SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT GOALS & VIOLENCE PREVENTION IN HOSPITALS: CONTRIBUTIONS FROM PSYCHOLOGY STUDENTS

Abstract

"Ideally, all individuals should be involved in the sustainable development goals attainment. Even though frequently ignored, Psychology can have a considerable impact in this context. Psychology students can also make an important contribution as such. Additionally, an area in desperate need of attention, even before the hardships related to the COVID-19 pandemic, is violence prevention in healthcare settings. Consequently, the aim of this study is to present the rationale, process and results of a project on violence prevention in hospitals undertaken by Psychology undergraduates. The 61 students enrolled in a 3rd-year compulsory course enthusiastically accepted the challenge to develop a brief training session for violence prevention in a hospital setting as part of their grading system. The theme and the possibility to develop a training session were proposed and not imposed. A total of 22 work groups were formed: 4 decided to focus on patients, 4 on nurses, 3 on mental health professionals/psychiatrists, 2 on psychologists, 2 on obstetrics/gynecology; almost all of the remaining groups chose health professionals in general. Only 4 groups decided to take the challenge one step further and direct their training for outside of the class, via Zoom. The sessions were scheduled to begin on the 7th December 2021. Among the sub-themes chosen by the groups (with no constraints from the teacher), there is: burnout (3 groups), psychological well-being, depression, communication, resilience, and optimism. Globally, the groups were keen on complementing the psycho educational component with a skills training approach. Consequently, during undergraduates’ skills training, students can become more aware of the sustainable development goals and experience simple ways they can contribute to them (e.g., Goals 3, 4, 5, 8, 10, 16, and 17)."