Examining Well-Being and Healthy Lifestyle Interventions among Nursing Students Worldwide: A Scoping Review.

Purpose: The purpose of this scoping review was to identify intervention studies related to well-being and healthy lifestyles in nursing students to identify research gaps in the literature for future research. Methods: The review followed the Joanna Briggs Institute (JBI), JBI Manual for Evidence Synthesis, and Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses Extension for Scoping Reviews checklist. Five databases were searched to retrieve the articles assessed by this review: APA PsycINFO, CINAHL Complete, PubMed, Scopus, and Web of Science. Inclusion criteria included articles with a sample population of nursing students; addressed the well-being, wellness, health, or healthy lifestyle(s) of nursing students; tested an intervention(s), lifestyle change, behavioral change interventions, or behavior change technique. Findings: Twenty-four articles were included for analysis. Three categories of interventions were found: interventions related to (1) educational and curricular strategies, (2) psychological related interventions, and (3) supportive environments. Conclusion: This review adds to the literature by identifying future interventions that can increase the well-being of nursing students. The ability to cope with the stressors of school and competing demands is essential to meet academic requirements and goals. Therefore, understanding how to address nursing student well-being is vital to the future of the nursing profession.

The response readiness tool: An instrument to measure knowledge, skills, and attitude after taking a stop the Bleed® course.

Stop the Bleed® is an emergency response course that offers a certificate of completion but no ending assessment. The purpose of this educational study was to develop and test the Response Readiness Tool (RRT) that measures learning of participants after taking Stop the Bleed®. The study used a pre-/post-test design to measure knowledge and attitudes, and a post-test only for skills. Participants were recruited from existing Stop the Bleed® courses. Knowledge was measured with a 10-item questionnaire, attitude was measured with five Likert-style questions, and skills were measured by observing simulated tourniquet placement. Ninety-five participants were recruited over two semesters. There was a significant difference in the knowledge and attitude scores indicating participants' improvement in learning and attitude toward responding. Internal consistency reliability of scores showed moderate reliability with Cronbach's Alpha of 0.73 and McDonald's Omega of 0.75. A positive correlation was found between expected proficiency and pre-test indicating the tool had construct validity. RRT provides Stop the Bleed® instructors with an instrument to measure knowledge, skills, and attitude of participants after taking Stop the Bleed®. Statistics show moderate reliability and validity; however, larger samples are needed for full psychometric testing. This publication presents the revised tool after the completion of this study.

A Multisite Study of a Quality Improvement Teaching Strategy to Build Competency.

BACKGROUND: Quality improvement (QI) is an essential part of nursing education. Although there are robust examples of teaching strategies for QI, there is a distinct lack of research on effective strategies for teaching QI in nursing education. METHOD: This multisite study included students from six nursing programs. A treatment fidelity plan was developed and followed to ensure consistency for implementation of the study and data collection. A quasiexperimental, nonpaired, pre- and posttest study design was used to examine changes in student perspectives of QI after participating in a QI teaching strategy. Pre- and posttest questions were mapped to the American Association of Colleges of Nursing's Essentials subcompetency statements for QI. RESULTS: A total of 254 pre- and 116 posttest responses were included for analysis. Significance (p = .05) was found at the beginning level within three questions. CONCLUSION: Findings from this study indicate beginning-level students can benefit from a competency-based QI learning activity. [J Nurs Educ. 2024;63(1):38-42.].

Implementing an approach to prevent life-threatening bleeding: Guidance on forming a campus initiative.

A community that is trained to respond to life-threatening bleeding can reduce the risk of death from trauma and violence. Stop The Bleed is a nationally recognized, free, 1-hour bleeding control training designed for laypersons. Implementing a campuswide Stop the Bleed initiative can be daunting, yet vital to creating a safe, prepared campus. Guidance is offered by faculty, staff, and students from a Stop the Bleed initiative at a public university in the southern United States. This guide provides real-life examples and recommendations based on experience. Utilization of population health nursing students is a fundamental component of success.

Learning-by-Teaching and Service Learning to Promote Bleeding Control Education: An Academic-Community Partnership.

BACKGROUND: Stop the Bleed is a free 1-hour class that teaches laypersons to identify and treat life-threatening bleeding. The training requires a 1:10 instructor-to-participant ratio, which creates a resource drain on volunteer instructors. Nursing students are eligible to assist instructors. PROBLEM: Our State Legislature mandated that public schools equip themselves with bleeding control kits resulting in thousands of school staff needing training. APPROACH: Our nursing school used a service learning model to aid schools. Nursing students coordinated the program, and student learning occurred through a learning-by-teaching strategy. OUTCOMES: We trained 656 community members, taught in 5 counties, and students received 320 clinical hours. If not for COVID-19 (coronavirus disease 2019), numbers would have been doubled. We developed a sustainable relationship with school nurses. Students rated the program highly with respect to meeting course objectives and preparation for professional practice. CONCLUSIONS: The program met its goals and will continue.

Leadership, Teamwork, and Collaboration: The Lived Experience of Conducting Multisite Research Focused on Quality and Safety Education for Nurses Competencies in Academia.

