The Impact of COVID-19 on UK Medical Students' Perceptions of Cardiothoracic Surgery-A Comparison of Nationwide Surveys in 2018 and 2022.

Abstract

Aims/Background The effects of the coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic on surgical specialities have been devastating, with more than 1.5 million operations cancelled in 2020, leading to reduced training opportunities and morale. We investigated the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on UK medical students' interest in pursuing a career in cardiothoracic surgery (CTS) and their perceptions of the field, including perceived challenges and opportunities. Methods This study is a comparative cross-sectional study design aiming to assess if there were changes in perceptions amongst UK medical students before and after COVID-19. We distributed the same online survey to all UK medical schools via social media outlets before COVID-19 in 2018 and after in 2022. The Chi-square test was used to analyze differences, with a significance level set a p < 0.05. Results Overall, career intentions of survey respondents towards CTS did not change between 2018 and 2022. However, students' perceptions towards CTS became more negative (p = 0.033). In 2018, for instance, 37% of survey respondents had neutral or negative perceptions of CTS which increased to 59% in 2022. This result was statistically significant, indicating the negative impact of COVID-19 on UK medical students' perceptions of CTS. Conclusion Overall, the effects of COVID-19 did not have a significant impact on medical student interest in a career in CTS. However, negative perceptions associated with a career in CTS persist. A new era of remote, hybrid career events and student modules in CTS could encourage greater interest.