Perception of risk and protective factors for post-traumatic stress among healthcare students during the COVID-19 pandemic: retrospective study of two consecutive years

• Grant number: 24/08135-7
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Scientific Initiation
• Start date: July 01, 2024
• End date: December 31, 2024
• Field of knowledge: Health Sciences - Medicine - Medical Clinics
• Principal Investigator: Ana Paula Ribeiro
• Grantee: Lana Carolina Silveira Rodrigues
• Host Institution: Universidade de Santo Amaro (UNISA). São Paulo , SP, Brazil

Abstract

Introduction: University students who provided care to patients affected by COVID-19 may be at risk of illness in the short and long term, related to the stress and trauma generated by the pandemic. Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) refers to a psychiatric and emotional disorder following exposure to a traumatic event that can, in the long term, result in pathological conditions such as dementia. However, little is understood about post-traumatic stress and its risk and protective factors in university students in the health area when facing the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil, in order to adopt effective strategies that prevent and mitigate traumatic episodes. resulting from the pandemic. Objective: To verify the risk and protective factors of post-traumatic stress disorder in university students in the health field over two years of the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil. Methods: A multicenter, observational, retrospective cohort study will be conducted. It is noteworthy that this study will be developed in partnership with researchers from Milan, Italy and three Brazilian Universities. The study sample will be around 700 university students in the health field who faced the COVID-19 pandemic in Brazil, who will be randomized, between the years 2020 and 2022, from a database compiled on the RedCAP platform. (Research Electronic Data Capture) in partnership with national institutions. To create the student database, they were invited to participate in the study, via email, in a communication using the Snowball Sampling technique. Data collection occurred through the online application of questionnaires and scales, using the Qualtrics software. The approach items in the questionnaire database will be: sociodemographic characteristics; concerns and knowledge about COVID-19 and students' availability for volunteer activities during the COVID-19 pandemic. The scales covered will be: the Brief Resilience Scale, the Patient Involvement Scale and the Event Impact Scale. To collect the data for this study, a selection and randomization of students who previously responded completely to all items of the questionnaires and scales evaluated between 2020 and 2022 of the COVID-19 pandemic will be carried out. Statistical analysis: Data will be analyzed using descriptive statistics (frequencies and percentages) and continuous variables (mean, standard deviation and confidence interval). The independent Student t test will be applied to compare scales between genders, considering a significance level of 5%.