Open Access
ARTICLE
Challenges and Growth as a Mental Health Professional from Volunteering Experiences in the Community Gambling Awareness Campaign
So Yeon Yoo1, Yun-Jung Choi2,*, Youn-Joo Um2,*
1 Department of Nursing, Kyungil University, Gyeongbuk, Korea
2 Red Cross College of Nursing, Chung-Ang University, Seoul, Korea
* Corresponding Authors: Youn-Joo Um. Email: ; Yun-Jung Choi. Email:
International Journal of Mental Health Promotion 2020, 22(2), 83-91. https://doi.org/10.32604/IJMHP.2020.011299
Received 01 May 2020; Accepted 10 June 2020; Issue published 16 June 2020
Abstract
As the demand for high-quality mental health services increases,
producing expert nurses with the skills and expertise to deal with various complex
mental health situations involving diverse subjects is critical. Nursing programs
should be prepared to provide education that can improve mental health
professional competence. Using a qualitative study and focus group interviews,
we focused on the experiences of nursing students who voluntarily participated in
campaign activities to prevent gambling problems. The respondents were 23
nursing students who participated in the campaign for more than four months. Data
were analyzed using Downe-Wamboldt’s eight steps of content analysis. The
experiences of the participants were integrated into the theme of challenge and
growth for a mental health professional with five sub-themes: challenging for an
active nursing student, committing to gambling awareness campaign club activity,
promoting interpersonal relationships, improving problem-solving skills, and
developing a mental health professional identity. Planning and implementing
various volunteer activities, in addition to the existing regular curriculum in
nursing education, will provide a foundation for nursing students to become good
nurses and ultimately help produce competent mental health professionals.
Keywords
Cite This Article
Yoo, S. Y., Choi, Y., Um, Y. (2020). Challenges and Growth as a Mental Health Professional from Volunteering Experiences in the Community Gambling Awareness Campaign.
International Journal of Mental Health Promotion, 22(2), 83–91. https://doi.org/10.32604/IJMHP.2020.011299