Quality of Life of Residents in Hospitals Affiliated to Kashan University of Medical Sciences During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The prevalence of COVID-19 significantly affected different aspects of the quality of life (QoL) in people, especially the medical staff, who are at the forefront of battle against the disease. This study aims to investigate the QoL of medical residents of hospitals affiliated to Kashan University of Medical Sciences (KUMS) during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This cross-sectional study was conducted on 140 medical residents of hospitals affiliated to KUMS in 2021. Their QoL was assessed using World Health Organization quality of life (WHOQOL). The collected data were analyzed in SPSS software, version 22 using Chi-square, Mann-Whitney U test, t-test, one-way analysis of variance, Kolmogorov-Smirnov test, Pearson and Spearman correlation tests.

The physical health dimension had a statistically significant relationship with age, marital status, underlying disease, sports/arts activities, and year of residency (P<0.001). The psychological health dimension had a statistically significant relationship with marital status, underlying disease, sports/arts activities, and year of residency (P<0.001). The social relationships dimension had a statistically significant relationship with marital status, underlying disease, and year of residency. The environmental health dimension had a statistically significant relationship with sex, marital status, underlying disease, and year of residence (P<0.05).

Female residents had lower QoL. The residents in pathology, neurology and infectious diseases had higher QoL, while those in psychiatry had higher scores in the psychological health dimension.