From now on it is going to be referred as "Turkiye Klinikleri", shortly) and it resides at Turkocagi cad. No:30, 06520 Balgat Ankara. The services in the "SITE" are provided by "Turkiye Klinikleri."

1.3. Anyone accessing the "SITE" with or without a fee whether they are a natural person or a legal identity is considered to agree these terms of use. In this contract hereby, "Turkiye Klinikleri" may change the stated terms anytime. These changes will be published in the "SITE" periodically and they will be valid when they are published. Any natural person or legal identity benefiting from and reaching to the "SITE" are considered to be agreed to any change on hereby contract terms done by "Turkiye Klinikleri."

1.4. The "Terms of Use" hereby is published in the website with the last change on March 30th 2014 and the "SITE" is activated by enabling the access to everyone. The "Terms of Use" hereby is also a part of the any "USER Contract" was and/or will be done with the users using "Turkiye Klinikleri" services with or without a fee an inseparable.

2. DEFINITIONS

2.1. "SITE": A website offering different kind of services and context with a certain frame determined by "Turkiye Klinikleri" and it is accessible on-line on http://www.turkiyeklinikleri.com domain name and/or subdomains connected to the domain name.

2.2. USER: A natural person or a legal identity accessing to the "SITE" through online settings.

2.3. LINK: A link enabling to access to another website through the "SITE", the files, the context or through another website to the "SITE", the files and the context.

2.4. CONTEXT: Any visual, literary and auditory images published in the "Turkiye Klinikleri", "SITE" and/or any website or any accessible information, file, picture, number/figures, price, etc.

2.5. "USER CONTRACT": An electronically signed contract between a natural or a legal identity benefiting from special services "Turkiye Klinikleri" will provide and "Turkiye Klinikleri".

3. SCOPE OF THE SERVICES

3.1. "Turkiye Klinikleri" is completely free to determine the scope and quality of the services via the "SITE".

3.2. To benefit the services of "Turkiye Klinikleri" "SITE", the "USER" must deliver the features that will be specified by "Turkiye Klinikleri". "Turkiye Klinikleri" may change this necessity any time single-sided.

3.3. Not for a limited number, the services "Turkiye Klinikleri" will provide through the "SITE" for a certain price or for free are;

- Providing scientific articles, books and informative publications for health industry.

- Providing structural, statistical and editorial support to article preparation stage for scientific journals.

4. GENERAL PROVISIONS

4.1. "Turkiye Klinikleri" is completely free to determine which of the services and contents provided in the "SITE" will be charged.

4.2. People benefiting from the services provided by "Turkiye Klinikleri" and using the website can use the "SITE" only according to the law and only for personal reasons. Users have the criminal and civil liability for every process and action they take in the "SITE". Every USER agrees, declares and undertakes that they will not proceed by any function or action infringement of rights of "Turkiye Klinikleri"s and/or other third parties', they are the exclusive right holder on usage, processing, storage, made public and revealing any written, visual or auditory information reported to Turkiye Klinikleri" and/or "SITE" to the third parties. "USER" agrees and undertakes that s/he will not duplicate, copy, distribute, process, the pictures, text, visual and auditory images, video clips, files, databases, catalogs and lists within the "SITE", s/he will not be using these actions or with other ways to compete with "Turkiye Klinikleri", directly or indirectly.

4.3. The services provided and the context published within the "SITE" by third parties is not under the responsibility of "Turkiye Klinikleri", institutions collaborated with "Turkiye Klinikleri", "Turkiye Klinikleri" employee and directors, "Turkiye Klinikleri" authorized salespeople. Commitment to accuracy and legality of the published information, context, visual and auditory images provided by any third party are under the full responsibility of the third party. "Turkiye Klinikleri" does not promise and guarantee the safety, accuracy and legality of the services and context provided by a third party.

