AI Article Synopsis
- Research on compassion in nursing has grown, but there's a gap in understanding how students perceive compassion in their training.* -
- A study with 117 nursing students used surveys and interviews to explore their definitions of compassion, finding that most see it as understanding and sharing patients' suffering.* -
- Students emphasized the need for compassionate care to involve understanding patients as whole individuals, and identified ways to develop compassion through practice and reflection.*
Article Abstract
Background: There has been increased research on the conceptualization of compassion in nursing. Nursing institutions expect educators to foster student compassion. However, limited research exists on students' perceptions of compassion in nursing.
Purpose: To develop a comprehensive understanding of students' perspectives of compassion and compassionate care.
Methods: A convergent mixed methods design. A purposive sample of 117 students completed an exploratory questionnaire and 17 participated in interviews. Descriptive analysis was used for quantitative data, thematic analysis for qualitative data, and joint displays for mixed analysis.
Results: In total, 83% of students described compassion as "understanding and sharing patients' suffering" and 88% indicated that compassionate care entails "consciously trying to understand patients, their needs, and their suffering". The qualitative themes were, meanings of compassion and compassionate care, ways of developing and fostering compassion, antecedents of compassion and compassionate care, and compassion in practice.
Conclusions: Nursing students realized the importance of compassion for patients and nurses and identified different acts of compassionate care. The students noted the compassionate care entails deliberately caring for the "whole person" and can be fostered through practice, observations, and reflection.
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Source |
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| http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.profnurs.2020.09.014 | DOI Listing |
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