Akademik Veri Yönetim Sistemi
International journal of clinical practice, cilt.75, 2021 (SCI-Expanded)
Background The attitude towards the nursing is reflected in a person's behaviour within the nursing profession. Peers can help develop and refine emotional support skills through interpersonal relationships, thus also promoting mutual caring skills. The present study aimed to evaluate the impact of an internship on nursing students' attitudes towards nursing profession and peer caring behaviours. Methods This prospective observational study was conducted in nursing departments at two universities in Turkey. Totally, 293 nursing students (156 from the first university and 137 from the second university) were included in the study. The questionnaire, the Attitude Towards Nursing Profession Scale, and the Peer Caring Behaviour Scale were used to collect the data. In the first university nursing education, internship is implemented. Peer caring behaviours and their attitude towards nursing were evaluated before and after the internship. Results After the internship, the mean scores obtained from the Peer Caring Behaviour Scale and physical and emotional assistance sub-dimensions in the first school students increased significantly compared with the second school (P < .05), but no significant difference was found in terms of attitude towards the nursing profession (P > .05). Conclusion This study emphasizes that nursing internship positively affects peer caring behaviours. An internship can be added to the nursing education curriculum.