Fostering nursing student resilience

Abstract

The purpose of this quality improvement project was to identify components of resiliency and create a solution to develop senior-level nursing student resilience. Assessment of Location X nursing school highlighted the need to identify components, tools, and measures of seniorlevel nursing student resiliency. The American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) cites the importance of the development of nursing student wellbeing and resilience in the 2021 Essentials Domain 10 titled Personal, Professional and Leadership Development. The AACN further advocated for resiliency development during a 2020 Call to Action of United States nursing programs to promote and create a culture of wellness and resiliency among nursing students. The "Thriving in Nursing School" workshop was developed as a solution to equip students with the necessary tools, practices, and skills to develop resilience. The workshop consists of five evidence-based components: relaxation strategies, coping techniques, communication skills for problem solving, community and university resources available, and faculty mentorship. Formal focus and education about resilience has the potential to increase resiliency skills and was measured using the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC-10). It was hypothesized that resiliency-development quality improvement implementation will contribute to further development of nursing students' resiliency skills to meet the demands of the nursing profession. Through a focus on student wellbeing and resiliency, this project has the potential to increase student success and improve skills to thrive in a rigorous education program. This quality improvement project was implemented to gather data and analyze workshop efficacy.