Dental environmental stress during the COVID‑19 pandemic at the Jagiellonian University Medical College, Kraków, Poland

ObjectivesThe burden of stress experienced by dentistry students has been the subject of numerous studies aimed at defining the strongest stressors, and at reducing their intensity to improve the conditions and, consequently, the quality of education. Such studies have never been performed in the conditions of a pandemic caused by a new, unknown coronavirus. Therefore, the objective of the study was to identify the sources of their stress in the course of the studies, with reference to the COVID‑19 pandemic.Material and MethodsA total of 334 dentistry students of the Institute of Dentistry at the Jagiellonian University Medical College were invited to take part in the study. They represented a range from the first to the fifth year of studies in the 2019/2020 academic year. The tool employed in the study was the Dental Environmental Stress (DES) questionnaire and 11 supplementary questions related to the pandemic. The study was carried out on June 1–25, 2020.ResultsThe participation rate was 72%. Academic work presented the highest level of stress. A comparison of the overall levels of stress in particular domains as well as questions included in the DES survey revealed significant differences between students of individual years of studies in the 2019/2020 academic year. The strongest positive relationships between the supplementary questions and the DES domains appeared in the area of clinical factors. These concerned returning to clinical classes and contact with patients with regard to SARS-CoV-2 (rs = 0.50, p < 0.001), contact with patients in connection with SARS-CoV-2 (rs = 0.47, p < 0.001), and a lack of practical classes with patients in connection with the COVID‑19 pandemic (rs = 0.42, p < 0.001).ConclusionsDentistry students were subjected to stress resulting from a conflict between the perceived risk of returning to clinical classes and contact with patients due to SARS-CoV-2, and disruptions in the course of clinical education, which they perceived negatively.