The Effect of a Training Program (Retention) on the Clinical Competence, Self-Efficacy, and Occupational Stress of Undergraduate Students of Anesthesia: The Transition from Studenthood to the Clinical Workforce

Ali  Khalafi; Shahla Assadi  Hovyzian; Nooshin Sarvi-Sarmeydani

doi:10.18502/aacc.v11i1.17486

Ali Khalafi Department of Anesthesiology, School of Allied Medical Sciences, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran.
Shahla Assadi Hovyzian Department of Anesthesiology, School of Allied Medical Sciences, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran.
Nooshin Sarvi-Sarmeydani Department of Anesthesiology, School of Allied Medical Sciences, Ahvaz Jundishapur University of Medical Sciences, Ahvaz, Iran.

DOI: https://doi.org/10.18502/aacc.v11i1.17486

Keywords: Clinical competence; Transition; Occupational stress; Self-efficacy; Nurse anesthesia students

Abstract

Background: Transferring students from university to the workplace due to facing many challenging and stressful factors is one of the important stages that, if the educational authorities do not pay attention, it leads to low efficiency and an increase in the number of resignations from the workplace, which leads to financial and human losses for the system. Purpose: Investigating the effect of a training program on the clinical competence, self-efficacy, and occupational stress of Anesthesiology undergraduate students, in their transition from the studenthood to the clinical workforce.

Methods: In this prospective longitudinal semi-experimental study, all final-year undergraduate and newly graduated students of anesthesia studying at AJUMS, Ahvaz, Iran (60 people) were included in the study and were divided into two groups by a simple random method. The intervention consisted of an educational-supportive program called retention that was applied to the intervention group and lasted for 6 months. The required data in both groups were examined by nurses' competence questionnaires (CIRN), stress and job self-efficacy through pre- and post-tests. Chi-square, independent t and paired t tests were used to analyze the data.

Results: After the intervention, the two groups were significantly different in terms of clinical competence (P=0.020) and work self-efficacy (P=0.001). The results of the paired t-test of occupational stress in the intervention group showed that the difference between the pre-test and post-test scores was statistically significant. (P = 0.036)

Conclusion: Implementation of the intervention (the retention program) in the intervention group was effective in terms of clinical competence, self-efficacy, and occupational stress of the students after graduation.