LEARNING NEEDS, OPINIONS ABOUT MANDATORY CONTINUING EDUCATION, AND PROGRAM ATTENDANCE OF NURSING HOME NURSES IN EASTERN IOWA.
Contributors: University of Iowa.
Published: 1984
Number of pages: 239
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: In 1983, a survey was conducted in eastern Iowa among nursing home nurses who had participated in mandatory continuing education for four years. The purposes of the study were to describe and analyze (a) their general learning needs with an emphasis on four common health problems of nursing home residents; (b) the differences between studiers' and nonstudiers' self-rating of need and score on a test of knowledge for each specified topic; (c) the types of continuing education programs nurses used for licensure renewal; (d) their opinions about mandatory continuing education, including reasons for participation; and (e) their demographic characteristics. A questionnaire, using both forced-choice and open-ended questions, served as the research instrument. Data were analyzed using the SAS procedures FREQ and MANOVA.

The findings showed that this population of nurses had similar learning needs and that the priority needs were identified from problems occurring frequently in the practice setting. Studiers--continuing education program, inservice, or self-study--rated their learning need the same as or greater than nonstudiers. Studiers scored slightly higher than nonstudiers on a test of knowledge.

The nurses held generally favorable opinions about mandatory continuing education. Some of the findings related to their reasons for attendance at particular mandatory continuing education programs parallels the studies done in voluntary continuing education. Self-reports about the effects of mandatory continuing education on their nursing practice, professional development, and personal life revealed many positive benefits from mandated program attendance. The negative effects experienced were also identified.

Analysis of the programs attended for licensure renewal revealed that nurses primarily attended programs that were job-related, that the average nurse earned more credit than required for relicensure, that nurses did not attend several programs on the same topic, and that with each succeeding licensure period, nursing home nurses attended more programs that were geriatric specific in content.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 45-07, Section: B, page: 2099.

Thesis (PH.D.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF IOWA, 1984.

School code: 0096.