Nursing Students’ Views Toward Fostering Hope in Healthcare Practice

Abstract

Nursing students experienced a range of situations during their clinical placements, particularly inconfronting patients’ health and illness. It is, however,not clear how hope is fosteredin healthcarepractice by the nursing students.This study exploresBruneian nursing students’ perception offosteringhope in healthcare and how they managed their experiences. This study used a descriptive qualitativedesign.A total of twenty-seven students were interviewed in five focus-group discussions. Data wereanalysed using content analysis. Students identified three broad themes: hope offers emotional support,fostering individualised hope,and shared responsibility by the team. There was broad consensus amongthe students that fostering hope is an important aspect of providing emotional support to the patients. Thefindings indicate that nursing students are cognisant of the greater value of providing an individualisedhope for each patient. Simultaneously, the students recognise the value of shared responsibility bythe healthcare team to nurture hope in healthcare context.With these findings, it is recommended thatstudents receive further support to learn and be sensitive to the language of hope, given the importanceof hope in healthcare practice.