The willingness of secondary nursing students to study senior care and services at the post-secondary level

Abstract

Objective To understand the willingness of secondary nursing students to study senior care and services at the post-secondary level. Methods Using the convenient sampling method, a total of 375 nursing students of the 2015 and 2016 Class in the School of Medicine and Health of Guang'an Vocational and Technical College were selected as participants from December 2017 to January 2018. The school's secondary vocational nursing students were asked to complete the professional willingness questionnaire for the senior care services. A total of 375 questionnaires were distributed and 340 valid questionnaires were returned. Results A total of 191 (56.2%) of the 340 nursing students had a simple understanding of the senior care profession. A total of 228 (67.1%) nursing students had a simple understanding of the current situation of China's aging population and the shortage of senior care professionals. A total of 110 (32.4 %) nursing students expressed their passion for the senior care profession. A total of 136 (40%) nursing students said that their families would support their future training in senior care. A total of 124 (36.5%) nursing students will consider applying for a senior care program. The expected annual income of 340 nursing students in the first 1-5 years on the job was 40 000, 100 000, 150 000, 180 000, 250 000, respectively. Conclusions Governments at all levels should take effective measures to strengthen publicity and education, and encourage secondary vocational nursing students to actively apply for programs in senior care services. Key words: Students, nursing; Application; Secondary vocational education; Senior care service