The reality of perinatal bereavement comes to the classrooms of the School de Enfermería
Through real-life testimonials, third-year nursing students learn to connect theory and practice. internship
The University of Navarra has implemented different teaching methodologies to improve the training of students. Tools that help them connect different knowledge and skills so that they are able to respond to what society demands. A clear example of this is the initiative that professors Marta Vidaurreta and Ángela Carrizosa have implemented in the subject of Adult IV, the incorporation of patients in the classroom.
"When I programmed the class on nursing care in the face of gestational and perinatal loss, the simple theoretical exhibition of topic was not enough. It would be good to complete it with another resource!", says Prof. Carrizosa. In preparing the content of the class "we based ourselves on the fact that the real thing not only arrives, but stays".
Dr. Vidaurreta states that "one of my objectives was to bring reality to the classroom and have them hear first-hand what is explained theoretically". To this end, we worked previously with the guest, a former student of our School, on the content that the students had seen at class, so that her story would have connections with the theory and would be a pedagogical speech .
The students then interacted through a colloquium with the guests. They had the opportunity to ask about sensitive issues related to the experience of losing a child or the reactions generated in the family environment. This allowed them to consider situations prior to the real internship , thus developing curiosity and an attitude of active listening.
The guests at class were María Lucia and Raquel Besora. Maria agreed to give her testimony as a patient since she is the mother of a girl who spent a long time in hospital. "I wanted to convey that emotional support from nursing to the families of patients is a very valuable extra financial aid to overcome moments of crisis," she says.
Raquel, for her part, wanted to convey to them "the importance of good health care in the event of suffering a gestational or perinatal loss, both psychosocially and clinically, the impact on families when there is insensitive care, lacking emotional support and without autonomy in decision making".
And the objectives of both parties have been fulfilled, as Sara Serrano, a student who attended this session, affirms that "what I keep from these testimonies are two words: accompaniment and empathetic listening".