Thoughts and Awareness of Medical Students About the Covid-19 Pandemic

DergiPark: 762676tmsjAims: This study aims to evaluate medical students’ knowledge, thoughts, and awareness of the COVID-19 pandemic. Metho- ds: A questionnaire consisting of 31 questions was prepared for this descriptive study. In the questionnaire, medical students’ knowledge, attitudes and behaviors during the COVID-19 pandemic were investigated. Categorical variables are demonstrated as numbers and percentages, whereas continuous variables are presented as minimum, maximum, and mean values. Results: A total of 575 participants completed the questionnaire. The mean participant age was 21.7 years. Fifty-two percent of participants knew about the coronaviridae family before the outbreak and 38.8% were informed about COVID-19 in their medical schools. Of the students, 99.7% stated that the first case’s origin was in China. Eighty percent of the participants stated that droplet spread is the transmission route of COVID-19. The most common opinion about the incubation period of the SARS CoV-2 was two to twelve days. Being older than 65 years old, having a comorbidity, being immunosuppressed, or working in the healthcare sector were the most particular risk factors to get infected. The majority of the participants follow the vaccine developments from social media, radio and television. According to 75.83% of the participants, all people should wear a mask in daily life for protection. Conclusion: The epidemiology and diagnostic factors of COVID-19 are well known by medical students. To minimize informa- tion pollution and raise awareness, medical students should be educated about pandemic and management of it. Further evalu- ation with various methods and more participants may help to better understand the awareness of the COVID-19 pandemic in medical students

Comparison of Sociodemographic and Clinical Characteristics of Patients with Bipolar Disorder with and without Guardianship Decision

Aim:We aimed to compare the sociodemographic and clinical variables of the patients with bipolar disorder (BD), who were required guardianship by Mental Health Hospital’s Health Board.Materials and Methods:This retrospective study consisted of 201 patients with BD-1, aged between 18 and 65 years, who were sent to medical health board in order to prepare a report on whether guardianship was required by the courts. Sociodemographic and clinical variables data form including age, marital status, education, employment, the number of episodes, the history of electroconvulsive therapy (ECT), the type of medication, the number of hospitalization, and the history of suicide were used.Results:One-hundred (49.75%) patients with BD were required guardianship decision (GD). The mean age of the group with GD (43.57±11.53 years) was significantly higher than the group without GD (39.54±10.73 years). There was a significant relationship between GD and marital status and employment. The group with GD had significantly higher number of total and manic episodes, duration of hospitalization, and duration of illness than the group without GD. A significant relationship was found between GD and medical comorbidity, history of ECT, the presence of psychotic Manndelusion, and treatment with antipsychotic, lithium and valproic acid. Paranoid-persecution, reference, and bizarre types of delusion were found to be related to GD.Conclusion:A significant relationship was found between GD and marital status, employment, duration of illness, number and duration of hospitalizations, number of total and manic episodes, medical comorbidity, and history of ECT, presence of psychotic delusions, and type of treatment. Clinicians should be aware of these variables during the decision of guardianship for patients with BD