Family caregivers of people with mental disorders face a number of burdens and stressors, such as associative stigma and burnout. These burdens are often a result of their caring role coupled with insufficient support or ineffective coping strategies, which can affect their quality of life and biopsychosocial integrity that, in turn, may affect the care they provide. This study aimed to explore the experiences of family caregivers of people with mental disorders, through examining the burdens that they face and the coping strategies that they use. Using a descriptive qualitative approach, 13 semi-structured interviews were conducted with members of the Saudi public, recruited through popular social media platforms and analyzed using thematic analysis. Five main themes were constructed from the data: Type of care, Challenges, Coping and support, Perceptions of public awareness, and Messages to others. The findings emphasize the different types of burdens that caregivers experience, and their needs that require a range of responses such as educational training on effective coping strategies, and psychological support in the form of counseling or group therapy. This study highlights the voice of caregivers and their message to the public, in order to correct the misconceptions surrounding mental disorders and those associated with them.
Medication error is a multifactorial problem that mainly involves missing or bypassing the administration, which may have life-threatening impacts on the patient. Nevertheless, there is a dearth of information on medication errors among nurses in Saudi Arabia. This study investigates the knowledge and attitudes toward medication errors and their associated factors among nurses in Saudi Arabia. A cross-sectional study was conducted in four major public hospitals by recruiting a total of 408 nurses using cluster random sampling and proportional stratified sampling techniques. Data were gathered using an online self-administered questionnaire from January to March 2022. Descriptive statistics, Chi-square tests, and binary logistic regression models were performed to analyze the data. The prevalence of medication error among the nurses was 72.1%, only 41.2% were reported, while wrong doses (46.9%) were the most common type of medication error. Approximately 55% and 50% of the respondents demonstrated good knowledge and a positive attitude toward medication errors, respectively. The prevalence of medication error was associated with age groups of less than 25, and 25–35 years old, King Fahad and King Abdulaziz hospitals, no history of attending an MER training course, poor knowledge, and negative attitude. These findings reflect a high prevalence of medication error among nurses in Saudi Arabia, and the factors identified could be considered in mitigating this important health problem.
Introduction: Nursing students experience higher levels of stress than those in other health-related disciplines; however, there are limited data exploring stress among these students in a Saudi context. Aim: This study examines sources of stress among nursing students at an academic institution in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, using a descriptive quantitative cross-sectional research design. Methods: Data were collected from a convenience sample of 500 undergraduate nursing students, with a response rate of 71.8%, using an adapted Stress in Nursing Students (SINS) questionnaire. Results: Nursing student sources of stress fell into three categories: academic concerns, clinical practice, and social factors. Discussion: The results demonstrate commonality between other countries’ sources of stress for nursing students but highlight cultural factors unique to Saudi Arabia. This study shows opportunities for cross-cultural learning and areas needing cultural tailoring to reduce stress among nursing students.
Mental illness is not uncommon among young adults, but negative attitudes towards mental disorders and lack of parental support might be associated with hesitancy in seeking professional help. This study aimed to examine the relationships of parental support, beliefs about mental illness, and mental help-seeking among young adults in Saudi Arabia. This quantitative cross-sectional study included a convenience sample of 236 young adults (ages 18–25) with the majority of the total (86.4%) being female. Data were collected via three self-administered questionnaires: The Perceived Parental Support Scale, Beliefs toward Mental Illness scale, and Mental Help Seeking Attitude Scale. Results indicated that the participants had a moderately negative attitude toward mental illness, a moderately positive attitude toward parental support, and a highly positive attitude toward mental help-seeking. No significant relationships were found among the study variables. The study highlights that despite young adults’ positive attitude toward mental help-seeking and parental support, they have negative views toward people with mental illnesses. Educational programs in schools and media are needed to improve attitudes and enhance readiness to interact with people with mental illness.
Background: Nursing is considered to be a primarily female profession, particularly in Saudi Arabia, despite the fact that male nurses have contributed to the advancement of the nursing profession in various specialties, such as military nursing, mental health, and critical care. Purpose: We explore the factors influencing Saudi male nursing interns to study within the nursing profession in Saudi Arabia. Methods: A descriptive qualitative study was conducted. A convenience sample of 12 Saudi male nursing interns from different nursing colleges were recruited, alongside four hospital internship coordinators. The data were collected by conducting two semi-structured focus group interviews and four individual interviews. All the interviews were analyzed using a comparative analytical approach. Results: Role models and the role of the internship year were identified as factors influencing Saudi male nurses’ decision to study nursing. However, hospital placements, cultural preferences, and the preferences of patients and their families for female nurses were the key challenges encountered. Importantly, this study demonstrated that social media plays a critical role in raising awareness regarding the importance of Saudi male nurses. Conclusion: Awareness needs to be raised of the nursing profession as a gender-diverse field through volunteering programs for the community. It is recommended that Saudi male nurses act as role models for students in the Academic Orientation Forum and on social media.
Decision-making processes (DMPs) can be altered by several factors that might impact patient outcomes. However, nurses’ views and experiences regarding the multitude of personal and organizational factors that may facilitate or inhibit their decision-making abilities have rarely been studied. Purpose: To explore the personal and organizational factors that influence nurse DMPs in clinical settings at Ministry of Health hospitals (MOH). Method: A qualitative research design was conducted. A purposive sample of 52 nurses was recruited from general and critical wards in two major Ministry of Health hospitals in Hail, Saudi Arabia. A total of eight focus groups (semi-structured interviews) were conducted to elicit participant responses. Results: In this study, the personal differences covered nurses’ experience, physical and psychological status, autonomy, communication skills, values, and cultural awareness. Organizational factors included the availability of resources, organizational support, workload, the availability of educational programs, the availability of monitoring programs, and the consistency and unity of policies, rules, and regulation applications. Conclusions: The major contribution of this study is the comprehensive illustration of influential factors at both the personal level and the organizational level that impact DMPs to achieve desired outcomes for patients and health organizations. This study utilizes a framework that could explain the nature of nurse DMPs.