Challenges experienced by nursing students during the COVID‐19 pandemic

Abstract

This study was conducted to assess the challenges faced by nursing students during the pandemic and to examine the factors affecting these challenges.Design and Methods: This qualitative study involved 344 nursing students at a university in eastern Turkey.Findings: Five main themes, each with its own subthemes, indicated the psychological difficulties experienced by students, insufficiencies and uncertainties regarding education, restrictions regarding social life, family conflicts, and the possibility to turn crises into opportunities.Practice Implications: The themes emphasizing the lives of nursing students showed that there was a need for important measures, such as psychosocial support, determination of best practices for online education, supporting students with telemental applications by university counseling centres, and organization of action courses.

Nursing students’ perceptions and experiences of e-internships during the COVID-19 pandemic: A phenomenological study

“…The feeling of uncertainty is common in the participants' descriptions of their psychological experiences during the e-internships [28][29][30]. The participants' sense of uncertainty comes from two main sources.…”

“…Obviously, the practical ability of nurses needs to be tested in clinical practice, but in e-internships, nursing students are deprived of this opportunity. In e-internships, nursing students also have no chance to communicate with teachers and patients face to face or to receive direct guidance and supervision from teachers, thus increasing the sense of uncertainty about the effect of e-internships [29,30]. In addition, the sudden occurrence of the epidemic made nursing students realize their insignificance and their helplessness in the current situation and produced in them a sense of uncertainty [31,32].…”

The Listening Project: A Qualitative Study on the Experiences of Pre-Registered Nurses During the COVID-19 Pandemic in Scotland

“…Due to the rapid increase in the number of infections and deaths, governments worldwide were forced to partially or fully closed public places and business establishments, implemented travel restrictions and isolation, and suspended face-to-face classes, to control the spread of infection (Agu et al, 2021;Cengiz et al, 2021). Within the period of global lockdown and isolation, nursing students have been among the groups that experienced unique challenges during the pandemic due to transition to online learning, limited practical learning environment and the emergency hiring of nursing students to fill shortages in many health facilities and help in the COVID-19 response (Beisland et al, 2021;Farsi et al, 2021;Suliman et al, 2021).…”

Trauma and survivance: The impacts of the COVID‐19 pandemic on Indigenous nursing students

“…In particular, the transition to remote learning has been difficult for nursing students, with many describing a perceived increase volume of work (Heilferty et al, 2021 ; Majrashi et al, 2021 ; Michel et al, 2021 ); inadequate and distracting at‐home learning environments (Heilferty et al, 2021 ; Majrashi et al, 2021 ; Michel et al, 2021 ; Wallace et al, 2021 ); a decrease in concentration (Fitzgerald & Konrad, 2021 ; Heilferty et al, 2021 ; Majrashi et al, 2021 ); and decrease in engagement and motivation (Michel et al, 2021 ; Wallace et al, 2021 ). The lack of structure and routine was a concern for many students (Michel et al, 2021 ), and in some cases, faculty were perceived as unprepared and disorganized by giving insufficient instructions and feedback (Cengiz et al, 2022 ; Wallace et al, 2021 ; Yazici & Ökten, 2022 ).…”

“…Psychologically, nursing students have experienced increased stress and anxiety during the pandemic related to the unpredictability of their situation (Fitzgerald & Konrad, 2021 ; Heilferty et al, 2021 ; Michel et al, 2021 ; Wallace et al, 2021 ); ability to fulfill academic and personal responsibilities (Fitzgerald & Konrad, 2021 ; Majrashi et al, 2021 ; Wallace et al, 2021 ); and fear of themselves or family/friends acquiring COVID‐19 (Aslan & Pekince, 2021 ; Cengiz et al, 2022 ; Heilferty et al, 2021 ; Yazici & Ökten, 2022 ). Additionally, social isolation affected nursing students emotionally and academically.…”