Perceived Stress and Coping Strategies among Nursing Students during the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Systematic Review

Abstract

Background and Objective: Stress is common among nursing students, especially during COVID-19, because of direct contact with patients, so they need to cope with the stressors. The aim of this systematic review was to assess the level of perceived stress and coping strategies by nursing students during the COVID-19 pandemic. Material and Methods: Databases such as MEDLINE, PubMed, ScienceDirect, Cochrane Library, and Web of Science were searched using keywords. The authors used keywords (perceived stress, coping strategies or resilience, and nursing students). The language was restricted to English. The studies, conducted between December 2019 and December 2021, were included. The full articles were checked for eligibility. The reference manager software EndNote X4 was used for sorting and managing studies. This systematic review was registered on PROSPERO with a number: CRD42021267791. Results: Five studies were included in this review: the first study, from the Philippines, showed that levels of stress and coping strategies were estimated to be 79% and 76.8%, respectively; the second study, from Saudi Arabia, found that the rate of stress among nursing students was 30.9% with several strategies for coping, while the other study from Saudi Arabia showed that the stress level is 1.32 (low stress) and 1.95 (moderate stress) with different coping strategies (avoidance 1.47, problem solving 2.09, stay optimistic 2.06, and transference 1.87); the fourth study from the USA showed that the rate of stress is high 24.7%, with high levels of resilience among nursing students; and the fifth study showed that the rate of stress is 20.94 in the UK and 21.54 in China, with a resilience of 26.70 in the UK and 25.18 in China. Conclusion: The current systematic review showed that nursing students have a high level of stress in all included countries (the Philippines, Saudi Arabia, the USA, the UK, and China), and they developed appropriate coping strategies to face the situation.