Try-It-On: Experiential Learning of Holistic Stress Management in a Graduate Nursing Curriculum

The aim of this article is to relate how nursing students in a graduate curriculum can learn, personally practice, and prepare to disseminate stress management strategies to patients. Advanced practice nurses often provide care for patients experiencing stress-related disorders while concurrently trying to manage their own high levels of stress. Through the innovative Try-It-On teaching-learning strategy, graduate students experimented with holistic stress management approaches, with the intention of sharing with patients what worked effectively. Student comments on course evaluations were positive regarding Try-It-On. In the pilot trial of a quantitative survey to expand the evaluation of the strategy, students who trialed holistic stress management techniques reported satisfaction, engagement, perceived relevance, and intention to trial techniques with patients in future clinical courses. Modeling role modeling theory and the Kirkpatrick evaluation model guided the project, which filled gaps in current knowledge about experiential learning in graduate nursing programs.