Vocation, Friendship and Resilience: A Study Exploring Nursing Student and Staff Views on Retention and Attrition

Abstract

Abstract:Introduction: There is international concern about retention of student nurses on undergraduate programmes. United Kingdom Higher Education Institutions are monitored on their attrition statistics and can be penalised financially, so they have an incentive to help students remain on their programmes beyond their moral duty to ensure students receive the best possible educational experience.Aims: to understand students' and staff concerns about programmes and placements as part of developing our retention strategies.Design: This study reports qualitative data on retention and attrition collected as part of an action research study.Setting: One University School of Nursing and Midwifery in the South West of England.Participants: Staff, current third year and ex-student nurses from the adult field.Methods: Data were collected in focus groups, both face-to face and virtual, and individual telephone interviews. These were transcribed and subjected to qualitative content analysis.Results: Four themes emerged: Academic support, Placements and mentors, Stresses and the reality of nursing life, and Dreams for a better programme. Conclusions:The themes Academic support, Placements and mentors and Stresses and the reality of nursing life, resonate with international literature. Dreams for a better programme included smaller group learning. Vocation, friendship and resilience seem instrumental in retaining students, and Higher Education Institutions should work to facilitate these. 'Vocation' has been overlooked in the retention discussions, and working more actively to foster vocation and belongingness could be important.

Effect of Yoga on Psychological Functioning of Nursing Students: A Randomized Wait List Control Trial

“…According to the American Psychological Association, resilience can be defined as, "the process of adapting well in the face of adversity, trauma, tragedy, threats or even significant sources of stress [15]". Substantially, resilience aids in the retention of students in the academic program [16], and in their academic success [17] and, this helps them to cope effectively with adversities in the clinical setting [18].…”

Fitting in with the team: Facilitative mentors in physiotherapy student placements’

“…Additionally, clinical educators have to juggle a number of priorities, needs, and roles, including those related to students (Delaney & Bragge, 2009). However, given the continuing problems of attrition 87 related to placements (Hamshire et al, 2012;Williamson et al, 2013), these challenges need to be tackled.…”

“…There is a considerable body of literature exploring placement learning within nursing (including some studies related to belonging); however, there is far less current literature within physiotherapy. This research suggests that clinical placements can be a challenging component of healthcare education (Eick, Williamson & Health, 2012;Gibbons, 2010;Hamshire, Willgoss & Wibberley, 2012;Levett-Jones et al, 2007;Levett-Jones, Lathlean, Higgins & McMillan, 2009;Whiteside, Stubbs & Soundy, 2014;Williamson, Health & Proctor-Childs, 2013) with unpleasant placement experiences and lack of support contributing to attrition (Hamshire et al, 2012;Wiliamson et al, 2013).…”

“…Whilst placements should give students a 'slice of practice life,' it should not be the worst slice (Andrews, McGuiness, Reid &Corcarran, 2009), and some mentors are perceived as being unwilling to carry out their role, with mentoring support being variable across placements (Williamson et al, 2013). The mentorship provided by both individual mentors and the placement staff team is integral to students' placement experiences (Myall, Levett-Jones & Lathlean, 2008) in terms of both enjoyment and clinical learning opportunities (Andrews et al, 2009).…”

France’s transition to academic nursing: the theory–practice gap

“…Attrition from nursing, which has already been observed internationally, may have been amplified by the way in which the 2009 program was implemented. We do not have enough distance or data today to measure all its effects in France, but analyses in other countries show that we have already identified numerous factors potentially leading students to shun the nursing profession altogether [28] . The increasing gap between the reality of the field and students' representations and expectations contribute to what has been called a 'reality shock', leading to rising rates of attrition [27] .…”