'There is no justice in nursing school': A qualitative analysis of nursing students' experiences of discrimination shared on Reddit.

AIM: To explore nursing students' experiences of stigma and discrimination within nursing programmes as shared on Reddit, and how other Reddit users offer support and guidance. DESIGN: Qualitative interpretive description. METHODS: Through a critical social theory lens, this study draws on students' posts from three nursing subreddits: r/studentnurse, r/nursingstudent and r/nursing. Data were collected from March 2013 to March 2023. Reflexive thematic analysis was conducted to generate broad themes of nursing students' experiences of stigma and discrimination, and how other Reddit users offered support and guidance. RESULTS: A total of 43 posts with 1412 associated comments were included in this analysis, which generated three predominant themes of nursing students' experiences. Nursing students faced stigma and discrimination across contexts, including from peers, nurses and other healthcare providers working in clinical practicum sites, and patients. Nursing students' posts described navigating the impacts and consequences of such experiences, including on well-being, and programme and career success. In contexts where students were often alone in their experiences of stigma and discrimination within their programmes and with few identified supports, Reddit users sought support and community through Reddit. While many comments offered validation and support, challenges of this social media platform included conflicting advice and unhelpful, judgmental messages. CONCLUSIONS: Despite widely articulated social justice commitments in the profession, nursing students continue to experience stigma and discrimination across contexts within their nursing programmes. IMPLICATIONS FOR PROFESSION: Nurses and nurse educators have a responsibility to acknowledge and make visible such experiences, and take direct action to prevent and remediate stigma and discrimination within nursing education. IMPACT: This research contributes to the growing empirical evidence that nursing students' experience stigma and discrimination within nursing programmes and the healthcare system. REPORTING METHOD: Adherence to COREQ guidelines was maintained. PATIENT OR PUBLIC CONTRIBUTION: No patient or public contribution.

The Subaltern: Illuminating matters of representation and agency in mental health nursing through a postcolonial feminist lens.

Inpatient mental health nursing operates with an overarching goal to support people living with mental health challenges by managing risk of harm to self and others, decreasing symptoms, and promoting capacity to live outside of hospital settings. Yet, dominant, harmful stereotypes persist, constructing patients as less than, in need of saving, and lacking self-control and agency. These dominant assumptions are deeply entrenched in racist, patriarchal, and Othering beliefs and continue to perpetuate and (re)produce inequities, specifically for people with multiple intersecting identities relating to race, class, gender, and culture. This paper explores the relevance of postcolonial feminism, particularly Gayatri Spivak's concept of Subaltern-conceptualized as groups of people who are denied access to power and therefore continue to be systematically oppressed and marginalized-in illuminating the problematic and dominant assumptions about people living with mental health challenges as lacking agency and requiring representation. Through an understanding of Subalternity, this paper aims to decenter and deconstruct dominant colonial, patriarchal narratives in mental health nursing, and ultimately calls for mental health nursing to fundamentally reconsider prevailing assumptions of patients as needing representation and lacking agency.

When Should Inpatient Psychiatric Care Include Access to the Outdoors, Despite Elopement or Other Risks?

This commentary on a case considers consequences of a so-called "zero-risk" paradigm now common in psychiatric inpatient decision making. Iatrogenic harms of this approach must be balanced against promoting patients' safety and well-being. This article suggests how to collaboratively assess risk and draw on recovery-oriented goals of care.

Redressing discrimination in Canadian nursing programs: Student perspectives.

