Prevalence of Coping Strategy Training in Nursing School Curricula

Abstract

BackgroundStress and burnout are plaguing critical care nurses across the globe and leading to high levels of turnover. Resilience-building strategies such as mindfulness, self-care, and well-being can help shield nurses from the negative effects of workplace stress. As the first line of defense, nursing schools could provide students with strategies that build resilience; however, little is known about the availability of such resources in nursing education.ObjectivesTo determine the prevalence of resources and curricula targeting resilience training and stress reduction at nursing schools across the United States.MethodsRaters analyzed publicly available college/ university websites and course catalogs of a sample of nursing schools in the United States to determine the availability of resilience resources and curricula.ResultsNone of the schools surveyed regularly screened their students for burnout syndrome, and only 9% of schools had a formal curriculum that included resilience training.ConclusionsTraining in practices to build resilience and prevent burnout is essentially absent from accredited nursing schools. This highlights an important opportunity to modify existing curricula to include preventative strategies—such as developing positive coping skills— that could mitigate symptoms of workplace stress in future generations of nurses.