The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Medical Training at the Greek National Health Service: A Cross-Sectional Study

Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant disruptions to medical training worldwide, particularly for junior doctors, as in-person clinical training was replaced by online education. This study aims to assess the impact of the pandemic on medical training in Greece, focusing on the perceptions of junior doctors across various specialties and exploring the implications for future clinical practice. Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional online survey of 465 junior doctors, all of whom were members of the Athens Medical Association, from 14 September to 14 October 2022. Participants completed a questionnaire assessing the perceived impact of the pandemic on their training, the effectiveness of online education, and potential consequences for clinical preparedness. Factor analysis was conducted to identify underlying patterns related to perceptions for the impact on medical training. Multiple linear regression models were used to assess potential associations among the extracted factors and participants' sociodemographic characteristics. Results: Among the 465 participants, the mean age was 32.1 (SD = 7.0) years and 300 (64.5%) were female. Among the responders, the majority (n = 241, 51.8%) conducted training in Internal Medicine, 155 (33.3%) in a surgical specialty and 69 (14.8%) in other specialties, including Psychiatry, Radiology and Laboratory Medicine. Two out of five medical students reported that their medical training was mostly affected during the first wave of the pandemic, from March to June 2020 (n = 201, 43.2%). Factor analysis revealed the existence of two factors with high reliability and acceptable validity, interpreted as "perceptions towards online training" and "perceptions for the consequences of the pandemic on medical training". Age and medical specialty were found to be significantly associated with both factors. Conclusion: Training was severely disrupted, with potential long-term implications for clinical competence; therefore Government and Universities should consider the lessons learned from the pandemic and compensate for the time and opportunities lost. Measures must be taken to safeguard medical education and training in the event of such outbreaks in the future.