Not all nurse practitioners (NPs) start their career journeys knowing exactly who they will work with and support long-term. However, many NPs will work with young people at some point.
NPs are well-positioned to help university students learn to look after their health independently for the first time. Many university students will not have consulted a nurse or doctor before without being accompanied by their parents or guardians.
This means NPs have the important task of helping young people feel at ease when discussing health matters. Beyond that, NPs can support universities and the students who attend them in a few specific ways. This guide will closely examine some of their most important ways to help.
What is a nurse practitioner?
A licensed registered nurse practitioner has pursued additional studies to specialize in diagnosing and treating various people.
Sometimes, people mix up the difference between a PA and an NP. A PA is a physician assistant with duties and powers similar to an NP’s. However, they typically follow a very different route towards entering the workforce. Reputable institutions such as Wilkes University offer a range of degrees and certificates that allow students to learn about the precise work of a nurse practitioner and the benefits one can provide to individuals. An online Post-Graduate Certificate – Advanced Practice Registered Nurse prepares students to become licensed nurse practitioners. Students of this course will study topics such as advanced pharmacology, advanced pathophysiology, diagnostic reasoning, and health perspectives for culturally diverse, rural, and underserved populations.
A nurse practitioner might specialize in gerontology or work specifically with children. In between, many might choose to study and work specifically with young adults, such as those attending university for the first time.
How can nurse practitioners help university students?
As mentioned, living independently and attending university is a huge step for many young people. It’s likely to be their first time living away from their parents or guardians. With that in mind, there’s a lot they need to take control of if they want to be truly independent.
NPs working with universities and colleges can help educate young people and provide priority services they might not consider accessing independently.
NPs working in this capacity will have the chance to set young people on a route to healthy habits for life. There’s a lot for young adults to absorb at this pivotal stage of life. While it’s understandable that university students want to enjoy their first taste of independence and do well in their studies, it’s also important to learn healthcare basics to thrive long into adulthood.
Let’s look at a few specific ways that NPs can help college students build healthier outlooks on life and understand what to do if they have any medical concerns.
Tailoring healthcare guidance
Not all generic healthcare and awareness programs will apply to all university students. While programs such as those promoting safe sex and stress management techniques stand to benefit the majority of younger people, NPs working with universities have the opportunity to tailor specific healthcare advice to individual patients.
After all, people — especially those experiencing independent living for the first time — hate to feel patronized. This means NPs should avoid assuming all student patients they come across will need free contraception and advice on drugs and alcohol.
NPs are in a great position to listen actively to young people and recommend resources for each individual. They could, for example, set up open calls for free physicals, where students can attend clinics and openly discuss any concerns they have — leaving the choices up to the people who attend.
NPs could take time in these clinics to offer resources such as nutritional questionnaires and to refer people to mental health support if needed. Ultimately, at this sensitive stage in people’s lives, nurses and other healthcare professionals need to take their time, actively listen to what their patients actually need, and avoid making assumptions.
Supporting mental health
University life can be lots of fun, but it also includes an intensive workload, unlike anything most students experience at school. This makes it wise for NPs to provide mental health support and resources to students who need help navigating their new lives.
Mental health guidance can, firstly, help students acclimatize to their new deadlines and course expectations. They no longer have parents and teachers pressing them to complete their homework. They’re not quite on their own, but they’re at a point where they must manage their workload and set their timetable.
This can lead to many students feeling pressured. NPs can help by guiding them using breathing and mindfulness techniques, for example, to help ease stress and help them manage their thought processes. Many students find it beneficial to talk through their problems, which is where techniques such as those inspired by cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) can prove highly useful.
Many students will also make new friends and enter into their first relationships at college and university, which introduces a different set of thought processes and internal pressures they might need help with.
Again, NPs can help students think carefully about how they process challenges and talk to themselves. Even by providing simple exercises to practice between classes and coursework, NPs can ensure young adults have the skills to manage their feelings and complex life moments.
In cases where students need additional support to manage their mental health, NPs are ideally connected to various professionals and clinics should additional intervention be required.
Above all, NPS needs to help students manage their mental health to help erase the stigma that they need to apply themselves and carry on. Instilling healthy self-care practices now will help students evolve into well-rounded adults in a few years.
