Educating Australian Registered Nurses in Comprehensive Health Assessment: A Pilot Study
Authors: Foster Kim N. , Lewis Melinda , Marshall Andrea , Lewis Peter 
Published: February 2013

How to Obtain Contact Hours by Reading this Issue

Instructions: 1.2
contact hours will be awarded by Villanova University College of Nursing upon successful completion of this activity. A contact hour is a unit of measurement that denotes 60 minutes of an organized learning activity. This is a learner-based activity. Villanova University College of Nursing does not require submission of your answers to the quiz.

A contact hour certificate will be awarded once you register, pay the registration fee, and complete the evaluation form online at
https://villanova.gosignmeup.com
.

In order to obtain contact hours you must:

1.
Read the article, “Educating Australian Registered Nurses in Comprehensive Health Assessment: A Pilot Study,” found on pages 155–162, carefully noting any tables and other illustrative materials that are included to enhance your knowledge and understanding of the content. Be sure to keep track of the amount of time (number of minutes) you spend reading the article and completing the quiz.

2.
Read and answer each question on the quiz. After completing all of the questions, compare your answers to those provided within this issue. If you have incorrect answers, return to the article for further study.

3.
Go to the Villanova website to register for contact hour credit. You will be asked to provide your name, contact information, and a VISA, MasterCard, or Discover card number for payment of the $20.00 fee. Once you complete the online evaluation, a certificate will be automatically generated.

This activity is valid for continuing education credit until
March 31, 2015.

Contact Hours
This activity is co-provided by Villanova University College of Nursing and SLACK Incorporated.
Villanova University College of Nursing is accredited as a provider of continuing nursing education by the American Nurses Credentialing Center’s Commission on Accreditation.

Objective

Upon completion of this article, the learner will have reviewed the findings of a pilot study related to the education of Australian registered nurses in comprehensive health assessment and clinical judgment.

Disclosure Statement
Neither the planners nor the authors have any conflicts of interest to disclose.

Background:
Physical and mental health problems are interconnected, and registered nurses need to be competent in performing comprehensive physical and mental health assessment. This article reports on a pilot evaluation of education in comprehensive health assessment and clinical judgment for registered nurses enrolled in a master of nursing program.

Methods:
Observation and interview data were collected from nine teaching staff and students.

Results:
Analysis resulted in three themes: reconstructing specialty knowledge, integrating revised knowledge into practice, and expanding practice. Students and staff navigated a process of deconstructing existing specialty knowledge and reconstructing knowledge to incorporate a revised understanding of comprehensive assessment. Although there were barriers to implementing this process in practice, students reported that their extended understanding expanded their assessment practices and influenced some colleagues’ practices.

Conclusion:
There is a need for continuing education in comprehensive health assessment for registered nurses as well as investigation of the translation of this knowledge into practice.

J Contin Educ Nurs
2013;44(4):155–162.