Secondary Traumatic Stress in Baccalaureate Nursing Students: A Pilot Study.

Background: Nursing students completing clinical training are at risk for secondary traumatic stress (STS) development; however, STS measurement in students is limited. The purpose of this pilot study was to gather preliminary evidence of STS prevalence and severity in nursing students and determine its relationship to personal and clinical learning environment factors.

Method: A descriptive, correlational multimethod pilot study design was used. One hundred twenty-three baccalaureate nursing students participated in the study. Descriptive and inferential statistics and thematic analysis were used to evaluate the data.

Results: Fifty-six percent of the sample reported moderate to severe STS; 24% of the participants met preliminary posttraumatic stress disorder criteria related to secondary trauma exposure. STS correlates and qualitative findings are also reported.

Conclusion: Given students' trauma exposure both personally and clinically, nurse educators should implement trauma-informed educational strategies. Further exploration of STS is warranted with additional nursing student populations. [J Nurs Educ. 2025;64(7):445-448.].