Abstract:
The COVID-19 health emergency led to the adoption of unprecedented measures that have never been seen in recent times. The study examines the effect of COVID-19 on final year medical students' final professional examination preparedness, transition to house job, and earlier assistantship. Materials and Methods: This descriptive cross-sectional survey was conducted in September - October 2020 after institutional review board approval at the University College of Medicine and Dentistry (UCMD) in Lahore, Pakistan. Of a total of 125 final years, medical students 112 responded to the survey questionnaire. Data were analyzed using SPSS 25. The Chi-square test was applied to evaluate the impact of COVID 19 on variables of interest (p-value< 0.05 was considered significant). Results: Postponement of clinical rotations, written exams, OSPEs, and clinical ward tests was reported by 62%, 78%, 71%, and 48% students respectively whilst 29%, 13%, 18%, and 21% students respectively stated it to be formatted. A statistically significant impact (p<0.05) was observed for final professional examinations preparedness and confidence to assist earlier. Conclusion: The study demonstrated the significant impact of COVID-19 on final year medical students' examination preparedness and confidence to assist earlier in the hospital. The improvised teaching methodology is urgently needed to fill in the lapses in their education.
Keywords:
COVID19
,
COVID19
,
medical education
,
Final year MBBS professional examination
,
OSPE
,
House Job
,
Earlier Assistantship