Factors related to mental health problems in nursing students: a multicenter study
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.15649/cuidarte.3296Keywords:
Mental Health, Students, Nursing, COVID-19, Patient Health Questionnaire, Mental DisordersAbstract
Highlights
- Students and teachers faced personal, family, and work situations due to the pandemic that had a profound impact on physical and mental health.
- The objective was to identify the factors related to mental health disturbances in university students from three nursing programs in Colombia and Spain during the COVID-19 pandemic.
- It was found that 61.92% of the nursing students manifested symptoms of mental disturbances, 61.58% manifested some degree of family dysfunction, and 44.40% manifested symptoms of posttraumatic stress during the pandemic.
- Some students may be more likely to have mental health disturbances, such as those with family dysfunction, difficulty paying for food, a breakup with a partner, or symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder.
Introduction: The COVID-19 pandemic has brought consequences to the mental health of the undergraduate population of nursing programs. Objective: To identify the factors associated with mental health disturbances among university students in nursing programs during the COVID-19 pandemic. Materials and Methods: A multicenter, cross-sectional study was conducted during the COVID-19 pandemic among students enrolled in nursing programs at two Colombian universities and one Spanish university. An online sociodemographic, economic, and personal survey was administered along with the GHQ-12, the Family APGAR, the MOS Social Support Survey, and the IES-R for posttraumatic stress. The prevalence of mental health disturbances and their differences according to the characteristics of the students were estimated; prevalence ratios were also obtained. Results: Of the 302 students, a prevalence of clinically significant mental was found in 61.92%, family dysfunction in 61.58%, and low social support in 9.33%. In addition, 44.46% had posttraumatic stress symptoms, 52.65% had economic difficulties, 54.61% had academic difficulties, and 69.87% had personal difficulties. These mental disturbances were frequent in the presence of moderate family dysfunction (PR=1.77 CI95%=1.15;2.73), difficulty in paying for food (PR=1.35 CI95%=1.09;1.67), a breakup with a partner (PR=1.27 CI95%=1.02;1.59) and clinically relevant posttraumatic stress symptoms (PR=1.69 CI95%=1.28;2.24). Discussion: Psychological distress and its related factors found in nursing students agree with other findings in the literature. Conclusion: A significant proportion of nursing students were affected in their mental health during the pandemic, demonstrating the need for systematic, continuous, and comprehensive strategies by educational institutions.
How to cite this article: Tiga-Loza Diana Carolina, Arboleda de Pérez Ligia Betty, Ramírez-Cruz María Ángela, Cordero Rocío de Diego. Factors related to mental health problems in nursing students: a multicenter study. Revista Cuidarte. 2024;15(2):e3296. https://doi.org/10.15649/cuidarte.3296
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