Paper
Wednesday, 19 July 2006
This presentation is part of : Palliative Care Issues and Studies
End of Life Nursing Care: A Survey of Nurses' Educational Needs
Maura C. Schlairet, RN, MSN, Doctoral Candidate, Valdosta State University, College of Education, Department of Curriculum and Instructional Design, Valdosta Anesthesia Associates, P.C, Valdosta, GA, USA
Learning Objective #1: Recognize and describe characteristics of RN generalists that may affect the provision of EOL nursing care.
Learning Objective #2: Interpret and illustrate specific EOL nursing care continuing education needs of RN generalists.
Abstract A decade after release of the 1995 SUPPORT study, improvements in end of life (EOL) care are apparent. Notwithstanding improved dialogue focused on EOL care, recent evidence suggests persistent shortcomings in our ability to meet the needs of the dying. Registered Nurses must possess the knowledge/skill to assist patients and families in managing health across all stages of life, including the EOL phase. A significant percentage of nurses have not received formal EOL nursing care education. Of further concern, deficiencies in existing EOL care education have been well described. Insufficient information exists on specific EOL care educational needs of practicing RN generalists. Few surveys exploring educational needs of these RNs have been available and no large scale utilization of any one instrument has been identified. To aid in development of EOL continuing education (CE) for RNs, a descriptive survey was published in a quarterly newspaper and mailed to all RNs in one southeastern state to explore EOL care attitude/belief, knowledge/skill, prior education, and learner characteristics. The accessible population consisted of 51,000 licensed RNs, who were employed part/full-time. Analysis was based on review of 567 returned surveys (1.1%). Reliability was assessed with calculation of coefficient alpha of 0.96 across three survey sections. Bimodal distributions were observed in analyses of “workplace appropriateness” and “desire for education” scores across 23 EOL care topics. T-tests revealed nurses with prior EOL CE scored significantly better across all survey sub-sections than nurses without prior CE; nurses who received formal EOL instruction during initial nursing education failed to score better on objective knowledge/skill questions than nurses without formal EOL education. Regression analyses revealed predictors for better “workplace appropriateness” and “desire for education” scores including: multiple purposes for seeking EOL education, positive EOL care attitude/belief, caring for more EOL patients, and willingness to improve care through education.

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