Digital eye strain and academic performance among level 3 student nurses in a selected University in Iloilo City

Abstract

Due to the requirement to establish online learning during the quarantine period in this COVID-19 pandemic, the use of digital devices has increased significantly. Currently, as Covid 19 cases gradually decrease, online education shifts into the new norm known as blended learning, which combines face-to-face classroom experiences with online learning. As a result, students are still using gadgets to attend their online classes, work on their assignments, take quizzes using an online platform called Canvas, and even study for extended periods of time using their gadgets as their e-books or reviewers. This research aimed to determine the digital eye strain and academic performance among level 3 student nurses at a selected University in Iloilo City. With a total of 172 respondents, aged around 21 - 25 years old enrolled in the Nursing Department of Central Philippine University for the academic School Year 2022-2023. Using a descriptive and correlational quantitative design, an online survey was used to examine the profile of the respondents in terms of age, sex, and eye modifiers, digital eye strain, and academic performance. The completed questionnaire was collected, and the data were analyzed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) through frequency distribution, Gamma, Cramer’s V, descriptive statistics, and Spearman’s Rho. The findings highlighted the relationship between digital eye strain and academic performance. Based on the data analysis and findings, the researchers concluded that there was no significant relationship between age and digital eye strain among student nurses in a selected private university. However, significant relationships were identified between sex and digital eye strain, as well as between eye modifiers and digital eye strain, among these student nurses. Conversely, age, sex, and eye modifiers did not exhibit a significant relationship with academic performance. Importantly, digital eye strain was found to have a significant relationship with the academic performance of level 3 student nurses at a selected private university in Iloilo City. The prominent symptoms that the respondents experienced are headaches 'always', tearing 'often', eye pain 'occasionally', and double vision 'never'. In terms of intensity, the prominent symptoms that the respondents experienced are increased sensitivity to light 'intense', headache 'moderate', and feeling of a foreign body 'low'. As shown in the results, respondents with digital eye strain are mostly likely to be affected in their academic performance.