AIM: The aim of this study was to explore facilitators and barriers to conducting a multisite national study in nursing academia unsupported by grant funding. BACKGROUND: Scholarship focused on the Quality and Safety Education for Nurses (QSEN) competencies stimulates opportunities for research and collaboration among nurse educators and clinicians. Twelve members of the QSEN Academic Task Force collaborated on a multisite study of the effectiveness of a QSEN teaching strategy and published the findings. METHOD: A descriptive phenomenological reflective approach using Kim's critical reflective inquiry model was used to explore the lived experiences of the original study investigators. Data were analyzed using Colaizzi's phenomenological reduction. RESULTS: Findings revealed seven facilitators and one overarching barrier to conducting academic research projects of this scope. CONCLUSION: Participants found that strong leadership, a commitment to teamwork and collaboration, and a shared interest were critical to conducting a successful national study across academic settings.

Spiritual Perspectives, Spiritual Care, and Knowledge of Recovery Among Psychiatric Mental Health Nurses.

BACKGROUND: Promoting spiritual well-being aids the mental health recovery process. Furthermore, nursing governance bodies and national mental health care regulators support spiritual care as a mental health-promoting approach. Although spiritual well-being is integral to quality of life in people with mental illness, little is known about the psychiatric mental health (PMH) nurses' provision of spiritual care. AIMS: Spiritual perspectives, frequency of spiritual care, and knowledge of recovery-oriented practice were measured. Variables were explored to identify a model of spiritual care. METHOD: A descriptive correlational cross-sectional design was employed. Analyses of data using descriptive statistics, correlations, and hierarchical multiple regression were conducted with a convenience sample of 171 PMH nurses. RESULTS: Participants scored high on measurement of spiritual perspectives, moderate on measurement of knowledge about recovery-oriented practice, and indicated a moderate degree of frequency of provision of spiritual care. Nurses who viewed themselves as "spiritual and religious" provided more frequent spiritual care and had higher levels of spiritual perspectives than those who viewed themselves as "spiritual but not religious." Significant contributors to spiritual care were spiritual perspectives and years of experience as a PMH nurse. Knowledge of recovery-oriented practice, however, did not contribute to a model of spiritual care. CONCLUSIONS: Nurses' spiritual perspectives, religiosity, and years of experience are factors that may explain nurse-provided spiritual care. Findings imply that spiritual and/or religious development may support PMH nurses to provide spiritual care.

Constructive Feedback Teaching Strategy: A Multisite Study of Its Effectiveness.

AIM: The study purpose was to describe students' perceptions of feedback after participating in a teaching strategy designed to foster a view of feedback as an opportunity for improvement. BACKGROUND: Although delivering and receiving constructive feedback are essential to the role of the professional nurse, feedback has been identified as a trigger for incivility in academia and practice. METHOD: Twelve nurse educators from the Quality and Safety Education for Nurses Academic Task Force, located at nine schools of nursing across the nation, implemented a presentation about giving and receiving constructive feedback in junior and senior courses. RESULTS: Five hundred twenty-three students submitted a total of 985 posts or essays in response to viewing the presentation; seven themes were identified. CONCLUSION: Viewing this teaching strategy enabled nursing students to develop an awareness of the opportunity that constructive feedback presents for professional development, self-improvement, teamwork and collaboration, and patient safety.

NURSE EDUCATOR PERCEPTIONS OF FAITH-BASED ORGANIZATIONS FOR SERVICE-LEARNING.

Knowledge about service-learning for nursing students in faith-based organizations (FBOs) is limited. This descriptive study explored the perceptions of nurse educators about using FBOs for service-learning clinical sites. Participants (N = 112) relayed specific benefits and barriers to using FBOs for service-learning clinical experiences. Recommendations are made for effective school-FBO partnerships.

Preparing for disasters: education and management strategies explored.

During the last half of the 20th century, the focus of nursing changed from home and field to high-tech clinics and hospitals. Nursing in the absence of technology due to man-made or natural disasters almost disappeared from the curriculum of many nursing schools. Numerous disaster events and threats in the early 21st century caused educators and practitioners to increase the emphasis on disaster nursing and those principles that guide the nurse's practice in response to disasters. This article chronicles tools used by nurse educators to integrate disaster nursing into the didactic and clinical experiences of baccalaureate nursing students. We represent two nursing schools about 90 miles apart that collaborated to provide students with practical application of disaster nursing concepts. Part 1: An educational journey toward disaster nursing competencies: A curriculum in action provides an overview of the curricular tools used to insure adequate coverage of disaster nursing concepts across the curriculum. Part 2: Collaborative learning in Community Health Nursing for emergency preparedness relates the steps taken to plan, implement, and evaluate two different collaborative disaster simulation events. In this manuscript we have attempted transparency so that others can learn from our successes and our failures.

Biopsychosocial and spiritual aspects of Parkinson disease: an integrative review.

