End-Of-Life Psychodrama: Influencing Nursing Students' Communication Skills, Attitudes, Emotional Intelligence And Self-Reflection

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to determine if nursing students' communication skills, attitudes towards caring of the dying patients, emotional intelligence, and reflection change after a psychodrama group intervention. Methods: A pre/posttest design was utilized with a psychodrama intervention group and a control group during a Mental Health Nursing course. The study was set in Fairfield University (USA) with approximately 390 traditional undergraduate nursing students. A convenience sample of eighty-four nursing students was invited to participate in the study. Thirty-eight of those students participated in the intervention group and 41 participated in the control group. All participants in the control and intervention groups were asked to complete the demographic information, process recordings, Frommelt Attitude Toward Care of the Dying Scale, Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional Intelligence Test, and Self Reflection and Insight Scale at the beginning and end of the psychodrama intervention. Results: There was a statistically significant difference in communication skills, attitudes towards the care of the dying, and self-reflection between the intervention and control groups. There was no statistical difference in total and branch emotional intelligence between the intervention group and control groups. Conclusion: The study highlighted the value of psychodrama as a strategy that can enhance nursing students' communication skills, attitudes towards dying patients, and reflection. Such an intervention has the potential to ultimately improve the quality of care for end-of-life patients and their families.