The purpose of this quasi-experimental study was to examine the effects of viewing the feature film Wit on the empathy ratings of nursing students. The Jefferson Scale of empathy (JSE) was used to measure nursing students’ empathy levels. findings suggest a statistically significant increase in empathy scores in the experimental group from pre-test to post-test #1 (t = 2.60; p = 0.0133) and also from pre-test to post-test #2 (t = 2.10; p = 0.0424). In this study, the experience of viewing the film, as opposed to classroom teaching alone, enhanced student empathy ratings.
It is common for young students to enter nursing school with untested or immature spiritual belief systems. This exploratory study elicited feedback from nursing students in response to a guided reflection about spiritual health. As a precursor to classroom teaching, participants wrote a short, nongraded anonymous response to a series of 10 broad questions, with no single answer considered right or wrong. At the conclusion of this classroom activity, students completed a survey indicating the extent to which they believed it was beneficial. The majority of the participants (97%) considered it important to identify their own beliefs about spiritual matters prior to entering the clinical setting. As a result of the classroom reflection activity, most of the participants agreed or strongly agreed that the exercise (a) heightened their awareness about spiritual issues, (b) encouraged them to consider spiritual matters they had never thought about before, (c) caused them to feel more confident discussing spiritual matters with patients, and (d) inspired them to learn more and/or seek clarity regarding the questions presented. Based on the findings, nursing faculty should consider adding a similar classroom reflection activity prior to entering the clinical setting where patients and/or family members ask questions about spiritual matters.
In an effort to improve students' comfort level and confidence with spiritual care, nursing faculty initiated a classroom activity to encourage students to think about and reflect upon 10 questions. Students responded by answering whether they had ever thought about the question being asked, then writing a short narrative response. Topics included issues about life, death, afterlife, spiritual well-being, truth, and God. Although 88.8% of participants (n = 107) considered themselves to be religious or spiritual, results revealed many had never thought about the questions being asked. Based on these findings, nurse educators should consider including a similar classroom reflection exercise to better prepare students for providing spiritual care prior to beginning clinical rotations.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.