How Entering Students View Nursing as a Profession After COVID-19: A Qualitative Study.

ABSTRACT: The COVID-19 pandemic significantly affected the nursing profession. Nurses were called heroes during the pandemic, yet nursing is now suffering a staffing crisis. This phenomenological study asked 15 incoming first-semester nursing students about their perceptions of the nursing profession. Verbatim transcripts were analyzed, and three themes emerged: Vicarious Pride, Raw Gratitude, and Help Is Coming. With a need to attract more applicants and graduate more nurses, nursing schools might use these identified concepts to recruit and motivate prospective students. This research provides insight into the motivation to attend nursing school following the pandemic.

The Gut Microbiome and Mental Health.

The gut microbiome has been well researched in the past few years and may be a target for treating mental illness. Trillions of bacteria in the digestive system work with the brain, immune function, and endocrine pathways. This gut microbiome ecosystem mediates the interaction between the human being and the environment making its inclusion in holistic nursing essential. Changes in normal balance of the gut microbiome occur with diet, antibiotics and other medications, stress, cancer treatment, geography and environment, and current illnesses. When the microbiome is challenged a "dysbiotic" state leads to inadequate production of needed neurotransmitters such as serotonin and dopamine. Research has shown links between the dysbiosis, and the inflammatory response system that are known to contribute to depression, anxiety, and schizophrenia. Understanding the role of the gut microbiome can be beneficial to holistic nurses, providing a new tool to prevent, treat, or reduce symptoms of mental illness and improve general immune function. This innocuous holistic approach to mental wellness is becoming an important evidenced-based approach.