4.4. "USER"s cannot act against "Turkiye Klinikleri", other "USER"s and third parties by using the "SITE". "Turkiye Klinikleri" has no direct and/or indirect responsibility for any damage a third party suffered or will suffer regarding "USER"s actions on the "SITE" against the rules of the hereby "Terms of Use" and the law.

4.5. "USER"s accept and undertake that the information and context they provided to the "SITE" are accurate and legal. "Turkiye Klinikleri" is not liable and responsible for promising and guaranteeing the verification of the information and context transmitted to "Turkiye Klinikleri" by the "USER"s, or uploaded, changed and provided through the "SITE" by them and whether these information are safe, accurate and legal.

4.6. "USER"s agree and undertake that they will not perform any action leading to unfair competition, weakening the personal and commercial credit of "Turkiye Klinikleri" and a third party,  encroaching and attacking on personal rights within the "SITE" in accordance with the Turkish Commercial Code Law.

4.7. "Turkiye Klinikleri" reserves the right to change the services and the context within the "SITE"  anytime. "Turkiye Klinikleri" may use this right without any notification and timelessly. "USER"s have to make the changes and/or corrections "Turkiye Klinikleri" required immediately. Any changes and/or corrections that are required by "Turkiye Klinikleri", may be made by "Turkiye Klinikleri" when needed. Any harm, criminal and civil liability resulted or will result from changes and/or corrections required by "Turkiye Klinikleri" and were not made on time by the "USER"s belongs completely to the users.

4.8. "Turkiye Klinikleri" may give links through the "SITE" to other websites and/or "CONTEXT"s and/or folders that are outside of their control and owned and run by third parties. These links are provided for ease of reference only and do not hold qualification for support the respective web SITE or the admin or declaration or guarantee for the information inside. "Turkiye Klinikleri" does not hold any responsibility over the web-sites connected through the links on the "SITE", folders and context, the services or products on the websites provided through these links or their context.

4.9. "Turkiye Klinikleri" may use the information provided to them by the "USERS" through the "SITE" in line with the terms of the "PRIVACY POLICY" and "USER CONTRACT". It may process the information or classify and save them on a database. "Turkiye Klinikleri" may also use the USER's or visitor's identity, address, e-mail address, phone number, IP number, which sections of the "SITE" they visited, domain type, browser type, date and time information to provide statistical evaluation and customized services.

5. PROPRIETARY RIGHTS

5.1. The information accessed through this "SITE" or provided by the users legally and all the elements (including but not limited to design, text, image, html code and other codes) of the "SITE" (all of them will be called as studies tied to "Turkiye Klinikleri"s copyrights) belongs to "Turkiye Klinikleri". Users do not have the right to resell, process, share, distribute, display or give someone permission to access or to use the "Turkiye Klinikleri" services, "Turkiye Klinikleri" information and the products under copyright protection by "Turkiye Klinikleri". Within hereby "Terms of Use" unless explicitly permitted by "Turkiye Klinikleri" nobody can reproduce, process, distribute or produce or prepare any study from those under "Turkiye Klinikleri" copyright protection.

5.2. Within hereby "Terms of Use", "Turkiye Klinikleri" reserves the rights for "Turkiye Klinikleri" services, "Turkiye Klinikleri" information, the products associated with "Turkiye Klinikleri" copyrights, "Turkiye Klinikleri" trademarks, "Turkiye Klinikleri" trade looks or its all rights for other entity and information it has through this website unless it is explicitly authorized by "Turkiye Klinikleri".

6. CHANGES IN THE TERMS OF USE

"Turkiye Klinikleri" in its sole discretion may change the hereby "Terms of Use" anytime announcing within the "SITE". The changed terms of the hereby "Terms of Use" will become valid when they are announced. Hereby "Terms of Use" cannot be changed by unilateral declarations of users.

