Faculty survey of service-learning and its impact on nursing students

Abstract

Objective: Service-learning experiences (SLEs) help instill cultural competence and prepare nurses for practice with diverse populations in varied settings. This study describes SLE activities implemented by supervising nursing faculty, explores faculty opinions about the importance of those activities to uncover disparities between practice and values, and solicits faculty opinions about the impact of service learning on the students.

Methods: An online, quantitative survey collected data from faculty who lead SLEs in US nursing programs. 

Results: A total of 77 US nursing faculty from 32 states reported on SLEs, 23% of which were located outside of the US.  Pre-experiential, experiential, and post-experiential SLE discussion topics most often included the host community healthcare system, health and economic disparities, cultural norms, and benefits of the SLE. Religious beliefs, poverty tourism, racism, and privilege were discussed less often. Students participated in a variety of nursing-related activities onsite and nearly all faculty required follow up activities. Most faculty agreed that meeting the immediate needs of the host community, building sustainable partnerships with host community, addressing personal growth of the students, and discussing inequities are important aspects of an SLE, although actual implementation of those activities varied. Students feel “changed” after the SLE and become more likely to advocate for the vulnerable and underserved, but can also feel overwhelmed and harbor guilt about inequities.

Conclusions: Faculty report a wide range of discussion-based and hands-on activities in the pre-experiential, experiential, and post-experiential phases of the SLE. Overall, faculty believe that service learning positively impacts student development, but feelings of guilt and being overwhelmed can also persist after students return home.