Abstract
BackgroundNursing students often express uncertainty about clinical placement in a mental health care setting. Simulation with standardized patients may provide an opportunity for students to explore clinical situations in mental health nursing before their clinical placement, thereby increasing these students’ overall satisfaction and confidence levels with regard to mental health nursing. MethodA qualitative descriptive design was selected. Twenty-four undergraduate nursing students participated in four focus-group interviews after mental health simulations with standardized patients were conducted. Thematic analysis was used to analyze the data. ResultsThree main themes were identified: (1) preview into everyday life in a psychiatric ward, (2) adjusting assumptions and apprehensions regarding mental health nursing and, (3) mutual respect during the nurse-patient meeting. ConclusionsThe simulations were valuable in preparing students for mental health clinical placements by increasing their belief in capability to act appropriately in clinical scenarios.
Highlights
Nursing students often express uncertainty about clinical placement in a mental health care setting
Preview of Everyday Life on a Psychiatric Ward. The facilitators described their workplace in relation to the standardized patients (SPs) and the simulation scenario and answered student questions. Students stated that this experience was valuable because it challenged their assumptions and provided insights into the different tasks Registered nurses (RNs) undertake in a psychiatric unit
Students received a preview of everyday life in the mental health placement they were about to enter: “...but when you got to talk to someone from the ward, it was very good...you got some insight into how everyday life in a psychiatric ward could be...” (FGs 2, 3, and 4)
Summary
Nursing students often express uncertainty about clinical placement in a mental health care setting. Simulation with standardized patients may provide an opportunity for students to explore clinical situations in mental health nursing before their clinical placement, thereby increasing these students’ overall satisfaction and confidence levels with regard to mental health nursing. The identification of approaches that properly prepare students for clinical placements in mental health care is a necessary component of nursing education. Such approaches contribute to reducing student apprehension and providing a positive view of mental health nursing (Kameg, Szpak, Cline, & McDermott, 2014). Current research suggests that undergraduate nursing students experience different levels of uncertainty before entering their mental health clinical placement (Alexander & Dearsley, 2013; Kameg et al., 2014; Lehr & Kaplan, 2013). The prospect of unknown situations, expectations regarding how to interact with people with mental illness, and fear of harming patients through poor communication are all related to negative emotions students may experience (Lehr & Kaplan, 2013).
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