Itodo Adakpa*, Tony Uwandu-Uzoma
Background: Students experience mental health issues during their programme. Therefore, having a better understanding of the multifactorial issues associated with mental health for students is crucial to ensure a solid healthcare workforce.
Objective: Students experience mental health issues during their programme. Therefore, this study aims to explore the multifactorial issues associated with students' mental health.
Design: Employing a qualitative research approach, the investigation was conducted through a semistructured interview.
Method: The study took place at the University of Bolton Campus and involved students participating in a pilot intervention to support those at risk of attrition due to academic and clinical practice failure. Thirteen students took part in the study. Otter note software was utilized to collect and transcribe the semi-structured interviews. Qualitative data were organized using Nvivo software and subsequently interpreted via a framework analytical approach.
Results: Three main themes emerged from the interviews and include mental health stressors in healthcare education, experiences of university support system and coping with stress and resilience.
Conclusion: To ensure that future healthcare students, including nurses, thrive in their academic and practice learning, issues related to their mental health and personal lives need adequate attention. This would ensure that those students who enroll in a healthcare programme go on to completion through additional support from the university and relevant stakeholders to reduce attrition.
Published Date: 2025-01-22; Received Date: 2024-05-07
