The effect of stress management on the anxiety, depression and stress of nursing students in the first clinical experience

Nursing students are always exposed to various stresses, including educational, family, social and economic issues, which may have adverse effect on their academic performance and mental health. The purpose of this study was to investigate the effect of stress management on nursing students stress in their first clinical experience.
Methods & Materials: This quasi-experimental study was done in Arak University of Medical Sciences in 2016. Students entering first semester were considered as control group and second semester entrance as the experimental group. Totally 48 students entered the study by census method. The intervention group received the intervention (a 2-day stress management education for 4 hours). The control group did not receive any intervention. Stress was assessed in the two groups, four days before and at the end of the clinical experience using DASS 21. Data were analyzed by SPSS 21, using independent t test, paired t test, Mann-Whitney and Wilcoxon. Results showed that after the intervention, there was no significant difference in the mean score of anxiety and depression between the two groups (p=0.492 and p=0.057 respectively). But the mean score of stress after the intervention had significant difference between intervention and control groups (6.0±5.4 and 13.08±11.12 respectively, p = 0.008). The results show the effectiveness of stress management on the stress experienced by nursing students in their clinical education. It is suggested that stress management programs be considered for students before and during their clinical education.