The effects of group reality therapy on general health among nursing and midwifery students

Background: Nursing and midwifery students experience high levels of stress, particularly during their clinical education. High levels of stress negatively affect general health. Reality therapy (RT) is a method with potential effects on stress. Objectives: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of group RT on general health among nursing and midwifery students. Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted in Autumn 2015 using a pretest-posttest design. Forty-six students were randomly allocated to an intervention (n = 23) and a control (n = 23) group. Participants in the intervention group received group RT in eight weekly sessions. The General Health Questionnaire was used for general health assessment both before and 1 month after the study intervention. The paired and the independent samples t- test and the Chi-square test were used for the data analysis. Results: There was no significant difference between the intervention and the control groups respecting the pretest mean score of general health (33.05 ± 14.91 vs. 30.34 ± 14.32; P = 0.528). However, the posttest mean score of general health in the intervention group was statistically significantly less than the control group (19.08 ± 10.27 vs. 29.39 ± 12.38; P = 0.004). Conclusion: Group RT can significantly improve general health among nursing and midwifery students.