Experiences of nursing students in A peer mentoring program during their clinical practices. A qualitative study

BACKGROUND

Clinical placements allow nursing students to develop the skills and attitudes necessary to provide care. Peer mentoring programmes seem to facilitate these achievements, but there are very few studies on the effects of peer mentoring on clinical placements and what it can bring to both mentors and mentees.

AIM

To describe the perspectives of nursing students on a peer mentoring programme during their clinical placements.

DESIGN

A qualitative descriptive and exploratory study.

SETTINGS AND PARTICIPANTS

First year and third year nursing students were included.

METHODS

Focus groups were conducted with students after they participated in a peer mentoring programme during their clinical practice rotation.

RESULTS

The support received from the student mentors was very important both academically and personally. Mentors also acknowledged having improved their teaching and leadership skills.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results can be applied to future studies to inform peer mentoring programmes as a complementary teaching tool in clinical placements to improve leadership and empowerment in nursing students.

The impact of mentorship program on the level of anxiety and pre-internship exam scores among Iranian senior nursing students

BACKGROUND

Mentorship involves a voluntary, collaborative, and non-hierarchical relationship where an experienced individual shares knowledge with a less-experienced individual. This study aimed to evaluate the effects of a mentorship program on anxiety levels and pre-internship exam scores among senior nursing students.

METHODS

This quasi-experimental research was conducted on 37 nursing students in the sixth semester of the School of Medical Sciences in Saveh in the year 2023. Participants were selected based on initial criteria using a census method and were then randomly assigned to two groups: the control group (19 participants) and the intervention group (17 participants). The mentoring program for the intervention group was implemented one month before the pre-internship exam and consisted of six sessions, each lasting two hours, over two weeks (three sessions per week). Data collection tools included a demographic questionnaire, the Sarason Anxiety Questionnaire, and pre-internship exam scores. SPSS software version 23 was utilized for data analysis.

RESULTS

The mean anxiety exam scores in the two control and intervention groups did not exhibit a statistically significant difference before the intervention (P = 0.34). However, the mean anxiety exam score of the intervention group students after the intervention (5.89 ± 15.11) was significantly lower than that of the control group students (7.04 ± 21.42) (P = 0.007). Additionally, the results showed that the mean anxiety exam scores of the intervention group students before (5.77 ± 17.53) and after the intervention (5.89 ± 15.11) had a statistically significant difference (P = 0.013). Furthermore, the mean pre-internship exam scores of the intervention group students (1.71 ± 17.72) were significantly higher than those of the control group students (1.15 ± 16.46) (P = 0.014).

CONCLUSION

The mentorship program resulted in a reduction of exam anxiety in nursing students and improved their performance in the pre-internship exam to the extent that the exam scores of the participating students were higher than those of other students.

Development and implementation of a novel peer mentoring program for undergraduate nursing students

OBJECTIVES

Given the dynamic and high-stress environment of nursing education today, the need arose for the development and implementation of a novel peer mentoring program to support undergraduate nursing students. Peer mentoring refers to a network of support in which a more skilled or experienced person serves as a role model for a less skilled person for professional development and personal growth. Peer mentoring provides a support system that encourages self-confidence and increases self-worth for both the mentee and the mentor. The undergraduate student peer mentoring program in a large, Southeastern United States, university-based, 4-year school of nursing was created in response to a desire for more support conveyed by upper-level nursing students.

METHODS

A model was developed whereby each incoming nursing student (Semester 1) would be paired with a senior nursing student (Semesters 3, 4, or 5). This mentoring dyad was then assigned to a faculty mentor who ensured that the mentoring relationship was functioning in accordance with established guidelines and provided support to both the student mentee and the student mentor.

RESULTS

The first cohort was comprised of 20 mentoring dyads. Subsequent cohorts have ranged from 20 to 45 mentoring dyads. To date, over 300 nursing students have participated in the undergraduate peer mentoring program. Based on feedback from student evaluation surveys, both mentors and mentees appreciate and find value in the program. Approximately 93% of student mentors indicated that they would have appreciated such a program when they were first semester nursing students.

CONCLUSION

Some of the challenges of navigating nursing programs are not related to lack of academic aptitude. Rather, other challenges, including lack of social support and soft skills needed to successfully complete the first and second semesters of nursing school. These are critical challenges that a peer mentor could help to meet.

"We know what they're struggling with": student peer mentors' embodied perceptions of teaching in a health professional education mentorship program

This paper reports on a study of student peer mentorship in the context of nursing education in a higher education program in Canada. The study used an embodied hermeneutic phenomenological methodology to investigate student peer mentors' perceptions of teaching during peer mentorship. The data were collected over one calendar year (2019) and involved analysis of 10 participants' interview data and their 'body maps,' produced in response to guided questions. Through the data analysis a core theme of 'commitment to mentee growth' was identified, along with seven interrelated themes: sharing responsibility for learning, moderating stress, mediating power relations, navigating unknown processes, valuing creative approaches, offering generous acceptance, and facilitating confidence. Student peer mentorship has the potential to contribute to health professions education in a number of unique ways including through embodied attunement, trusting intersubjective relations, and dialogic education. This study is innovative in its purposeful design and aim to investigate both cognitive and embodied perceptions of student peer mentors. The findings point to the promise of student peer mentorship for advancing health sciences education. Implications for peer mentorship program development in health professions education are discussed.

