Nursing student attitudes toward statistics.

Nursing is guided by evidence-based practice. To understand and apply research to practice, nurses must be knowledgeable in statistics; therefore, it is crucial to promote a positive attitude toward statistics among nursing students. The purpose of this quantitative cross-sectional study was to assess differences in attitudes toward statistics among undergraduate nursing, graduate nursing, and undergraduate non-nursing students. The Survey of Attitudes Toward Statistics Scale-36 (SATS-36) was used to measure student attitudes, with higher scores denoting more positive attitudes. The convenience sample was composed of 175 students from a public university in the northeastern United States. Statistically significant relationships were found among some of the key demographic variables. Graduate nursing students had a significantly lower score on the SATS-36, compared with baccalaureate nursing and non-nursing students. Therefore, an innovative nursing curriculum that incorporates knowledge of student attitudes and key demographic variables may result in favorable outcomes.

Teaching population health and community-based care across diverse clinical experiences: integration of conceptual pillars and constructivist learning.

Nursing programs are challenged to prepare future nurses to provide care and affect determinants of health for individuals and populations. This article advances a pedagogical model for clinical education that builds concepts related to both population-level care and direct care in the community through a contextual learning approach. Because the conceptual pillars and hybrid constructivist approach allow for conceptual learning consistency across experiences, the model expands programmatic capacity to use diverse community clinical sites that accept only small numbers of students. The concept-based and hybrid constructivist learning approach is expected to contribute to the development of broad intellectual skills and lifelong learning. The pillar concepts include determinants of health and nursing care of population aggregates; direct care, based on evidence and best practices; appreciation of lived experience of health and illness; public health nursing roles and relationship to ethical and professional formation; and multidisciplinary collaboration.

Social support and anxiety in pregnant and postpartum women: a secondary analysis.

The purpose of study was to examine relationships between social support and anxiety in pregnant and postpartum women. Hypotheses were that there will be an inverse relationship between social support and anxiety in pregnancy and the postpartum. The sample consisted of 177 women. The Personal Resource Questionnaire (PRQ) 85-Part 2 and the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI) were used. The STAI demonstrated coefficient alphas from 0.90 to 0.93; 0.87 and 0.93 for the PRQ. All five hypotheses were supported--social support and state anxiety in pregnancy (r = -.308, p = .000) and trait anxiety (r = -.420, p = .000) and postpartum (r = -.497, p = .000) and social support and state anxiety in the postpartum (r = -.375, p = .000) and trait anxiety (r = -.276, p = .013). Findings are relevant to advance nursing theory, science, and practice. Nurses must understand these complex processes to effectively intervene.

Functional status after childbirth and related concepts.

The purpose of this study was to explore relationships between functional status after childbirth and related concepts. The sample consisted of 177 women. The Personal Resource Questionnaire (PRQ) 85-Part 2, the State Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI), and the Inventory of Functional Status After Childbirth (IFSAC) were used to measure variables. Data were collected during the third trimester of pregnancy and at 6 weeks postpartum. Overall, this group had relatively low levels of anxiety and high levels of social support and functional status after childbirth. The STAI demonstrated coefficient alphas from .90 to .93, the PRQ 85-Part 2 .87 to .93, and the IFSAC .90. The relationship between state anxiety in the postpartum period and FSAC (r = -.204, p = .008) was significant. Additional significant findings between social support, anxiety, and subscales of the IFSAC were found. Nurses must understand these relationships to develop and implement effective interventions. This study is clinically relevant to nurses involved in caring for pregnant and postpartum clients.

Comparison of outcomes in a traditional versus accelerated nursing curriculum.

In this descriptive study, graduates of a traditional baccalaureate nursing program were compared with graduates of an accelerated baccalaureate program at the same university between 1991 and 2006. A survey was sent to a random sample of two groups: traditional baccalaureate graduates and graduates of the accelerated program who had previous degrees in another major and completed the nursing curriculum in a shorter time frame than the traditional students, resulting in a total sample of 73 graduates. Outcome variables included demographics, NCLEX passing rates, transitioning to the professional role, employment, professional development, certifications and self-reported reasons the respondents entered the nursing profession and why they remained. There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups on these variables. Results of a t-test revealed that the GPA of the accelerated group was significantly higher than the traditional group. Future considerations include the impact that accelerated program development may have on both the current and projected nursing shortage.

Functional status after childbirth: a review of the literature.

The objective is to summarize the existing nursing literature on the concept of functional status after childbirth. Studies were selected by incorporating all existing published literature, including inquiry into functional status after childbirth as measured by the Inventory of Functional Status After Childbirth. The data were extracted from online nursing databases such as CINAHL (1982-present) and dissertation abstracts. Results of the literature review indicate the need for further development of functional status after childbirth and the instrument used to measure it, the Inventory of Functional Status after Childbirth. The author concludes that functional status after childbirth is a highly important nursing concept and further inquiry is needed to guide nursing practice.