Increased Levels of Anxiety Among Medical and Non-Medical University Students During the COVID-19 Pandemic in the United Arab Emirates

Abstract

Introduction

The COVID-19 pandemic is likely to increase anxiety levels within the community and in particular medical students who are already considered psychologically vulnerable groups. Since the COVID-19 outbreak, no study has yet estimated the effect of this pandemic on university students in the UAE or its impact on the psychological well-being of medical students.

Methods and Materials

We surveyed 1485 medical (comprising medical and dental) and non-medical university students across 4 emirates within the UAE. We used an online platform to assess knowledge, sources of information, changes in hygienic behavior, perceptions of fear and worry and anxiety levels using the generalized anxiety disorder 7 (GAD-7) scale. The GAD-7 score was measured at three time points: during hospital visits for medical/dental students, before the introduction of online learning and after online learning for all students.

Results

The majority of students demonstrated high levels of knowledge and utilized reliable sources of information. Non-medical students exercised higher compliance with social restrictions, while medical students practiced better hand hygiene. Almost half of students reported anxiety levels ranging from mild to severe with females reporting higher anxiety scores during hospital visits (OR=2.02, 95% CI, 1.41 to 2.91) and medical students reporting lower anxiety levels in comparison to dental students (OR=0.61, 95% CI, 0.45 to 0.84). Medical students reported higher levels of anxiety during their clinical rotations which decreased with the introduction of online learning, yet, non-medical students’ anxiety levels increased with online learning.

Conclusion

This study provides important information on the initial response and anxiety levels in university students across the UAE during the COVID-19 pandemic. The findings from our study can be used to support the development of effective screening strategies and interventions to build psychological resilience among university students during the COVID-19 pandemic or any other public health emergencies in the future.

Keywords:

• COVID-19
• anxiety
• medical students
• GAD-7
• United Arab Emirates

Acknowledgments

The authors would like to thank all students who participated in the study.

Data Sharing Statement

The datasets generated during and/or analyzed during the current study are available from the corresponding author on reasonable request.

Ethical Standards

The authors assert and confirm that all research was performed in accordance with relevant guidelines and regulations of national and institutional committees at the University of Sharjah on human experimentation.

Author Contributions

All authors made a significant contribution to the work reported, whether that is in the conception, study design, execution, acquisition of data, analysis and interpretation, or in all these areas; took part in drafting, revising or critically reviewing the article; gave final approval of the version to be published; have agreed on the journal to which the article has been submitted; and agree to be accountable for all aspects of the work.

Disclosure

The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest. The authors report no conflicts of interest for this work.

Additional information

Funding

This research has been financially supported by Clinical Epidemiology Research group operational grant (Grant code: 150389); COVID-19 research grant (CoV19-0301) to BS, University of Sharjah, UAE; COVID-19 research grant (CoV19-0307), Seed grant (Grant code: 2001090275); and collaborative research grant (Grant code: 2001090278) to RH, University of Sharjah, UAE; and by Prince Abdullah Ben Khalid Celiac Disease Research Chair, under the Vice Deanship of Research Chairs, King Saud University, Riyadh, Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.