Nursing

Professor helps students de-stress . . . with exercise

Stressed Out Nurses Weekly, May 14, 2007

Masoud Ghaffari, PhD, RN, MT, an assistant professor in the college of nursing at East Tennessee State University, had an idea to combine education and exercise. In an effort to reduce stress and improve physical and emotional health, Ghaffari decided to offer students in his pathophysiology course extra credit in exchange for short essays. So, what was the catch? The students had to write about the effects of physical activity after participating in three, 30-minute exercise sessions a week for 12 weeks. Ghaffari took some time and gave us some insight into his exercise program:

To achieve our goals, we work hard, study hard, and make our best efforts. But sometimes it seems we are not getting that far. Why is that? This was the impetus for conducting research studies to explore "why this is happening" and why my students were stressed out, tired, gaining weight, falling asleep during class, and socially isolated. Teaching and interacting with my nursing students, and conducting research to learn from students, allowed me to explore many pieces of the puzzle: Lack of or inadequate physical activities, unhealthy diet, inadequate sleep and rest, being shy, and an overall lack of self-care. This raised the question, how can we care for others when we cannot care for ourselves?

I realized that my students could benefit from an effective health promotion program. Student nurses are already overworked and overstressed, therefore, I thought, "We need a supplemental program that is fun, doable, and can deliver the most benefits."

"What do you think about such a program?" I asked my students. Many answered negatively: "I don't have time," "I have to study," or "I don't like to be seen sweaty," to name a few. My response was, "How about exercising for extra points?" This is a good motivator for students since they always want to achieve the highest grade possible in the course. Using this approach changed many (about 85%) of the students' minds. And this was the start of the exercise program for our junior nursing students.

For more of this story (plus a whole lot more!), please click here.

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