Korean J Women Health Nurs.  2018 Dec;24(4):379-391. 10.4069/kjwhn.2018.24.4.379.

Nursing Students' Experience of Sexual Harassment During Clinical Practicum: A Phenomenological Approach

• Kim M
• Kim T
• Tilley DS
• Kapusta A
• Allen D
• Cho HS

• KMID: 2429689
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.4069/kjwhn.2018.24.4.379

Abstract

PURPOSE
To describe nursing students' experience of sexual harassment during clinical practicum.
METHODS
An interpretive phenomenological qualitative approach was used to understand contextual experiences of participants. Individual in-depth interviews were conducted to collect data from thirteen nursing students who experienced sexual harassment during clinical practice in general hospitals at D metropolitan city. All interviews were recorded and transcribed into Korean and English. Transcripts were analyzed using the data analysis method described by Diekelmann, Allen, and Tanner.
RESULTS
The following 12 themes emerged from the data: "˜unprepared to respond', "˜lack of education', "˜unsure about when behavior crosses the line', "˜power differential for nursing students', "˜balancing self-preservation with obligations to patients', "˜shame', "˜feeling responsible for not being able to prevent the harassment', "˜impact on patient care', "˜fear of what might have happened', "˜fear of repercussions', "˜long term impact', and "˜peer support'.
CONCLUSION
Participants in this study described feeling an obligation to care for their patients. However, they seemed to be unable to balance this while feeling vulnerable to sexual harassment with strong negative feelings. Helping students recognize and effectively deal with sexual harassment is a critical element to assure quality learning for participants and maintain quality of care during clinical practice.

Keyword

Sexual harassment; Nursing; Students; Qualitative research

MeSH Terms

Hospitals, General
Humans
Learning
Methods
Nursing*
Preceptorship*
Qualitative Research
Sexual Harassment*
Statistics as Topic
Students, Nursing

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