Description

Social distancing, along with other measures to prevent or reduce COVID-19 transmission, had an impact on students’ mental health. Objective: To assess the mental health of medical students in Nariño, Colombia, during the COVID-19 pandemic. Methods: Quantitative, observational, descriptive, cross-sectional, descriptive study. A self-administered virtual survey was administered to students over 18 years of age who were in their fourth semester and belonged to the Faculty of Medicine of the Universidad Cooperativa de Colombia, Pasto campus. The students participated in the study voluntarily, and those who had problems with the Internet connection were excluded. Results: 54 students participated in the survey. Most were 19 years old (33.3%), single (96.3%), belonged to strata 2 to 4 (87.0%), were in their fourth semester (96.0%), and more than half were female (59.0%). A higher prevalence of anxiety (31.3%) was found compared to stress (16.7%) and depression (16.7%). The highest levels of anxiety were moderate (52.9%) and depression (55.6%), while 20.0% of anxiety was very severe. Hopelessness was present at various levels in 100% of the respondents, and 33.3% showed suicidal ideation. Conclusion: It is necessary to implement measures that help to improve and prevent mental health affectations in students, as well as to carry out analytical studies to investigate COVID-19 and its impact on mental health.