Impact of COVID-like Situations on Children's Ability in Making Medicine a Career Decision
Riya Singhal *1, Auday Faris Alaswad2
1) Riya Singhal, Deira International School, Dubai.
2) Auday Faris Alaswad, Curtin university, Australia.
*Correspondence to: Riya Singhal Deira International School, Dubai.
Copyright.
© 2025 Riya Singhal This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
Received: 29 July 2025
Published: 01 Aug 2025
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.16794021
Abstract
The COVID-19 pandemic, and similar global health crises, have significantly reshaped the perceptions and priorities of students across the world. For school-aged children and adolescents, these events not only disrupted education and socialization but also influenced their thoughts about future careers—particularly in the medical field. This article explores the psychological, social, and academic impacts of a pandemic-like situation on children and how these factors affect their ability and willingness to consider medicine as a future career. It also highlights the new opportunities and deterrents created by such crises, the role of family, media, and educational institutions, and concludes with suggestions to support children in making informed and confident career decisions in healthcare.
Introduction
The COVID-19 pandemic marked one of the most unprecedented global disruptions in modern history, impacting nearly every dimension of human life. Beyond its severe medical implications, the pandemic profoundly affected the social, emotional, and educational landscapes—particularly for children and adolescents. As nations enforced lockdowns and curfews, educational institutions across the globe shut their doors, forcing millions of young learners to transition to online learning or face academic standstills. Meanwhile, news outlets and digital media were saturated with images of overwhelmed hospitals, struggling patients, and exhausted healthcare workers on the frontlines.
For young minds in their formative years, this constant exposure to distressing scenarios introduced them to the stark realities of illness, mortality, and the fragile nature of public health. While many children developed a newfound admiration for healthcare professionals—viewing them as heroes in scrubs—others experienced heightened anxiety, uncertainty, and emotional distress. The valor of doctors, nurses, and paramedics was prominently displayed, but so too were the risks, burnout, and psychological tolls of working in medicine. These contrasting narratives left a lasting impression on how children and adolescents began to perceive careers in healthcare.
Traditionally, a career in medicine has symbolized intellectual prestige, compassion-driven service, job security, and societal respect. However, the context of a pandemic-like situation alters this perception significantly. Sudden academic disruptions, emotional instability, loss of loved ones, financial uncertainty, and shifting family priorities affect children’s mental preparedness and ability to make clear career choices. In particular, the aspiration to become a doctor—once viewed as a noble and straightforward path—became layered with fears of personal safety, prolonged study durations, and concerns over work-life balance.
This article aims to explore how health crises like COVID-19 influence the developmental and decision-making capacities of school-aged children with respect to pursuing a career in medicine. It evaluates the psychological, social, and educational factors that shape their outlook, analyzes the deterrents and motivators arising from pandemic experiences, and proposes supportive strategies that families, educators, and policymakers can adopt to nurture confident, informed, and emotionally resilient future medical professionals.
Psychological Impact on Career Decisions
Exposure to Trauma and Fear
Many children witnessed family members falling ill or dying, while others watched frontline workers struggle through long hours, insufficient protective gear, and high infection risks. For some, these images:
• Evoke admiration and inspiration (“Doctors are heroes”)
• Instill fear and apprehension (“What if I get infected too?”)
Such emotional imprints influence a child's career perception—either motivating them toward the field or discouraging them due to perceived risks.
Anxiety and Mental Health Challenges
Pandemic situations often trigger:
• Increased anxiety, depression, and stress due to isolation, academic disruption, and uncertainty.
• Reduced cognitive focus and poor decision-making skills, especially in adolescents still forming their identity.
A child with untreated anxiety may find it difficult to make or commit to long-term goals like medicine, which requires dedication, consistency, and mental resilience.
Academic Disruption and Skill Gap
Interrupted Learning and Exams
Lockdowns and school closures led to:
• Cancelled board exams and entrance tests
• Lack of access to practical science education
• Disruption in coaching or medical preparatory classes
This shift has resulted in:
• A weakened foundation in core subjects like biology, chemistry, and physics.