7. FORCE MAJEURE

"Turkiye Klinikleri" is not responsible for executing late or never of this hereby "Terms of Use", privacy policy and "USER Contract" in any situation legally taken into account as force majeure. Being late or failure of performance or non-defaulting of this and similar cases like this will not be the case from the viewpoint of "Turkiye Klinikleri", and "Turkiye Klinikleri" will not have any damage liability for these situations. "Force majeure" term will be regarded as outside of the concerned party's reasonable control and any situation that "Turkiye Klinikleri" cannot prevent even though it shows due diligence. Also, force majeure situations include but not limited to natural disasters, rebellion, war, strike, communication problems, infrastructure and internet failure, power cut and bad weather conditions.

8. LAW AND AUTHORISATION TO FOLLOW

Turkish Law will be applied in practicing, interpreting the hereby "Terms of Use" and managing the emerging legal relationships within this "Terms of Use" in case of finding element of foreignness, except for the rules of Turkish conflict of laws. Ankara Courts and Enforcement Offices are entitled in any controversy happened or may happen due to hereby contract.

9. CLOSING AND AGREEMENT

Hereby "Terms of Use" come into force when announced in the "SITE" by "Turkiye Klinikleri". The users are regarded to agree to hereby contract terms by using the "SITE". "Turkiye Klinikleri" may change the contract terms and the changes will be come into force by specifying the version number and the date of change on time it is published in the "SITE".

 

30.03.2014

Privacy Policy

We recommend you to read the terms of use below before you visit our website. In case you agree these terms, following our rules will be to your favor. Please read our Terms of Use thoroughly.

www.turkiyeklinikleri.com website belongs to Ortadoğu Advertisement Presentation Publishing Tourism Education Architecture Industry and Trade Inc. and is designed in order to inform physicians in the field of health

www.turkiyeklinikleri.com cannot reach to user’s identity, address, service providers or other information. The users may send this information to the website through forms if they would like to. However, www.turkiyeklinikleri.com may collect your hardware and software information. The information consists of your IP address, browser type, operating system, domain name, access time, and related websites. www.turkiyeklinikleri.com cannot sell the provided user information (your name, e-mail address, home and work address, phone number) to the third parties, publish it publicly, or keep it in the website. Gathered information has a directing feature to be a source for the website’s visitor profile, reporting and promotion of the services.

www.turkiyeklinikleri.com uses the taken information:

-To enhance, improve and maintain the quality of the website

-To generate visitor’s profile and statistical data

-To determine the tendency of the visitors on using our website

-To send print publications/correspondences

-To send press releases or notifications through e-mail

-To generate a list for an event or competition

By using www.turkiyeklinikleri.com you are considered to agree that;

-Ortadoğu Advertisement Presentation Publishing Tourism Education Architecture Industry and Trade Inc. cannot be hold responsible for any user’s illegal and immoral behavior,

-Terms of use may change from time to time,

-It is not responsible for other websites’ contents it cannot control or the harms they may cause although it uses the connection they provided.

Ortadoğu Advertisement Presentation Publishing Tourism Education Architecture Industry and Trade Inc. may block the website to users in the following events:

-Information with wrong, incomplete, deceiving or immoral expressions is recorded to the website,

-Proclamation, advertisement, announcement, libelous expressions are used against natural person or legal identity,

-During various attacks to the website,

-Disruption of the website because of a virus.

Written, visual and audible materials of the website, including the code and the software are under protection by legal legislation.

Without the written consent of Ortadoğu Advertisement Presentation Publishing Tourism Education Architecture Industry and Trade Inc. the information on the website cannot be downloaded, changed, reproduced, copied, republished, posted or distributed.

All rights of the software and the design of the website belong to Ortadoğu Advertisement Presentation Publishing Tourism Education Architecture Industry and Trade Inc.

Ortadoğu Advertisement Presentation Publishing Tourism Education Architecture Industry and Trade Inc. will be pleased to hear your comments about our terms of use. Please share the subjects you think may enrich our website or if there is any problem regarding our website.

info@turkiyeklinikleri.com