Exploring the Barriers and Challenges Saudi Arabian Nursing Students Encounter during their Internship Program: A Qualitative Study

Abstract

Negative experiences on an internship can adversely affect the attitude and confidence of nursing students. This highlights the need to explore the experiences of nursing students as they progress through their training. The present study examines the challenges and problems faced by nursing students during their internship program at a hospital in Medina, Saudi Arabia. The study employed a qualitative exploratory study design by recruiting eight nursing students. Face-to-face semi-structured interviews were conducted to gather data. Moreover, the data were thematically analyzed. The major challenges and problems experienced by the nursing students were lack of support, distrust, improper behavior, and absence of a preceptorship program. There is a negative impact of these issues on nursing practice in clinical settings. The study concludes that positive outcomes are likely to be achieved by improving the internship program.