Background

Medical students often report on high demands, stressors, pressure to perform and lacking resources, thus being at higher risk for burnout and mental strain. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, study conditions have changed and new challenges emerged. 

Aims

 The role of individual and situational factors contributing to students’ health and well-being needs to be reanalyzed under these terms.

Method

Before the pandemic, 584 complete baseline data sets of Austrian medical students were collected (63.4% women; mean age 20.8±2.5). They assessed their character strengths, health, well-being (comprising thriving, work engagement, burnout) and study conditions. In February 2022, a further cohort will be initiated assessing these constructs again and comparing results before and during the pandemic.

Results

Prior to the pandemic, medical students’ top five character strengths were honesty, kindness, love, judgment, and fairness s. They reported higher physical than mental health (T-values: 55.7±5.8 | 41.6±10.5). Thriving (m = 4.0±0.4), work engagement (m = 4.4±0.9), and social support from colleagues (m = 4.1±0.7) ranged in the upper third of the respective scales indicating a positive status. However, levels of emotional exhaustion (m = 2.8±1.1) and autonomy (m = 3.0±0.7) were moderate while reporting high cognitive demands (m = 4.1±0.6). Results of the pre-post comparisons will be presented and discussed. 

Conclusion

It is unclear up to now, how the change in study conditions in medical school affects health and well-being and which role character strengths and their applicability may play to buffer these. This study will investigate these hypotheses based on a comprehensive dataset