The first clinical practice experiences of psychiatric nursing students: A phenomenological study

The purpose of this study was to evaluate student nurses clinical experiences during their first clinical contacts with psychiatric patients by using a qualitative phenomenological approach.

A phenomenological approach was used. Face-to-face interviews were conducted to collect data focusing on the reality of student nurses' experience.

This study was conducted at a university in the capital city of Turkey.

The participants were undergraduate nursing students. A purposive sampling of 15 students who had completed their first psychiatric clinical practicum was used in this study.

The data were collected by using unstructured interviews. The data were analysed by using Colaizzi's seven-step phenomenological method.

Four themes were identified: theoretical information insufficient to break the stigma; breaking down the mental illness stigma; communication: the medication of mental illness; and personal development.

At the end of clinical practice, stigma towards mental illness was reduced with empathy through the development of therapeutic relationships. The students stated that communication had a very important place in the treatment of mental illnesses and that psychiatric clinical practice helped them develop interpersonal relations. The results of this study can provide guidance for educators on the planning and development of clinical education.