Studying nursing at Australian satellite university campuses: A review of teaching, learning and support

Distribution of the Australian health workforce is uneven, with the majority of health professionals favouring metropolitan areas over rural and remote regions. Although nurses account for the largest proportion of the Australian rural and remote health workforce, difficulties with staff recruitment and retention can impact the health care outcomes of these vulnerable populations. Satellite university campuses that offer undergraduate nursing programs might therefore contribute to a more sustainable rural and remote nursing workforce. This narrative literature review aimed at investigating the barriers and enablers that affect students enrolled at satellite nursing campuses, education delivery methods and academic and non-academic strategies employed to enhance the student learning experience. The literature was reviewed across 6 health and education databases. After screening, 12 articles met the inclusion criteria and were analysed, and the data were synthesised using a thematic approach. Three themes arose from the review: student characteristics and associated barriers and enablers to studying nursing at a satellite campus; teaching strategies and learning experiences; and academic and pastoral support. Students studying at satellite campuses were found to have different education experiences and faced challenges unique to their context; however, home support networks and small class sizes were seen as enabling factors. Education delivery methods and support strategies varied depending on remoteness and resources available. Consideration of the factors that affect satellite campus nursing students has the potential to increase student satisfaction and retention, which could result in a more sustainable rural and remote nursing workforce.

Peer mentoring experiences of nursing students based on the caring perspective: A qualitative study

BACKGROUND

Care competency is a critical aspect required of nursing students who want to become nurses. Peer mentoring is a useful way to experience the natural care process.

OBJECTIVES

This study aimed to explore from the caring perspective the experiences of nursing students who have participated in peer mentoring as mentors and mentees.

DESIGN

This was a qualitative study; individual interviews were conducted and content analysis was performed to explore and describe peer mentoring experiences.

SETTINGS

This study was conducted in the department of nursing at a university in the Republic of Korea.

PARTICIPANTS

The participants were nine students in their second to fourth year who participated as mentors and mentees in the peer mentoring program organized by the department of nursing.

METHODS

Data on participants' experiences of mentoring were collected through individual interviews. The transcribed content was analyzed using content analysis, and the categorized content was reorganized through the framework of the theory of caring.

RESULTS

The results of the content analysis revealed five categories that formed a sequential process of caring, which became the cycle of another process of care.

CONCLUSIONS

This study's findings regarding peer mentoring experiences of nursing college students indicate that the program can be effective in improving care competencies related to nursing. Peer mentoring in nursing education could be a useful method to develop students' professional competencies.

Practicing Leadership Skills through Peer Mentoring and Teaching: the Lived Experience of BSN Students

Although leadership theory is introduced in baccalaureate nursing curriculum, opportunities to practice and develop leadership skills are limited for undergraduate nursing students. This study explores the experience of advanced nursing students who provided mentoring and tutoring to beginning nursing students. The experiences they describe are interpreted in light of literature on leadership education in undergraduate nursing schools, as well as that of peer mentoring and peer teaching. These advanced students described opportunities to practice and reflect on leadership skills and attributes. Peer mentoring and peer teaching programs may be an effective and efficient way of helping nursing students gain leadership skills and experience.

The effect of mentoring program on adjustment to university and ways of coping with stress in nursing students: A quasi-experimental study

BACKGROUND

Mentoring programs are effective in improving some characteristics related to university adaptation, such as increasing student satisfaction, gaining social skills and effective communication, reducing stress and anxiety, and improving cognitive and psychomotor skills as well as academic performance.

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to determine the effect of mentoring program on adjustment to university and ways of coping with stress in nursing students.

DESIGN

This quasi-experimental study was carried out using a nonrandomized control group pretest and posttest design.

SETTING

The study was conducted at a university school of nursing in Turkey.

PARTICIPANTS

Ninety-one first-year undergraduate nursing students were included in the study.

METHODS

The 8-week peer mentoring program was conducted with the experimental group. The Adjustment to University Scale (AUS) and The Ways of Coping Inventory (WCI) were measured at preintervention and postintervention.

RESULTS

The posttest mean scores of AUS of the experimental group were statistically higher than the control group (p < .05). The posttest mean scores of optimistic and seeking social support approaches of the experimental group were also statistically higher than the control group (p < .05). Mentoring program had an effect on self-confident, optimistic, seeking social support, submissive, and helpless approaches in the experimental group (p < .05).

CONCLUSION

Mentoring program had a positive effect on adjustment to university and ways of coping with stress in nursing students. These study results indicate that this program can be used to increase the adjustment to university and ways of coping with stress in nursing students.