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Can Med Educ J
Can Med Educ J
CMEJ
Canadian Medical Education Journal
1923-1202
Canadian Medical Education Journal

CMEJ-15-143
10.36834/cmej.79569
Letter to the Editor
Ongoing discussions on supporting medical students during a crisis
Discussions en cours sur le soutien des étudiants en médecine en période de criseHan Sallie 1
Nyhof-Young Joyce 234
1 Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada;
2 Academics Program, Women’s College Hospital, Ontario, Canada;
3 Department of Family and Community Medicine, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
4 The Wilson Centre, Temerty Faculty of Medicine and University Health Network, Ontario, Canada
Correspondence to: Sallie Han; email: sallie.han@mail.utoronto.ca
15 8 2024
30 8 2024
8 2024
15 4 143143
© 2024 Han, Nyhof-Young; licensee Synergies Partners.
2024
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ This is an Open Journal Systems article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0) which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is cited.
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pmcDear Editor,

We are writing in response to the ideas shared in the letter by Wiwanitkit et al.1 regarding our medical student-led paper, “Investigating the experiences of medical students quarantined due to COVID-19 exposure.”2

The authors suggested that a larger sample size could have improved response rates and a longer study could have provided a more comprehensive understanding of student experiences. We agree and had considered these limitations. However, given the context of a rapidly evolving global pandemic, limitations around sample size were inevitable and prolonging the study would have delayed our ability to promptly share key insights with the MD Program. Medical students were facing enormous stressors during the COVID-19 pandemic, and our priority was to provide urgent improvements in student support for their safety and well-being.

Factors such as uncertainty, isolation, stigma, and a challenging political climate2 likely contributed to reduced study participation. Our aim was to inform immediate central programmatic responses without causing further harm to participants navigating illness and turmoil. The literature supports our emphasis on the importance of study timing and the need for effective communication to reduce negative reaction and avoid stakeholder harm during times of crisis.3 We reasoned that even a small number of interviews and surveys could provide valuable lessons and insights. Broad generalizability and long-term study were not our goals; rather, we aimed to develop targeted, student-centred recommendations to drive program improvement and prioritize student wellbeing during an intense time of crisis management.

We thank the respondents for their thoughtful letter.

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to acknowledge David Rojas and Iris Kim for their contribution to this article.

Edited by

Marcel D’Eon (editor-in-chief)
==== Refs
1 Wiwanitkit S, Wiwanitkit V Re:“Investigating the experiences of medical students quarantined due to COVID-19 exposure.” Can Med Educ J. 2024 Apr 15;15 (2 ):110. 10.36834/cmej.78857
2 Han S, Kim I, Rojas D, Nyhof-Young J. Investigating the experiences of medical students quarantined due to COVID-19 exposure. Can Med Educ J. 2023 Dec 30;14 (6 ):92-101. 10.36834/cmej.75571
3 Bundy J, Pfarrer MD, Short CE, Coombs WT. Crises and crisis management: integration, interpretation, and research development. J Manag. 2017 Jul 1;43 (6 ):1661–92. 10.1177/0149206316680030
