Determinants of the Impact of Fatigue on the Health of Polish Nursing Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

(1) Lockdown-related fatigue occurring during the COVID-19 pandemic is a complex problem that can be experienced in different social groups. The objective of the current study is to attempt to identify socio-demographic and lifestyle-related factors that determine the impact of fatigue on health in general as well as in physical, cognitive, and psychosocial terms and to determine whether, and to what extent, these were predictors of fatigue in nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. (2) The study was conducted by the diagnostic poll method between 20 March and 15 December 2021 among 894 nursing students at six Polish universities. To collect the data, a validated Modified Fatigue Impact Scale (MFIS) was used. (3) Students from the age group of ≤20 experienced a significantly greater impact of fatigue on health in general as well as in physical and cognitive terms. The study demonstrated a significant negative relationship between the year of study and the impact of fatigue on health in general terms (r = -0.12; p < 0.0001) and the analyzed health terms, on physical (r = -0.12; p < 0.0001), cognitive (r = -0.10; p < 0.002), and psychosocial (r = -0.07; p < 0.041). In predicting the impact of fatigue on health in general and physical terms, it was the variable related to a reduction in physical activity during the COVID-19 pandemic that had the greatest contribution, while for the cognitive and psychosocial functions, it was the number of meals consumed per day. (4) It is recognized that action is needed to reduce the impact of fatigue on student health by modifying the predictors related to student lifestyles.

Positive Orientation and Fatigue Experienced by Polish Nursing Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Mediatory Role of Emotional Control.

This study aimed to investigate the mediatory role of emotional control with respect to the control of anger, depression, and anxiety in the relationship between positive orientation and tiredness/fatigue occurring in a group of Polish nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study included 894 nursing students from six universities in Poland. A diagnostic survey was applied as the research method, and the data were collected using the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), the Courtauld Emotional Control Scale (CECS) and the Positive Orientation Scale (SOP). The mean participant age was 20.73 years (SD = 1.81). More than half of the students in the study showed a low level of positive orientation. Correlational analyses revealed a significant negative correlation between positive orientation and tiredness/fatigue experienced by the students participating in the study (r = -0.336; p < 0.001), and correlation between positive orientation and the overall emotional control index (r = -0.317; p < 0.001), and the indices of control of anger (r = -0.154; p < 0.01), depression (r = -0.376; p < 0.001), and anxiety (r = -0.236; p < 0.01). Analysis of the results also revealed the occurrence of significant, positive links between the controlled emotions and their components and the tiredness/fatigue experienced by nursing students. It is important to take action associated with the prevention of tiredness/fatigue among students and to reinforce a positive orientation and the capacity to control emotions to effectively minimize the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on nursing students.

Health Behaviours among Nursing Students in Poland during the COVID-19 Pandemic.

(1) Background: An individual's health status can be perceived as a consequence of their health behaviours. This research aimed to determine the intensity of health-promoting behaviours and to identify factors determining the health behaviours of nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. (2) Methods: This study included 894 nursing students from six universities in Poland, and it was conducted between 20 March and 15 December 2021. A diagnostic survey was applied as the research method, and the data were collected using the Health Behaviour Inventory and the Satisfaction With Life Scale. (3) Results: Nearly half of the students participating in the study (48.43%) declared that the intensity of their general health behaviours was low. A positive and significant correlation (r = 0.426) was found between general health behaviours and satisfaction with life. A regression model demonstrated general satisfaction with life to be a predictor of taking up health-related behaviours (18%; ß = 0.34), as well as in terms of proper eating habits (4%; ß = 0.15), prophylactic behaviours (6%; ß = 0.21), positive mental attitudes (26%; ß = 0.44) and applied pro-health practices (10%; ß = 0.25). (4) Conclusions: Most nursing students showed low levels of health-promoting behaviours. More research is needed on health behaviours and their determinants among nursing students, as it may be important in explaining the mechanisms of health behaviour formation.

Loneliness and Optimism among Polish Nursing Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Mediatory Role of Self-Efficacy.

