Globally, around half (55%) of the population live in fast‐paced urban settings where many people find it challenging to manage their stress and respond to crises with a positive mindset. This resulted in prolonged distress where anxiety and fatigue caused physical and mental health concerns. Nature walks involving immersive exposure in the forest, and green spaces have been posited to offer physiological and psychological benefits. Therefore, in this systematic review, we evaluated the effects of forest bathing on psychological and physiological outcomes. We searched four English and five non‐English databases (Chinese and Korean) for peer‐reviewed studies published between January 2000 and March 2021. This review adhered to the recommendations of the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta‐analysis Statement 2020. The primary outcomes explored in this review were mainly psychological, including anxiety, depression, mood and quality of life. The secondary outcomes were physiological outcomes such as blood pressure and heart rate. We conducted a meta‐analysis on each outcome using the random‐effects model. Heterogeneity was assessed by the I² statistic. Thirty‐six articles (21 in English, 3 in Chinese and 12 in Korean) with 3554 participants were included in this review. Our meta‐analysis suggested that forest bathing can significantly reduce symptoms of depression and anxiety. However, we did not observe as many benefits in physiological outcomes. Against the background of the negative effects of urbanization on mental well‐being, this review highlighted the potential therapeutic role of forests in the contemporary world, lending further evidence‐based support for forest conservation.

We aim to explore the perceptions of registered nurses undergoing the advanced practice nurse preparatory programme and of advanced practice nurses towards the recruitment of men into the advanced practice nursing workforce. Given the need to expand and diversify the advanced practice nursing workforce, it is important to recognize the potential implications of gender disparity. It is critical to understand why few males are recruited into the advanced practice nursing preparatory programme and to determine whether gender‐related bias is present in the professional development of nurses. We use a descriptive qualitative design. Semi‐structured interviews were conducted via Zoom (April to August 2021). Three themes were generated: ‘The odds are eventually in the favour of men’, ‘The APN career‐track is unpopular among men’, and ‘Balancing the gender gap in the APN workforce’. All themes are supported by three subthemes. Although males in nursing enjoy opportunistic advantages in entering the advanced practice nursing workforce, they are not interested in the role and not staying long enough in the nursing profession to become advanced practice nurses. Nurse managers should be more cognizant of the different social stereotypes faced by males and females in nursing. With such awareness, they can be more supportive and less biased in career counselling and job appraisals.