Views and attitudes of nursing students towards
ageing and older patients
ABSTRACT
Objective
The objective of this study was to determine the views
and attitudes of nursing students towards ageing and
older patients.
Design
A qualitative approach with semi‑structured interviews
was used in this study.
Setting
Participants were selected from the students of a
nursing school in Ankara, Turkey.
Subjects
Five focus group discussions were held with 42
students of a nursing school. The sample for this study
was selected from second‑year bachelour of scince,
nursing (BSN) students. All of the participants were
female with a mean age of 21.09±0.97.
Results
According to the results of this study, 42.8% of the
participants had cared for an average of 7.46±4.57
older patients in hospital settings or homes for the
aged. Results of this study showed more than half of
the participants had negative views about ageing, but
the majority of participants reported they behaved
positively towards older patients and were sensitive
whilst caring for them. Most of the participants
indicated they had communication problems with their
older patients.
Conclusions
This study demonstrates similarities with other
international studies exploring nursing students’
attitudes towards older people (Lambrinou et al 2009;
Wang et al 2009; Burbank et al 2006; Hweidi and
Al‑Obeisat 2006; McKinlay and Cowan 2003). This
study was the first reported research undertaken
in Turkey, related to views and attitudes of nursing
students about ageing. This study will offer an insight
into new studies and educational programs about
ageing.