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Background and purpose Little is known about the physical health, lifestyle beliefs and behaviors, and mental health among first‐year health professional graduate students. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to describe these attributes as well as to explore the relationships among them. Methods A descriptive correlational study was conducted on the baseline data from a wellness onboarding intervention study with 93 health sciences students from seven different colleges within a large public land grant university in the Midwest United States. Findings Nearly 40% of the sample was overweight/obese, and 19% of students had elevated total cholesterol levels. Only 44% met the recommended 30 min of exercise 5 days per week. Forty‐one percent reported elevated depressive symptoms and 28% had elevated anxiety. Four students reported suicidal ideation. Inverse relationships existed among depression/anxiety and healthy lifestyle beliefs/behaviors. Conclusions Students entering health professional schools are at high risk for depression, anxiety, and unhealthy behaviors, which could be averted through screening and early evidence‐based interventions. Implications for practice Assessing the physical health, lifestyle behaviors, and mental health of first‐year health sciences professional students is important to identify health problems and modifiable at‐risk behaviors so that early interventions can be implemented to improve outcomes.

Cultural competence is a mainstay in health care and nursing education. With the expansion in the number of distance-based nursing programs across the country, innovative teaching methods for distance learning faculty are required to instill cultural competence in students. Faculty must be deliberate when planning distance-based learning activities that incorporate cultural experiences. This article describes several such strategies including the creative use of blogging, recorded lectures, the online synchronous classroom, social media, and cultural immersion projects. These methods capitalize on existing information technologies and offer distance-based students the opportunity to connect with one another, as well as develop the awareness, sensitivity, and respect that is required when providing culturally competent care. These teaching methods are modifiable to meet the teaching and learning needs of the faculty and the students, thereby allowing educators to support the integration of cultural competence into patient care for distance students.

The provision of care through telehealth is emerging as a strategy to meet the challenges of a changing health care system; however, educational experiences associated with telehealth are limited in nursing curricula. In 2018, the National Organization of Nurse Practitioner Faculties (NONPF) recommended incorporating telehealth modalities in nurse practitioner education, including clinical skills assessment. Objective structured clinical examinations (OSCEs) have been used as formative and summative evaluations of health science students since the 1970s to assess application of didactic learning in clinical practice. Although few studies have investigated integrating OSCEs, virtual simulation, or telehealth in distance education, those that exist demonstrate significant improvement in clinical decision making. This article describes the development and implementation of an OSCE at a large Midwestern university delivered via web conferencing to evaluate online family nurse practitioner (FNP) students' abilities to deliver care using telecommunication technology. An e-visit notification listing the types of symptoms available for treatment by telehealth served as a content list. Students completed a 15-minute e-visit assessing and managing the care of a standardized patient presenting with a recent onset of dysuria. The video conference included the FNP student, standardized patient, and faculty evaluating in real time using a rubric incorporating NONPF competencies for telehealth. Structured group debrief, an integral part of the learning process in clinical simulations, followed the e-visit OSCE using free conference calling. Faculty and student feedback and evaluations of this summative OSCE implemented for three cohort groups (103 students) positively reflect the importance of preparing students for practice in a transformed health care system.

Responding to the coronavirus disease-2019 (COVID-19) pandemic is likely to exacerbate anxiety, burnout, fatigue, and distress already being experienced by nurses in ever greater numbers. An innovative Wellness Partner Program was developed with an aim to enhance the health and well-being of nurses on the front lines during the COVID-19 pandemic and beyond. Nurses across the country opted in to the program, and were paired with advanced practice nursing (APN) graduate students who served as the nurses' wellness partners. Areas emphasized in the program included (1) personalized support for wellness; (2) prioritizing physical activity, healthy eating, sleep, and stress management; and (3) establishment of strength-based, sustainable solutions to improve health and well-being. Partnerships were implemented for 188 nurses who were coached by 49 APN students; 104 nurses participated for 6 weeks. In the program evaluation, 98% of nurses shared that the wellness support program helped them engage in self-care and wellness, and 94.7% agreed or strongly agreed that The Wellness Partner Program helped them improve their mental and physical health. In the midst of the pandemic, nurses were supported to cope with stress, focus on self-care and wellness goals, and address challenges to their well-being.