The Relationship Between Work Engagement, Depression, Anxiety, and COVID-19 Anxiety in Physician Assistant Students

Introduction: Physician assistants (PAs) are subject to high levels of burnout, depressive symptoms, and anxiety, which can negatively impact quality of care and patient outcomes. Learning how to handle stress in the classroom may increase success and engagement in PA programs. The goal of this study was to characterize burnout, depressive symptoms, and anxiety in current PA students and examine the relationship between these factors and work engagement.Methods: This cross-sectional study surveyed PA students (n = 42) via convenience sampling from eighteen different PA programs across North and South Carolina in October, 2021. Questionnaires included the Utrecht Work Engagement Scale (UWES-17), the Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-2), the General Anxiety Disorder scale (GAD-7), and the COVID-19 Anxiety Scale (CIAS). Adjusted linear regression was used to assess associations between the GAD-7, PHQ-2, and CIAS and the three subscales of the UWES-17 (vigor, dedication, and absorption).Results: Students were primarily female (79%), white (79%), second-year students (62%), and had an average body mass index of 21.0 ± 3.9 kg/m². A one-unit increase in the GAD-7 was associated with a decrease in the vigor (β = -0.94, SE = 0.19, p < .01) and dedication (β = -0.42, SE = 0.15, p = .01) subscales. A one-unit increase in the PHQ-2 was associated with a decrease in the vigor subscale (β = -2.94, SE = 0.60, p < .01).Conclusions: Recognizing warning signs of declining mental health early among PA school students may be key to increasing resilience, enthusiasm, and concentration, which may enhance school/work engagement. More work is needed to elucidate potential intervention targets to increase school/work engagement in PA students.