Georgia Nursing Students Teach Stress-Reducing Habits to Firefighters

Students from the Georgia State University School of Nursing Associate Degree Program, Perimeter College, have been teaching stress-reducing habits to firefighters as part of their clinical training. This is the second year that Perimeter College students have been able to fulfill their clinical requirements through training other healthcare professionals.

With long shifts and hectic schedules, firefighters often need reminders and tips to stay healthy. Georgia State nursing students have been fulfilling their clinical hours by teaching stress-reducing habits to firefighters, including yoga. They also host community events like an upcoming community healthcare fair which will be open and free to the public to learn tips on taking care of your health.

Perimeter College nursing students are required to complete 180 hours of hands-on clinical service as part of their registered nurse training. Valencia Freeman, the instructor who oversees clinical rotations, and Lynda Goodfellow, professor and associate academic dean for academic affairs in the Georgia State University School of Nursing, wanted to create new opportunities for students to get experience beyond the bedside.

Nursing programs have expanded to meet the workforce demands, but the number of available clinical sites and preceptors to provide needed teaching experiences in the hospital setting has not increased. George State University’s nursing programs found a unique way to address this challenge.

Goodfellow tells News.GSU.edu, “We have to think more and more outside the box to provide the quality of education students expect — so we’re not just in a hospital setting. We are working in skilled nursing facilities and health clinics, in doctors’ offices — and in fire stations.”

To learn more about the new avenues Georgia nursing students are taking to fulfill their clinical requirements, visit here.