Caught between care and the heart: Exploring the influence of work-integrated learning (WIL) on perceptions of dating-related stress among South African nursing students: A qualitative inquiry.

BACKGROUND: Work-integrated learning (WIL) forms the foundation of nursing education, enabling nursing students to translate theory into practice within real clinical environments. While WIL improves competence and professional identity, it is also associated with increased academic, emotional, and time-related demands. OBJECTIVE: Explore South African nursing students about dating-related stress while engaged in integrated work learning at a selected university. METHODS: A qualitative, exploratory, and descriptive research design was employed to gain in-depth understanding of the experiences of nursing students. A nonprobability purposive sampling method was used to recruit students who were actively engaged in work-integrated learning within an accredited nursing program. Data were collected through digital reflective journals, allowing participants to document their perceptions related to dating and clinical training over time. Reflective entries were uploaded and managed using NVivo software version 12. Qualitative data were analyzed using Tesch's open coding approach, allowing the systematic identification, categorisation, and interpretation of emerging patterns and meanings. Rigour was ensured through strategies of credibility, dependability, confirmability, and transferability. RESULTS: Three themes emerged: relationship maintenance challenges, social interaction difficulties, and work-integrated learning demands. Nursing students reported that long hours, night shifts, and fatigue eroded emotional availability and reduced affection in romantic relationships. Time constraints and inflexible schedules led to instability in relationships, social isolation, and dependence on mediated communication. Participants struggled to balance academic demands with intimacy, often prioritising WIL at the expense of dating. CONCLUSIONS: Work-integrated learning profoundly shapes the dating experiences of nursing students, often intensifying dating-related stress through time constraints, fatigue, and emotional unavailability. Integrating relationship-sensitive and psychosocial support within nursing programs may promote holistic student well-being and relational resilience.