Health‐related barriers to learning among graduate students

Abstract

Purpose -The purpose of this paper is to report the perceived impact of various health concerns on the academic performance of health sciences graduate students. Design/methodology/approach -The American College Health Association's National College Health Assessment (ACHA-NCHA), a 58-item anonymous survey, was distributed to all graduate health science students during a five-week period in the spring semester. Findings -Students (n ¼ 1; 355) were most likely to report a negative perceived academic impact related to psychosocial concerns such as stress, depression/anxiety, and relationship problems. The students' most pressing felt concerns were upper respiratory infections, stress, concerns about troubled loved ones and sleep difficulties. Clinical graduate students (n ¼ 712) were significantly more likely to report negative academic impacts related to upper respiratory infections (p ¼ 0:001), concern about a troubled friend or family member (p ¼ 0:001), sleep difficulties (p ¼ 0:005), relationship difficulties (p ¼ 0:030), and internet use/computer games (p ¼ 0:015) than non-clinical graduate students. However, the magnitude of those differences was small. Practical implications -This paper adds to one's knowledge of student health concerns, which may help to address health-related barriers to learning. Originality/value -This paper presents findings that further explicate the reciprocal relationship between student health and learning by suggesting methodology to identify priority health issues among a graduate student population. Findings from this study of over 20 different health concerns indicate that the priority health concerns of graduate health science students are primarily psychological and psychosocial health issues.

Síndrome de Burnout entre mestrandos e doutorandos em enfermagem

“…(10) When it does not lead to abandoning the course, lack of adaptation to this reality can generate mental suffering, sleeping difficulties, health problems (physical or psychological), substance abuse, and even suicide. (10,11) Given the above, the following guiding questions emerged: Does burnout syndrome occur in master's and doctoral students of graduate programs in nursing (GPN)? What are the predictive characteristics of the syndrome in these students?…”

Being the Wizard behind the Curtain: Teaching Experiences of Graduate Teaching Assistants with Disabilities at U.S. Universities

“…In their study of health-related barriers to learning for undergraduate and graduate students, Kernan, Bogart and Wheat (2011) noted that research about undergraduates may not readily apply to graduate students since each population may have different concerns.…”

“…The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) has given students with disabilities unprecedented rights to primary and secondary education, defining policy for K-12 special education in the U.S. As more students participate in inclusive classes and graduate from high school, far greater numbers of students with disabilities are also pursuing higher education and lifelong learning (Katsiyannis, Zhang, Landmark & Reber, 2009;Kernan, Bogart & Wheat, 2011). Between 1990 and 2005, there was a 19% increase in the number of high school students with disabilities enrolling in postsecondary schools, with 46% of all disabled high school students now attending some kind of postsecondary education within four years of high school graduation (Newman, Wagner, Cameto, Knokey, & Shaver, 2010).…”

Adaptação à pós-graduação stricto sensu: uma revisão sistemática de literatura

“…Apesar desse entendimento, a maioria dos estudos sobre a saúde de acadêmicos é executada com estudantes de graduação, o que faz com que os dados sobre o bem-estar de pós-graduandos sejam fragmentados e esparsos (Kernan, Bogart, & Wheat, 2011). Todavia, sabe-se que a quantidade de universitários que se encontram em sofrimento psíquico é cada vez maior, além de haver um aumento da gravidade dos problemas mentais apresentados por essa população (Hyun et al, 2006).…”

“…A pesquisa desenvolvida por Kernan et al (2011) também relaciona o estresse de doutorandos ao ambiente da pós-graduação, pois descreve que a maioria dos estudantes, além de enfrentar desafios financeiros, confronta-se com altos níveis de exigência acadêmica. Longas horas de trabalho, falta de apoio por parte do programa de pós-graduação, intensa concorrência entre os pares e excessiva cobrança por parte dos professores são fatores do contexto acadêmico com os quais pós-graduandos, com frequência, deparam-se e devem aprender a conviver.…”