(1) The COVID-19 pandemic is a global epidemic crisis situation with negative health consequences. This study aimed to determine the mediatory role of self-efficacy in correlations between dispositional optimism and loneliness (both general loneliness and social and emotional loneliness) among Polish nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. (2) The study involved 894 students from six Polish universities. A diagnostic survey was used as the research method, and the Scale for the Measurement of Loneliness Scale (DJGLS), Life Orientation Test (LOT-R), and the Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES) were used to collect data. (3) The mean subject age was 20.73 years (SD = 1.81). More than half (51.01%) of the respondents scored high on the GSES scale, indicating an individual's belief in the self-efficacy in coping with difficult situations and obstacles. However, 40.60% scored low on the LOT-R scale, indicating that the respondents were pessimistic. The mediation analysis revealed that self-efficacy plays a partial mediatory role in correlations between dispositional optimism and loneliness in general, social and emotional loneliness. (4) It is important to undertake loneliness prophylactic and prevention activities among nursing students and to develop personal resources, i.e., optimism and self-efficacy, to effectively offset the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Loneliness and Optimism among Polish Nursing Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Mediatory Role of Self-Efficacy

(1) The COVID-19 pandemic is a global epidemic crisis situation with negative health consequences. This study aimed to determine the mediatory role of self-efficacy in correlations between dispositional optimism and loneliness (both general loneliness and social and emotional loneliness) among Polish nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. (2) The study involved 894 students from six Polish universities. A diagnostic survey was used as the research method, and the Scale for the Measurement of Loneliness Scale (DJGLS), Life Orientation Test (LOT-R), and the Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale (GSES) were used to collect data. (3) The mean subject age was 20.73 years (SD = 1.81). More than half (51.01%) of the respondents scored high on the GSES scale, indicating an individual's belief in the self-efficacy in coping with difficult situations and obstacles. However, 40.60% scored low on the LOT-R scale, indicating that the respondents were pessimistic. The mediation analysis revealed that self-efficacy plays a partial mediatory role in correlations between dispositional optimism and loneliness in general, social and emotional loneliness. (4) It is important to undertake loneliness prophylactic and prevention activities among nursing students and to develop personal resources, i.e., optimism and self-efficacy, to effectively offset the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Positive Orientation and Fatigue Experienced by Polish Nursing Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic: The Mediatory Role of Emotional Control

This study aimed to investigate the mediatory role of emotional control with respect to the control of anger, depression, and anxiety in the relationship between positive orientation and tiredness/fatigue occurring in a group of Polish nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study included 894 nursing students from six universities in Poland. A diagnostic survey was applied as the research method, and the data were collected using the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), the Courtauld Emotional Control Scale (CECS) and the Positive Orientation Scale (SOP). The mean participant age was 20.73 years (SD = 1.81). More than half of the students in the study showed a low level of positive orientation. Correlational analyses revealed a significant negative correlation between positive orientation and tiredness/fatigue experienced by the students participating in the study (r = −0.336;p < 0.001), and correlation between positive orientation and the overall emotional control index (r = −0.317;p < 0.001), and the indices of control of anger (r = −0.154;p < 0.01), depression (r = −0.376;p < 0.001), and anxiety (r = −0.236;p < 0.01). Analysis of the results also revealed the occurrence of significant, positive links between the controlled emotions and their components and the tiredness/fatigue experienced by nursing students. It is important to take action associated with the prevention of tiredness/fatigue among students and to reinforce a positive orientation and the capacity to control emotions to effectively minimize the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on nursing students.

Sense of coherence and strategies for coping with stress among nurses.

BACKGROUND: The nursing profession is associated with constant presence of difficult situations and stress, which arise from responsibility for the highest values - human life and health. With demographic changes in the society, the demand for nursing care increases. Looking after the health of nursing staff becomes a non-material investment in employees. One of the most important health potentials described in literature is the sense of coherence. It can significantly contribute to maintaining good health, modify one's functioning in a stressful working environment and influence the choice of strategies for coping with stress. AIM: The aim of the study was to describe the specific relationship between the sense of coherence and strategies for coping with stress in a group of professionally active nurses. METHODOLOGY AND METHODS: The study involved 91 nurses in central Poland, aged 22-52. The group was diversified in terms of: education, work system, marital status and place of residence. The study was conducted with the use of: Sense of Coherence Questionnaire SOC-29 and Inventory to Measure Coping Strategies with Stress - Mini-COPE. The study was conducted in accordance with the principles of scientific research set out in the Helsinki Declaration. RESULTS: The sense of coherence value in the test group was M = 134.24 (SD = 19.55). In stressful situations nurses most often used active strategies to cope with stress: Planning M = 2.10 (SD = 0.54), Seeking Emotional Social Support M = 1.95 (SD = 0.68) and Seeking Instrumental Social Support M = 1.95 (SD = 0.69), and the least frequently: Alcohol/Drug Use M = 0.28 (SD = 0.48). The level of the sense of coherence and its components differentiated the strategies of coping with stress used in the examined group of nurses. CONCLUSIONS: The research confirmed that the sense of coherence serves as a health potential in a stressful working environment - a high sense of coherence translate into better mental health, correct functioning in the working environment, and using adaptive strategies of coping with stress. Nurses with a stronger sense of coherence used more adaptive strategies to deal with stress than those with average or low levels.