Paper
Friday, July 23, 2004
10:00 AM - 10:30 AM
Friday, July 23, 2004
3:00 PM - 3:30 PM
Nurses' Knowledge Retention and Patient Outcomes of a Clinically Based Nursing Education Program
Marinka Kocjan, RN, CNCC(C), MN, Critical Care: MSICU, Critical Care: MSICU, St. Michael's Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada
The impacts of clinically based education programs on nurses’ knowledge retention, nursing practice, and patient outcomes related to the implementation of a new patient treatment, Citrate Anticoagulant Therapy for Continuous Renal Replacement Therapy (CAT-CRRT), within critical care units have not been previously explored. Wakefield et al. (2000) note that the typical treatment error rate is 5% within critical care units and 8% within general ward units. Purpose: This descriptive study will examine the nurses’ knowledge retention and one patient outcome, the incidences of untreated patient metabolic imbalances, initially following the initial education session, as well as at three and six months post. Sample: Convenience sampling was utilized to acquire the sample of critical care nurses and the sample of patients from a medical-surgical intensive care unit within a tertiary care hospital. Methods: Nurses’ knowledge retention is measured through CAT-CRRT Challenge Tests. The total number of CAT-CRRT nursing interventions and incidences of untreated metabolic imbalances were identified through retrospective chart reviews. Results: The nurses’ mean knowledge retention scores (MKRS) declined over time. The nurses’ initial MKRS was 98%, the 3-month MKRS was 92%, and the 6-month MKRS was 87%. The incidence of patients’ untreated metabolic imbalance was 7% initially, 14% at 3-months, and 6% at 9-months post. Implications: The delivery of clinical education sessions impacts nursing practice and the delivery of safe and optimal patient care when implementing new complex patient care technologies. Recommendation: Ongoing longitudinal investigations of nurses’ knowledge retention and patient care outcomes following clinically based education sessions can be used to identify nurses’ knowledge gaps and potential patient treatment errors.
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Sigma Theta Tau International
July 22-24, 2004