The Impact of Recurrent Waves of COVID-19 on the Mental Health of Medical Students: A Cross-Sectional Study

The COVID-19 outbreak has impacted the mental health of the world’s population. Students were not spared, especially medical students, as they have a higher prevalence of mental health conditions as compared to the general population.1 Multiple studies have shown disruptions in medical education, including the restructuring of examinations, reduced clinical contact, deferment of clinical placements, and cancelation of elective postings.2 With the recurrent implementations of the movement control order (MCO) and disruptions in the medical education process in Malaysia, it is unsurprising that students in health-related fields have reported feeling more depressed, anxious, and stressed, like the global student population.3 There is a scarcity of data focusing on the mental health impact of the pandemic among medical students in Malaysia. This study aims to investigate the impact of recurrent waves of COVID-19 on the mental health, exclusively in the medical student population in Malaysia and identify the contributing factors.