BACKGROUND Little is known about the stress and burnout experienced by undergraduate and graduate nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Academic burnout among nursing students can have an impact on… Click to show full abstract
BACKGROUND Little is known about the stress and burnout experienced by undergraduate and graduate nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Academic burnout among nursing students can have an impact on students' learning ability, health, and wellbeing and on the quality of care and intention to leave the profession post-graduation. OBJECTIVES Evaluate the predictors of nursing students' personal, academic, and collaboration-related burnout during the COVID-19 pandemic. DESIGN Cross-sectional two-site study. SETTINGS Icelandic universities offering nursing education. PARTICIPANTS Graduate and undergraduate nursing students in Iceland (N = 1044) were asked to participate in the study, with a response rate of 32.7%. METHODS An online survey was used to evaluate the students' stress and burnout in spring 2020. RESULTS The main findings show that 51% of the variability in the students' personal burnout was explained by their perceived stress, mental health, and perceived support. Furthermore, the students' perceived stress, support, and educational levels predicted 42% of the variability in their academic burnout. Burnout related to collaborating with fellow-students was explained by the nursing students' physical health and by their educational level, explaining 6% of the variability in fellow-students burnout. CONCLUSION University administrators might consider adding academic support facilities into their undergraduate nursing programs and teaching their students healthy coping skills.
               
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