Aim: To identify barriers to conducting and publishing research among nursing faculty members at Shaqra University, Saudi Arabia.Design: A qualitative descriptive design was used.Methods: This qualitative descriptive study was conducted on 12 nursing faculty members from two nursing colleges at Shaqra University, a public university located in Riyadh region, SA, under the supervision of the Ministry of Education. Data were collected between September and October 2021 using semi‐structured interviews and analysed thematically using content analysis.Results: Three themes emerged in the study, namely (I) individual/personal barrier, (II) institutional barrier and (III) external factors. Barriers to conducting and publishing research included lack of time due to a high teaching load and lack of administrative and financial support. The present findings suggest that nursing faculty members in SA are facing many barriers hindering them from carrying out and publishing research activities. Such barriers need to be urgently addressed through different strategies, including allocating facilities and funds for research, motivating faculty members towards research, and ongoing education and training on research.

Background: The learning process for nurses, including internships, was affected during the COVID-19 pandemic, which may have made the nurse internship program more challenging and stressful for participants. Therefore, it is significant to explore the experiences of nurse interns during COVID-19. Aim: This study aimed to explore Saudi nurse interns’ field experiences during the pandemic. Design: The study utilised descriptive phenomenological qualitative research and a thematic approach. Methods: A total of 19 nurse interns participated in the study, which was conducted in Saudi Arabia. Participants undertook an internship program at different government hospitals in five cities in Saudi Arabia. Unstructured individual interviews were conducted to gather data from the participants. Results: The findings revealed five themes: being passionate, lacking knowledge and skills, being concerned about their families, being cautious, and being unoriented. Conclusion: The study findings document that the struggles of nurse interns in their internship programs during COVID-19 were related to their lack of knowledge, their family, and the working environment.

Background: The effects of COVID-19 on the attitude of student nurses toward the nursing profession remain unclear because few studies have been conducted on this topic. Thus, this study examines the influence of the psychological effects of COVID-19 on student nurses’ attitudes toward the nursing profession and their desire to become nurses. Method: The study utilised a quantitative, cross-sectional, and observational design. It surveyed a convenience sample of 726 student nurses in Saudi Arabia during the first semester of the 2021–2022 academic year. Results: The students reported low levels of COVID-19 fear, anxiety, stress, phobia, and obsession. The students reported positive attitudes toward the nursing profession and 86.0% highlighted their desire to continue with nursing as their future profession. Gender, knowing someone infected with COVID-19, confidence in the government’s pandemic response, fear, anxiety, and phobia were significant predictors of the nurses’ attitudes. Community, family members in the profession, “COVID-19-related anxiety”, and “preference for the nursing profession” were significant predictors of the student’s desire to continue nursing. Conclusions: Living in a rural community, having family members in the nursing profession, having low levels of COVID-19-related anxiety, and having positive attitudes toward nursing increased the likelihood of nursing students continuing their nursing careers during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The aim of this study was to investigate the predictors of self-assessed and actual knowledge of diabetes among undergraduate nursing students. Nursing education plays an important role in preparing future nurses and ensuring that they are knowledgeable and competent in diabetes care. A descriptive, cross-sectional study was conducted with a convenience sample of 330 undergraduate Saudi student nurses. We collected data from October to December 2019 using the Diabetes Self-report Tool (DSRT) and Diabetes Basic Knowledge Tool (DBKT). We performed a multiple regression analysis to identify the predictors of self-reported and actual knowledge of diabetes. The students’ overall mean (SD) scores in the DSRT and DBKT were 48.31 (5.71), which is equivalent to 80.52% of the total score and 22.54 (8.57), respectively. The students’ university, gender, year level and experience in providing direct care to diabetic patients were the significant predictors of self-reported knowledge, whereas their university, age and perceived diabetes knowledge were the significant predictors of actual diabetes knowledge. The findings underscore the necessity to improve student nurses’ actual knowledge of diabetes and its management. Our findings provide a solid basis for planning and implementing educational interventions with diabetes-related information to ensure adequate diabetes knowledge among nursing students.

This multi-disciplinary, cross-sectional, and descriptive study investigated health care students’ face mask use knowledge, attitude, and practices (KAP) and social distancing attitudes. The study was carried out from October to December 2021 and surveyed 543 health care students selected via convenience sampling from the three Shaqra University campuses in Saudi Arabia. Standard multiple linear regressions were conducted on face mask use KAP and social distancing attitude to identify their significant associated factors. The students in this study had poor knowledge and a neutral attitude towards and modest use practices of face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic. Being female, being a nursing student, and having greater self-reported COVID-19-prevention knowledge were related to higher levels of face mask use knowledge. Having higher face mask use knowledge was linked to better attitude and practice. Knowledge of COVID-19 and its prevention and decreased COVID-19 risk perception were associated with better face mask use practices. The students had more positive than negative attitudes toward social distancing. Having known someone who was infected by the virus, lower risk perception, and better face mask use practices were associated with more positive social distancing attitudes. The findings imply the need to ensure that future health care practitioners are knowledgeable, have a positive attitude and good practices concerning face mask use, and have positive attitudes toward social distancing. The study implications are relevant for health care education in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere.