Exploring Psychological Well-Being of Nursing Students after Traumatic Experiences in Clinical Area

This study explored the psychological well-being of nursing students following traumatic experiences in clinical settings. A qualitative phenomenological research design was employed, utilizing in-depth interviews with seven purposively identified and conveniently chosen nursing students as participants. Data analyses had generated eight major themes: Valued Members of Clinical Team, Patient and/or Health-centered Care, Supervised Caring for Patients, Unpleasant Emotional Feelings, Striving to Meet Nursing Work Standards, Reflective Learning, Adaptive Coping, and Gain Worth the Pain. Major findings revealed that the participants were exposed to various clinical situations, had provided patient care, and were assigned with and performed nursing obligations. In the course of their exposures, they were receiving directions from persons on authority, had gone through situational nervousness, and threatened self-esteem for poor performance, and felt to have performed below expected standards. Nonetheless, they accepted the challenges of their experiences, had employed problem and emotion-focused adaptive coping, had seen room for improvement, and recognized the elements of efficient care for patient. Their experiences had posed impacts of various dimensions of their psychological well-being: autonomy, competence, healthy relationship, self-acceptance, personal growth, and purpose of life. It is recommended that nursing programs implement mental health interventions, such as debriefing sessions, resilience training, and offer accessible psychological services, to support students’ well-being.