Use of creative drama to facilitate the questioning of sexual expression by nursing students: a qualitative study

Abstract

To prepare future nurses in their providing of holistic care to patients, creative drama activities involving hands-on learning and experiential exercises are important in developing requisite skills. The aim of this study is to determine the effectiveness of education based on creative drama among nursing students, specifically in relation to facilitating discussions as to the expression of sexuality-an important aspect of patient care. A qualitative descriptive research design was employed in this study, therein utilizing semi-structured interviews as the data collection method. The dataset is comprised of field notes from interviews conducted with 16 students. Thematic analysis was employed to analyze the data and MAXQDA analysis software was used for data organization purposes. Five themes and twenty-one codes were identified. The themes which emerged from the data are; (1) the difficulties faced in questioning expressions of sexuality, (2) the factors which affect sexual care, (3) the feelings experienced by student nurses when taking patient histories, (4) the inclusion of creative drama in nursing education and (5) the perceptions held among student nurses towards the creative drama method. The 21 codes which emerged included cultural and social structures, the perception of sexuality as a private matter, gender discrimination, societal knowledge gaps, age-related concerns, patient hesitation, personal comfort when discussing sexuality, the encountering of negative reactions from patients, the ability to communicate comfortably, the comprehensive fulfilment of the caregiving role and the students' feelings of shame or boredom. Providing education as to the expression of sexuality, accompanied by creative drama activities, shall enable students to address and explore this challenging area and to provide holistic care.