Influence of Patient Centeredness on COVID-19 Anxiety Among Medical Students, Sri Lanka: Presenter(s): Sembakuttige Amali Chinthika Dalpatadu, General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University, Sri Lanka

INTRODUCTION AND OBJECTIVES: Patient centered is inherent property in some which is trainable. However, it is a challenge for medical students to interact with patients amidst the COVID-19 pandemic due to the various risks and fears associated. The aims of this study were to assess the level of patient centeredness, COVID-19 related anxiety and factors that were associated with patient centeredness among medical students of General Sir John Kotelawala Defence University. METHOD: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on 334 students using self-reported online questionnaires, with two validated tools. The Patient-Practitioner Orientation Scale (PPOS) to measure patient-centeredness and the Coronavirus Pandemic Anxiety Scale (CPAS-11) to grade the stress due to the pandemic. RESULTS: The study group were patient-cantered in general (mean PPOS score 4.34, SD 0.29). Students had higher mean caring scores (4.46, SD 0.38) than sharing scores (4.22, SD 0.36). The mean COVID-19 stress score was 6.07 (SD 2.27). Patient-centeredness did not vary with the level of stress (mean 4.35 vs. 4.32, p<0.05) Prior encounter with a COVID-19 patient revealed a lower mean caring score (4.35 vs. 4.48, p<0.05) but had no effect on the mean sharing score. CONCLUSIONS: Our study revealed the timely need for education on the emphasis of patient-centeredness among medical students in order to supplement patient satisfaction and overall quality of care.