The COVID-19 Pandemic and Its Impact on Homebound Nursing Students

Abstract

University students are predisposed to stress, which could be even higher in Nursing students since they are directly related to the COVID-19 pandemic given their health training and area of knowledge. Our purpose was to assess the stress levels of Nursing students before and during lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Murcia (Spain), its influence on taking an online exam and how it was affected by physical exercise. This was an observational and prospective study including Nursing students from the second year of the Nursing Degree from 3 February to 23 April 2020. Three measurements were performed: one before lockdown and two during lockdown. Stress increased substantially during lockdown. Financial, family or emotional problems, as well as physical exercise, also increased. Indeed, at 40 days of lockdown, those students with financial, family or emotional problems, and less physical exercise reported significantly higher stress levels. In addition, those who passed the online exam had lower stress levels compared to those who failed. In conclusion, during lockdown, stress in Nursing students increased. This could be triggered by students’ personal problems, and physical exercise may be used as a way to reduce stress. Academic performance was better in those students reporting less stress.

Nine Months into the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Longitudinal Study Showing Mental Health and Movement Behaviours Are Impaired in UK Students

“…The relationship between perceived stress and aspects of mental health has been well-established in university students and it is therefore unsurprising that this link has remained throughout the COVID-19 pandemic [ 7 , 41 ]. However, in contrast to early findings, the current study found no relationship between physical activity levels and mental wellbeing [ 3 , 11 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 ]. Importantly, this may be driven by the finding that the average MVPA per week in the present population was 173 min, thereby remaining above the recommended guideline of 150 min and not affecting mental wellbeing.…”

“…Initial studies reported that student mental health and movement behaviours were impaired during the initial phases of the pandemic [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ], but these studies may no longer be reflective of current trends. Recent findings have indicated that people within the UK general population are becoming accustomed to the new psychological demands of life in lockdown and as a result, mental health is stabilising from high levels of anxiety and depression initially observed during the early stages of the pandemic [ 21 ].…”

“…Since the initial outbreak of COVID-19, students have been forced to significantly modify their living and working arrangements and adapt to remote pedagogical practices. These alterations, in conjunction with government enforced restrictions, appear to have substantially impaired university students’ mental health during the early stages of the pandemic [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 4 , 5 , 6 , 7 ]. Importantly, maintaining or increasing physical activity levels have previously been shown to be a successful strategy to mitigate reductions in physical and mental health [ 8 , 9 ].…”

“…Therefore, it is worrying that a large number of studies have reported reduced physical activity levels and increased sedentary behaviour in university students during the first 2–4 months of the pandemic [ 7 , 10 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 ]. Indeed, during the initial phases of the pandemic, several studies indicated that university students who had reduced levels of physical activity tended to have worse mental health [ 11 , 16 , 17 ], whereas those who maintained or increased their levels of physical activity had better mental health [ 3 , 18 , 19 ]. Overall, early findings indicate that the mental health of university students has been negatively impacted during the initial stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and that maintaining or increasing physical activity levels may have some protective effect.…”

The Psychological Effect of COVID-19 on Home-Quarantined Nursing Students in China

“…In addition, many previous studies showed that psychological problems of medical students may affect the choice of medical career and even lead to students' suicide (5)(6)(7). Currently, only several studies have reported nursing students' sleep quality and their stress levels before and during lockdown due to the COVID-19 pandemic (8)(9)(10).…”