Stress and Coping strategies among nursing students during clinical practice : A systematic review

Abstract

Stress is a common problem for nursing students throughout the nursing school year. Pressure from academic, clinical, and some external sources (such as family, personal affairs, and even environmental forms) has a large impact on these students. However, by using various coping mechanisms, these students can control their stress and move on to realize their dream of becoming skilled nurses in the future.

To gain more knowledge and explore more coping strategies related to stress among nursing students during their clinical practice is the aim of the study. The research focuses on 2 questions: 1. What makes nursing students feel stress during their clinical practice, and 2. What are the strategies used by nursing students to reduce their stress during clinical practice?

The systematic review approaches have all been used to review and summarize the eight studies that were selected to investigate the sources of stress and the coping mechanisms used by nursing students during their clinical practice. Stress, nursing students, coping mechanisms, and clinical practice are the keywords included in the search, which is limited to works published between 2016 and 2022.

Assignments, workloads, and examinations are both identified as stressors academically and clinically, along with lack of knowledge and skills, clinical teachers, and nursing staff during students’ clinical practice, while financial and personal problems, family, and noise are all external factors. Active coping, problem-solving methods, staying optimistic, sharing emotions, physical activities, positive reframing, and religious approaches are frequently used coping strategies employed by nursing students, while Emotional support, substance abuse, denial, avoidance, and negative coping are the least used approach among nursing students.