Transforming nursing education: a review of stressors and strategies that support students' professional socialization

Abstract

Nurse educators are facing the challenge of creating new ways of teaching and facilitating enhanced learning experiences in clinical practice environments that are inherently complex, highly demanding, and unpredictable. The literature consistently reports the negative effects of excess stress and unsupportive relationships on wellbeing, self-efficacy, self-esteem, learning, persistence, and success. However, understanding contributing factors of stress, such as the student’s experiences of uncaring and oppressive interactions, is clearly not adequate. The transformation of nursing education requires a paradigm shift that embraces collegiality, collaboration, caring, and competence for students and the faculty. This paper reviews the literature on stress and its effects on nursing students. Grounded in theory related to stress and human caring, this paper focuses on the clinical environment and faculty-student relationships as major sources of students’ stress and offers strategies for mitigating stress while fostering learning and professional socialization of future nurses.

Preditores do estresse e estratégias de coping utilizadas por estudantes de Enfermagem

“…(10,11) The complexity of assessment methods and the level of difficulty of exams and assignments, the relationship between teaching methods and theoretical content taught in the classroom, plus the daily overload of activities and lack of time for executing required tasks were all significant predictors of stress among university students. (1) Thus, the more difficulties students experience throughout their undergraduate studies, the more they use coping strategies such as denial. This strategy consists of students denying the existence of a problem, ignoring and hiding their feelings, and distancing themselves from others.…”

“…Stress is defined as the organism's unspecific reaction to pressure exerted on its organic system. (1) It is a complex event that occurs in the interaction between individuals and their inner and outer environments. Such mutual interaction can lead to physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral changes.…”

“…In turn, when strategies are not appropriate to a given situation, they can increase stress levels. (1)(2)(3)(4)(5) Stress and coping seem to occur throughout all of life's phases; however, the beginning of university studies can cause many students to experience higher levels of stress due to the numerous changes and adaptations required by the new environment. On entering university, students start a new phase of their lives, meaning they must deal with changes and adapt to this newfound environment and life's new circumstances.…”

Intensive care unit: a significant space for the professor-student relationship

“…Thus, strategies to support and monitor practical activities, conveying to student safety during the process of appropriation of a very specific and complex technology, open discussion of problems, conflicts and inclusion of students in interrelation with other professionals to promote self-confidence, selfesteem and hence the good performance of the student in the learning process. These student support strategies have been recommended in literature (4) . It may also be noted that professors consider important to allow the student to participate, in a supervised manner, of an effective care, taking care of seriously ill patients.…”

“…The relationship between educator and student encourages and activate student interest, so the professor has two basic functions in relation to the student: to encourage and to advise (4) . Thus, during internships, the relationship between professor and student is considered as something positive and present, enabling the professor to understand him/her as a being in the world and the other world in an intensive care unit.…”