Educating and promoting healthy practices
Living independently for the first time, some students might not know how to look after themselves. One of the pivotal areas NPs can provide advice is regarding safe sex, particularly as many students will be exploring their sexuality for the first time when living independently and will benefit from advice about family planning and prevention of sexually transmitted diseases.
NPs can provide walk-in clinics and ensure students know they won’t be judged for any questions they must ask.
Educating young people at this stage can help prevent unwanted pregnancies, stem the spread of STIs, and even protect students against HIV.
Beyond sexual health, NPs can design educational programs around the importance of eating healthily and keeping recreational substance use to a minimum. Independent students will be planning meals for the first time in many cases, and some university students might feel pressured into taking illicit substances or drinking alcohol for the first time.
NPs can design awareness campaigns and run clinics where students can attend and discuss any problems they might be having with diet, exercise, and any substances they’re coming across at parties.
Finally, NPs can promote the wide-reaching benefits of managing one’s mental health through carefully designed campaigns and open clinics. They can ensure students know that it’s not worth sacrificing mental health over work, and while they need to hit targets and deliver coursework, there are ways they can do so without burning the midnight oil.
Providing advice on health insurance and assistance
Universities and colleges typically contribute towards student healthcare if they’re students on campus. However, this not only changes once they graduate in many cases, but students might also need to pay for healthcare accessed outside of the campus facility.
NPs may be able to prepare students for the financial aspects of healthcare if they’re pursuing treatment for the first time. If a student is diagnosed with a long-term condition that will require extensive care beyond what can be provided by the campus NP, they will need to know their insurance and coverage options in detail.
This isn’t a role all NPs have to play. However, when treating their patients at university or college, they might find it helpful to advise students on what to expect in the future.
Once again, the university experience will likely be the first time many students live and seek care independently. Those previously covered by their guardians’ or parents’ health policies might not realize how much they need to pay for treatment beyond university.
NPs can advise their patients that students will carry far beyond education.
Supporting chronic health conditions
There are always likely to be students who are balancing college life with managing chronic and often painful conditions. NPS must provide accessible care and support to young people requiring specialized treatment beyond generic clinics and physicals.
Chronic health conditions can not only impair educational performance but can also greatly impact one’s ability to lead a comfortable and healthy life. For example, conditions such as diabetes and epilepsy require significant life adjustments.
When working with students, NPs are in a great position to ensure their patients receive healthcare tips and guidance that will prove useful for years into the future. In the here and now, NPs’ support can help ensure students complete their studies without worrying about health concerns along the way.
Engaging with families
As much as university and college life will be about independence for young people, there should always be opportunities for NPs to communicate with family members if they see fit. For example, NPs might need to share health status and medication updates, which is particularly useful when a student has a chronic condition or long-term needs.
Families also have a right to know about the health programs and facilities, and awareness drives that NPs and university health services provide. Families can engage with colleges and NPs to ensure open communication between all parties.
This isn’t a case of going behind the backs of students; rather, it’s engaging the opinions and knowledge of those who care about them the most.
Collaborating on-campus
We’ve discussed NPs providing care to students throughout this article with some assumption that they will work alongside colleges or universities on-site. While educational bodies can work with external healthcare providers, having NPs on campus ensures students always have access to help when needed.
When NPs collaborate with colleges, they can work together to design health awareness programs and initiatives. Colleges might be able to recommend specific health services and physicals to first-year students who are just being initiated.
There’s also the matter of insurance and financial coverage. As mentioned briefly, colleges typically cover healthcare costs to an extent, though it is not set in stone as practice. However, by working on-site with NPs, colleges can offer their advice and guidance as part of the costs incurred by students to study in the first place.
Collaborating with NPs on campus also shows prospective students that their school or college genuinely cares about their well-being.
Conclusion
Young adults living away from home for the first time will likely crave the independence college life brings. However, they will likely need support along the way, at least until they acclimatize and develop life skills of their own.
NPs can help students learn how to care for themselves while offering a range of advice tailored to their specific stage of life. They might even inspire some students to embark on nursing careers or explore adjacent careers in social work.
NPs play a vital role in helping students help themselves — particularly regarding self-care, sexual health, and mental health protection. Students’ needs will vary from person to person, but simply being there is a great start.
