Carrie J. McNamer
Health equity is a major concern when providing nursingcare for patients from diverse populations as they havebeen found to be more likely to experience health disparities(Kaiser Family Foundation, 2016). Nursing schoolshave incorporated varied teaching strategies to increasestudent nurse awareness of the health disparities experiencedby people living in poverty. One such strategy,called ‘Welcome to the State of Poverty’ uses creativesimulation techniques to produce a unique, live actionlearning event (MACA, 2010). Quantitative researchhas established that participant do show an increase inknowledge regarding poverty issues after the activity, however,findings related to empathy levels are inconsistentand suggest the possibility that the activity might increasenegative stereotypes (Drevdahl, 2013; Reid & Evanson,2016).This research employed the use of interpretive phenomenologyto explore the lived experience of nursing studentsas they participated in, and reflected upon, a poverty simulation.Eight registered nurses enrolled in a bachelor’sdegree completion program were interviewed about theirexperiences. Thematic analysis of transcribed interviewsrevealed three essential themes, and three subthemes.
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