The purpose of this study is to systematically examine the scientific literature and report the biopsychosocial and spiritual aspects of persons with Parkinson disease and their adaptation to the disease, to discuss methodological challenges associated with researching this phenomenon, and to propose future research. Synthesis of the literature will reveal the state of the science on the holistic approach to care in persons with Parkinson disease. An exhaustive review of the English language peer-reviewed literature published from January 1961 to July 2011 was conducted utilizing Academic Search Premier, MEDLINE, CINAHL, Psych Articles, Psych Info, PubMed, Wiley InterScience, the Cochrane Center Register for Control Trials, Health and Psychosocial Instruments, and SpringerLink databases. Ninety studies were reviewed. Although numerous medical studies focusing on pharmacological agents for Parkinson disease are reported, there are gaps in the literature on the biopsychosocial, spiritual, and holistic approaches in Parkinson disease care. More research is needed to examine the biopsychosocial and spiritual aspects of persons with Parkinson disease.

Community-based FitSTEPS for life exercise program for persons with cancer: 5-year evaluation.

PURPOSE: To determine the effects of a community-based program of exercise on quality of life (QOL) of persons with cancer over time. METHODS: Participants were referred by their physician to participate in an individualized program of exercise at one of 14 community centers. The Medical Outcomes Survey, Short Form, version 2.0 (SF-36) was used to assess QOL. Individual participants were monitored for 2 years. Data collection took place at baseline, every 3 months months during year 1, and every 6 months during year 2. RESULTS: Enrolled participants (n = 701) had been diagnosed with different cancers and were at all stages; 177 completed data collection for 2 years. One-way analysis of variance (n = 177) supported the positive impact of exercise on QOL over time. Significant subscale scores of the SF-36, including Physical Function (F = 2.13, P ≤ .047), Role Physical (F = 3.78, P ≤ .001), Vitality (F = 5.97, P ≤ .001), Social Function (F = 4.46, P ≤ .001), Role Emotional (F = 2.56, P ≤ .01), Mental Health (F = 2.16, P ≤ .05), and General Health (F = 3.42, P ≤ .01), were sustainable over time. CONCLUSION: This research introduces the concept of a long-term community-based program of individualized exercise as a feasible and effective intervention to improve QOL for persons with all stages of cancer. Improvements, noted at the 3-month time point, appear to be sustainable for extended time (24 months). Attrition is problematic and needs to be addressed. Results from this study have significance for practice recommendations and health policy reimbursement issues.

The lived experience of giving spiritual care: a phenomenological study of nephrology nurses working in acute and chronic hemodialysis settings.

The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experiences of nephrology nurses giving spiritual care in acute and chronic hemodialysis settings. Ten nurses were interviewed. Five themes were identified: a) drawing close, b) drawing from the well of my spiritual resources, c), sensing the pain of spiritual distress, d) lacking resources to give spiritual care, and e) giving spiritual care is like diving down deep. The study findings suggest that patients and nurses draw close during the giving of spiritual care, that nurses have spiritual resources they use to prepare for and give spiritual care, and that giving spiritual care can have an emotional cost. These findings have implications for nursing practice, nursing education, and nursing research.

Finding meaning in suffering.

Nurses commonly encounter pain and suffering, and alleviation of pain and suffering is a focus of the nurse's job. Spirituality and religion may assist patients who are suffering, and understanding the relationship between spiritual influences and suffering can help nurses better care for patients. Finding meaning in suffering has been described as a transcendent experience. Nurses can help patients find meaning through interventions such as listening to and witnessing suffering, connecting suffering and spirituality, creating a healing environment, and inviting reflections on suffering. Patients are "wounded story tellers" who can use their stories to make sense of their illness. Little research however has looked at patients' stories and caregivers' response in relation to patients' suffering. This article describes how patients find meaning in suffering and how nursing interventions can assist suffering patients. The process of caring for a suffering person is painful for the nurse and requires exceptional effort on the nurse's part, but the very act that drains the nurse can also create the fuel for compassionate care.

Educational opportunities: a nursing school model for medical special-needs sheltering.

The devastation of New Orleans after Hurricane Katrina increased the awareness of persons who were unable to self-evacuate because of physical and/or mental disabilities. From that awareness, plans emerged to provide a safe haven for those who had special needs. In this article, we describe our efforts as a school of nursing to shelter medical special needs (MSN) evacuees in the wake of a hurricane. After the shelter closed, faculty and students involved in the shelter answered a short survey that included both open- and close-ended questions. The responses are summarized to encourage other schools of nursing to consider caring for MSN evacuees and to share our successes, our failures, and our plans for the future.

Challenges and opportunities of nursing care in special-needs shelters.

Hurricanes Katrina and Rita forced many individuals along the coast of Texas and Louisiana to seek shelter inland. Among the evacuees were residents with special needs and residents of nursing homes and group homes caring for mentally retarded and physically disabled persons. Many nurses volunteered to provide health care for those in need. This article discusses challenges and opportunities that were encountered by nurses volunteering in special-needs shelters. Issues related to human and physical resources, patient care, and confidentiality are discussed including lessons learned. As nurses who cared for evacuees in the shelter, it is hoped some of the lessons learned can be utilized in future disasters.