Effectiveness of suicidal prevention awareness program among GNM students in the Govt. AMT School, GMCH Jammu J&K UT India

Abstract

Background: First-year nursing students often go through pretty heavy mental pressure, they feel frustrated and the academic load is a lot, things they are not used to handling, and this has been linked to an increasing count of suicide attempts in this group. It feels like a fast growing global problem, that really needs quick attention.

Objective: The aim was to judge whether a suicide prevention awareness programme actually helps in raising knowledge among first-year GNM (General Nursing and Midwifery) nursing students, and also to note the main drivers that seem to contribute to suicidal conduct in this setting , so prevention strategies can be shaped in a better way.

Methods: A quasi-experimental setup with a single group was used, with a pre-test and post-test approach. We used a self made questionnaire based instrument to measure awareness of suicide prevention among GNM students. Data was obtained through a universal sampling method , and each participant took around 15–25 minutes to complete the form. After the pre-test, a structured teaching session about suicide prevention awareness was carried out. Then, later on, a post-test using the same questionnaire tool was done to check how well the intervention worked.

Results: In the pre-test phase, the findings showed that most participants had limited understanding of the reasons behind suicide , and a noticeable section also reported that they were open to self harm activities. After the awareness programme, the post-test results demonstrated a strong improvement in students’ knowledge on suicide prevention, so it suggests the intervention worked effectively.

Conclusion: In conclusion, this suicide prevention awareness program really did help, like noticeably, with the knowledge levels of first-year nursing students about suicide prevention. These results also suggest that its important to put structured awareness activities in place, so mental health barriers can be handled better and suicide risk among nursing students can be reduced.