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The coronavirus pandemic has led to public and private outpourings of appreciation for nurses and doctors. In the UK, for instance, the Clap for Carers tribute, which started as an online campaign ...

© 2016 Informa UK Limited, trading as Taylor & Francis Group. Purposes: This study evaluated the experiences of undergraduate student nurses with highfidelity Human Patient Simulation Mannequins (HPSMs) and their perceptions of empathy. Methods: An exploratory case-study method was used to investigate the literature on empathy and the use of high-fidelity mannequins in nurse education. Two focus groups were conducted with eight third-year undergraduate nursing students in order to elicit responses to their experiences with HPSMs in their learning, especially in relation to empathy. Findings: Undergraduate nurses found it challenging when using HPSMs in the learning environment to relate to the mannequins as real. Students reported that in their experience, the use of mannequins was not conducive currently to the development of skills necessary for positive interpersonal development of the nurse–patient relationship. Conclusions: Focus group data and the empirical literature suggest that more research needs to be conducted into the use of mannequins in the development of nurse–patient interpersonal skills. Educators need to make evidence-based and pedagogically sound decisions about the use and limitations of HPSMs in undergraduate nursing.

Nurses have a crucial role in play in supporting parents and in delivering and referring parents to family-support services. In this editorial, we reflect on papers recently published in Contemporary Nurse. We sought to consider data-based papers on parenting published between 2008 and 2012 and elucidate the role/s and potential roles of nurses in enhancing and supporting parenting. Parenting is recognised as a crucial variable for achieving positive outcomes for children (Dawson et al 2012). Poor, inconsistent or abusive parenting is linked to poor outcomes (Griffin et al. 2000, Holt et al.2008, Patterson et al.1989), while consistent and effective parenting is associated with enhanced child outcomes (Lamb 2012, Landry et al.2001). In addition to being important to outcomes for children, perceived parenting quality is also important to parents themselves. Disrupted relationships between parents and their children have been identified as distressing and potentially damaging to both parties (Jackson 2000; East 2006, 2007; Power 2012).