• Lowered confidence in competing for competitive exams such as NEET, MCAT, or other medical entrance tests.
Increased Digital Dependency
While online learning helped continue education, it also:
• Reduced experiential and collaborative learning
• Increased screen fatigue and lowered engagement with subjects requiring lab work
As a result, many students struggled to maintain consistent academic interest in science subjects.
Social and Familial Influences
Family Health and Economic Situations
Families who faced:
• Health crises or death of a family member in the pandemic may either inspire children to pursue medicine or trigger avoidance.
• Job loss or economic hardship might push children toward careers with faster earning potential than medicine, which requires many years of study.
Media and Public Perception
The pandemic flooded media with images of:
• Exhausted doctors
• Crowded ICUs
• Medical personnel committing suicide or breaking down under stress
While some children were inspired by this “heroism,” others were deterred by the physical and emotional demands portrayed in public discourse.
Changes in Motivation and Perception of Medicine
Motivation to Serve
Many children were inspired by:
• Doctors’ sacrifices
• Community service during vaccine drives
• Social recognition of healthcare workers
This motivational factor led to an uptick in medical career interest in several regions post-pandemic.
Reevaluation of Work-Life Balance
Children now consider:
• Is medicine worth the stress?
• Are there other careers in health (e.g., public health, health tech) that are less demanding?
This leads to exploration of adjacent careers in healthcare, rather than traditional medicine alone.
Gendered Impacts and Equity Challenges
• Girls may be discouraged from choosing medicine due to increased family responsibilities during lockdown and assumptions about safety.
• Rural and low-income students suffered more due to limited digital access, deepening the divide in medical career preparation.
Unless addressed, this digital and gender divide may reduce diversity in future medical professionals.
Role of Schools and Counselors
Career Guidance Programs
Schools must:
• Introduce early career counseling post-pandemic
• Provide accurate information about modern medical careers (including telemedicine, research, global health, etc.)
• Offer emotional support for decision-making, not just academic coaching
Exposure and Mentoring
Children benefit from:
• Online webinars with doctors sharing real-life experiences
• Hospital visits and virtual labs
• Mentorship from medical students or alumni
These help dispel myths and clarify what the profession entails.
New Opportunities from COVID-like Situations
Despite challenges, crises like COVID also brought innovation:
• Growth of digital health and demand for telemedicine
• Increased funding in public health, epidemiology, and biomedical research
• Emergence of non-traditional medical roles (medical data analysts, biotech developers)
Children now have more diverse paths within the medical ecosystem, not limited to being a doctor or nurse.
Recommendations
1. Start Early: Encourage career exploration in middle school through activities, quizzes, and shadowing programs.
2. Emotional Readiness: Support children in processing trauma before guiding them toward stressful careers.
3. Mentor Access: Pair interested students with medical mentors from their background.
4. Realistic Portrayals: Avoid overly glamorizing or demonizing medicine in media and family discussions.
5. Holistic Counseling: Address fears, economic concerns, and doubts with empathy and facts.
Conclusion
A COVID-like health crisis reshapes not just societies but also the individual aspirations of children. The medical profession, once universally admired for its stability and service, is now viewed through a lens of complexity, sacrifice, and social significance. While such situations can either inspire or discourage children from choosing medicine as a career, the ultimate impact depends on how society, families, schools, and mentors support their emotional recovery, academic development, and informed decision-making. With the right guidance and exposure, the next generation of medical professionals can be more resilient, empathetic, and better prepared to face the global health challenges of tomorrow.
References
1. UNICEF (2021). COVID-19 and Education: The Lingering Effects on Children’s Wellbeing.
2. WHO (2022). Supporting the Mental Health of Health Workers and Students During the Pandemic.
3. McKinsey & Company (2020). The Future of Healthcare Careers in a Post-Pandemic World.
4. American Academy of Pediatrics (2021). Career Development and Psychological Impact of COVID-19 on Adolescents.
5. Times Higher Education (2022). Rethinking Medical Education After COVID-19.
6. UNESCO (2021). Global Education Monitoring Report: Unequal Impact of COVID-19 on Learners.