Investigating how nurse education prior to and during Covid prepares nurses for the pandemic : an analysis of what works

The Covid-19 pandemic has changed the face of healthcare delivery and has placed ever changing demands on nursing care. This qualitative study will use audio, visual diaries or written diaries kept over four weeks of a clinical placement and telephone or on-line interviews at the end of the placement, to gather data from second and third year student nurses in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland. Student nurses will describe their experiences of education both before and during the pandemic (including between the first and second waves) and their experience of on-line learning, commenting on what went well and what could have been done better. They will also identify any transferable skills they acquired and how these may be used in nursing to provide optimal care throughout the different phases of the pandemic and beyond.The study will investigate the psychological wellbeing of student nurses and the extent to which their experience within the Covid pandemic influences their identities as nurses and their intentions to pursue a career in nursing.