Prevalence of mental health problems and sleep disturbances in nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic: A systematic review and meta-analysis

Abstract

To identify the prevalence of mental health problems and sleep disturbances among nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Background: As a future professional workforce, nursing students are expected to play a role in controlling the COVID-19 pandemic; however, physical and mental health problems may hinder their willingness to stay in the nursing profession. Evidence of the prevalence of the health problems among nursing students related to COVID-19 may allow educators to manage their students' health problems and make them feel more positive about their future careers. Design: Systematic review and meta-analysis. This study was prospectively registered with PROSPERO. Data sources: Databases, including CINAHL, Embase, PubMed and Web of Science, were searched for all related journal articles, from database inception to June 29, 2021, published between 2020 and 2021. Methods: This review was conducted following Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses (PRISMA) guidelines using a PICOS search strategy. A DerSimonian-Laird random-effects model was used to estimate the prevalence and potential heterogeneity among the selected studies using the Cochran Q statistic and I-square test. Publication bias was assessed using the Egger intercept test. Results: Seventeen studies were included in the meta-analysis, representing 13,247 nursing students. During the COVID-19 pandemic, the prevalence of four health problems and sleep disturbances were identified. The health problem with the highest prevalence in nursing students was depression (52%). Other COVID-19-related health problems were fear (41%), anxiety (32%) and stress (30%) and sleep disturbances (27%). Conclusions: The findings from this study showed that strategies are necessary to manage nursing students' teaching and learning during the COVID-19 pandemic or similar future situations. Our results suggest that preparing modified distance learning might reduce the prevalence of health problems related to the educational process. In addition, providing regular mental health assessments or online mental health services to students may improve their mental health and increase their well-being. Nursing education policies regarding clinical practice remain to be formulated to ensure the achievement of competencies to support future careers while considering the mental readiness and safety of students.

Factors influencing bedtime procrastination in junior college nursing students: a cross-sectional study

“…However, research has revealed that nursing students tend to have poor sleep quality [ 1 ]. A previous systematic review [ 2 ] of 17 studies involving 13,247 nursing students found that the prevalence of sleep disorders among nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic ranged from 4.4 to 52.71%, with a prevalence of sleep disorders among nursing students in India of 4.4% [ 3 ], in Turkey of 28.26% [ 4 ], in the United States of 32% [ 5 ], and in Nepal of 52.71% [ 6 ]. Poor sleep quality directly affects nursing students’ physical health [ 7 ] in a manner similar to unhealthy habits like skipping breakfast or eating late-night snacks [ 8 ].…”

Impact of COVID-19 on nursing students: what does the evidence tell us?

“…The importance of this issue was highlighted in a systematic review that explored the prevalence of mental health problems and sleep disturbance among nursing students during the pandemic 3. The review suggested that over a quarter of respondents were experiencing sleep disturbances, nearly one-third were feeling stress or anxiety, and more than half reported suffering from depression.…”

“…The importance of this issue was highlighted in a systematic review that explored the prevalence of mental health problems and sleep disturbance among nursing students during the pandemic. 3 The review suggested that over a quarter of respondents were experiencing sleep disturbances, nearly one-third were feeling stress or anxiety, and more than half reported suffering from depression. This review, and others, have highlighted -the substantial impact that the pandemic has had on nursing students, but what does the evidence tell us about why this group has been hit so hard?…”

Is social isolation during the COVID-19 pandemic a risk factor for depression?

“…In a scenario of unpredictability and uncertainty, isolation exposes the population to stressful situations, rift in social ties, loss of job and income, withdrawal from in person educational and work activities (15) in view of the elevated risk of virus transmission and illness. Other studies showed symptoms of positive depression among students (9,16) and professionals (17) , so that the rates of depression onset tripled (from 8.5% to 27.8%) during the pandemic among the US population (6) . We found that the increase in vulnerability to mental disorders, directly or indirectly potentiated by the pandemic, has affected a substantial number of people from different social strata and regions of the country, showing the need for emergent interventions within the mental health field.…”