Teaching accelerated nursing students’ self‐care: A pilot project

Abstract

AimA benchmark of 4 has been determined for the reduction of self‐reported stress by nursing students’ status post 5 weeks of holistic educational activities and interventions provided by a nurse educator.DesignProvision 5 in the American Nurses Association Code of Ethics for Nurses with Interpretive Statements emphasizes the duty of the nurse to not only promote the health and safety of others, but to self as well (ANA, 2015, Code of ethics with interpretive statements, http://Nursebooks.org). A self‐care for nurses’ pilot project was trialled with 25 accelerated nursing students over the course of 5 weeks. Holistic education programmes were facilitated by a nurse educator uninvolved in providing clinical or classroom education to the students.MethodsThe Standards for Quality Improvement Reporting Excellence (SQUIRE) guidelines are used in this pilot project as a framework to explore standardization of education of nursing students about self‐care in nursing programmes and to promote positive health behaviours and student nurses’ insight into how nurses’ self‐care can have an impact on patient outcomes. The self‐care pilot project introduced the importance of self‐care for the pre‐licensure nursing student by teaching healthy eating, physical exercise, the value of sleep, use of positive affirmations and aromatherapy to a cohort of accelerated nursing students over the course of 5 weeks. The Star Model of Knowledge Transformation was the theoretical framework for the pilot study. Two questionnaires were used by the principal investigator to obtain participant data, the Project Participant Questionnaire and the Final‐Year Group Questionnaire.ResultsOn completion of the self‐care for nurses’ pilot, the nursing students reported a reduction in stress and an increased ability to cope with stress after exposure to different holistic stress reduction strategies. An average benchmark of 4.36 was achieved indicating that the nursing students’ self‐care had improved status post the interactive teaching intervention.Self‐care taught to pre‐licensure nursing students by nurse educators can enhance their self‐awareness of the importance of stress reduction and care of themselves while enduring the academic rigour and simultaneous clinical practicum experiences in nursing programmes.Applying self‐care behaviours to reduction of stress for nursing students may be of benefit to of students as they transition from the pre‐licensure to graduate nurse roles. Hence, teaching health behaviours that are self‐protective and contribute to maintaining safe clinical environments for nurses and the patients in their care.

Nursing students' perceptions of how the COVID-19 pandemic impacts mental well-being and educational environment

“…Preventative measures, such as improving self-awareness among nursing students and stress-reducing guidance should be implemented to prevent burnout and psychological distress. Incorporating such measures can provide nursing students with the ability to face challenges and stressors that are associated with a rigorous nursing program [ 21 ]. Providing nursing students with the tools, skills, and resources needed to prevent psychological distress can ensure that they practice safely, especially when providing patient care [ 21 ].…”

Out and about: Factors associated with nurses' use of COVID‐19 personal protective behaviors when not at work

“…Attempts to incorporate health promotion and self-care in nursing curricula have focused on exercise, diet, and programs designed to enhance mental health and resilience. [42][43][44] Expanding the notion of self-care to incorporate a deeper understanding of evidence based disease prevention strategies within the context of community/population health may also be of benefit with guided self-reflection of one's own health preventive behaviors.…”

A Profession Disrupted

“…Evidence shows that nurse educators teaching self-care and resilience to nursing students and in residencies can be effective in helping to reduce burnout and exhaustion, 14 and in enhancing awareness of the importance of stress reduction and self-care. 15 Nursing education programs that include an emphasis on nurses’ health and well-being can enable nursing students to better prepare themselves as they transition into practice.…”