Ingrid Tjoflåt

Stress and Coping among Norwegian Nurses Working in War Zones

The purpose of this study was to describe the personal stress nurses experienced when working in different areas of conflict and what they did to cope. The study also described levels of stress after their return to Norway. A descriptive design was used. The sample included 60 nurses who worked in different areas of conflict around the world for two Norwegian humanitarian organizations. A questionnaire was designed to collect quantitative and qualitative data. The results indicate that the nurses were well prepared and highly motivated for their work. Stressors were identified, but generally the results indicate that the nurses did not experience high levels of personal stress. The nurses experienced positive support from other health personnel on the missions which helped them cope with stress. As in previous studies the nurses in this study had a positive experience about their work. Almost all the nurses are willing to serve on new missions. Very few nurses in the sample showed indications of post — traumatic stress reactions.

How do Tanzanian hospital nurses perceive their professional role? A qualitative study

To describe the experiences of Tanzanian nurses, how they perceive their role as a professional nurse and their experience with nursing care in a general hospital.

Norwegian nursing students’ evaluation of vSim® for Nursing

BackgroundvSim® for Nursing is the first web-based platform linked to the nursing education curriculum. It is an American simulation tool, developed in 2014 through a collaboration between Wolters Kluwer Health, Laerdal Medical and the National League for Nursing. To our knowledge, no studies have evaluated vSim® for Nursing from the nursing students’ perspective in Norway. The aim of the study was to evaluate second year Norwegian nursing students’ experiences with the virtual clinical simulation scenario in surgical nursing from vSim® for Nursing.MethodsA descriptive and a convergent mixed method design was utilised. The method comprised a 7-item questionnaire with five open-ended questions. Sixty-five nursing students participated in the study.ResultsThe majority of Norwegian nursing students evaluated the virtual clinical scenario in surgical nursing from vSim® for Nursing useful, realistic and educational in preparing for clinical placement in surgical care. However, a small portion of the nursing students had trouble understanding and navigating the American vSim® for Nursing program.ConclusionsIntroducing virtual simulation tools into the nursing education encompasses faculty and student preparation, guidance from faculty members during the simulation session and support for students who are facing difficulties with the simulation program.

Implementing simulation in a nursing education programme: a case report from Tanzania

This paper presents a description of, and some reflections around, the experience of implementing simulation-based education within a nursing education programme in a low-income context. The students in the nursing education programme found the simulation sessions to be useful, motivating and a realistic learning method. Our experience may provide useful insight for other nursing education programmes in low-income contexts. It looks like a deeper knowledge about the feasibility of simulation-based education from both the teacher and student perspective is necessary.

Nursing Practice in War Zones and Wisdom Acquired

The purpose of this study was to describe nursing practice in war zones and skills nurses had acquired through their work. A descriptive design was used. The sample included 39 nurses who had worked in different areas of conflict around the world for two Norwegian humanitarian organizations. A questionnaire was designed to collect both quantitative and qualitative data. The results seem to indicate that the nurses were well prepared for this particular work. The nursing practice consisted of nursing victims of war and supervision / teaching of local nurses. The nurses had positive experiences from their work. The nurses acquired personal and professional skills from their work in war zones, but the results seem to indicate that their Norwegian employers just to a certain degree took advantage of these skills.