AIM /OBJECTIVE: To identify strategies nursing students recommend for responding to discrimination in their program. BACKGROUND: The nursing discipline is rooted in social justice, which is increasingly positioned as practices that seek to enhance equity in health and healthcare. Yet, a growing body of knowledge indicates nursing students experience discrimination by virtue of race, sexual identity, gender identity, ability and mental health in nursing programs. There is a dearth of information that speaks to redressing discrimination in nursing schools, particularly from the perspectives of nursing students. DESIGN: This study reports on the findings of the qualitative portion of a mixed-methods project. METHODS: Data were collected via qualitative interviews (n=20) conducted on the Zoom platform. Inclusion criteria included any nursing graduate or undergraduate student enrolled in two institutions in Western Canada. Analysis was guided by a combination of thematic analysis with interpretive description to facilitate the identification of broader themes within the context of relevant disciplinary considerations. RESULTS: Three key themes that represent nursing student perspectives to redress discrimination in their programs were identified: (1) strategies to redress discrimination at the level of the educator/curriculum, (2) strategies to redress discrimination at the structural level and, (3) strategies to support students who have experienced discrimination. CONCLUSIONS: Systematic curriculum updates and educator supports to ensure up-to date knowledge and appropriate educator approaches are needed in classroom and clinical settings. The integration of equity-seeking processes at higher levels, e.g. for example, nursing standards of practice, was identified as essential to redress discrimination in education as well in everyday nursing practice. Lastly, a clearly defined reporting pathway was suggested to support students who have been subject to discrimination. Given this is one of the first investigations into student perspectives on redressing discrimination in nursing schools, additional research is needed to evoke meaningful change.

Widening mental health and substance use inequities among sexual and gender minority populations: Findings from a repeated cross-sectional monitoring survey during the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada.

This paper examines the mental health and substance use impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic among sexual and gender minority (SGM) populations as compared to non-SGM populations, and identifies risk factors for mental health and substance use impacts among SGM groups. Data were drawn from two rounds of a repeated cross-sectional monitoring survey of 6027 Canadian adults, with Round 1 conducted May 14-19, 2020 and Round 2 conducted September 14-21, 2020. Bivariate cross-tabulations with chi-square tests were utilized to identify differences in mental health and substance use outcomes between SGM and non-SGM groups. Separate multivariable logistic regression models were used to identify risk factors for mental health and substance use outcomes for all SGM respondents. Compared to non-SGM respondents, a greater proportion of SGM participants reported mental health and substance use impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, including deterioration in mental health, poor coping, suicidal thoughts, self-harm, alcohol and cannabis use, and use of substances to cope. Among SGM respondents, various risk factors, including having a pre-existing mental health condition, were identified as associated with mental health and substance use impacts. These widening inequities demonstrate the need for tailored public mental health actions during and beyond the pandemic.

Increases in Alcohol and Cannabis Use Associated with Deteriorating Mental Health among LGBTQ2+ Adults in the Context of COVID-19: A Repeated Cross-Sectional Study in Canada, 2020-2021.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, other queer, and Two-Spirit (LGBTQ2+) people are particularly at risk for the psycho-social consequences of the COVID-19 pandemic, though population-tailored research within this context remains limited. This study examines the extent of, and associations between, increased alcohol and cannabis use and deteriorating mental health among LGBTQ2+ adults in Canada during the COVID-19 pandemic. Data are drawn from LGBTQ2+ respondents to a repeated, cross-sectional survey administered to adults living in Canada (May 2020-January 2021). Bivariate cross-tabulations and multivariable logistic regression models were utilized to examine associations between increased alcohol and cannabis use, and self-reported mental health, overall coping, and suicidal thoughts. Five-hundred and two LGBTQ2+ participants were included in this analysis. Of these, 24.5% reported increased alcohol use and 18.5% reported increased cannabis use due to the pandemic. In the adjusted analyses, increased alcohol use was associated with poor overall coping (OR = 2.28; 95% CI = 1.28-4.07) and worse self-reported mental health (OR = 1.98; 95% CI = 1.21-3.25), whereas increased cannabis use was associated with suicidal thoughts (OR = 2.30; 95% CI = 1.16-4.55). These findings underscore the need for population-tailored, integrated substance use and mental health supports to address interrelated increases in alcohol/cannabis use and worsening mental health among LGBTQ2+ adults, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond.