NURSE ASSISTANTS IN NURSING HOMES: THE IMPACT OF TRAINING ON ATTITUDES, KNOWLEDGE, AND JOB SATISFACTION.
Contributors: University of Akron.
Published: 1993
Number of pages: 201
Subjects: Sociology, Industrial and Labor Relations.; Gerontology.; Education, Vocational.
Description: As the proportion of Americans who are elderly continues to increase, issues related to long-term care become ever more important. Official recognition of this fact is reflected in recent federal legislation which requires, for the first time, that nurse assistants employed in nursing homes undergo training intended to assure that they are qualified to provide care for the frail elderly. However, although the general content of such programs has been outlined in the federal legislation, the manner in which individual states have implemented these training programs has varied from state to state. Further, there have been very few attempts to evaluate the effectiveness of those programs that currently exist. This study reports on the evaluation of the Ohio Teaching Network, a training program which was designed to provide nurse assistants with the skills they need to perform their duties successfully. The sample was drawn from nurse assistants employed in nursing homes in Ohio. Before and after measures were taken on variables expected to be affected by the training program: attitudes toward the elderly, knowledge about the elderly, perceived need to know how to perform specific care tasks, perceived knowledge of how to perform specific care tasks, tested knowledge of how to perform specific care tasks, and job satisfaction.

The t-test analyses indicated significant changes in the mean scores between time 2 and time 1 in nurse assistants' attitudes toward the elderly, their perceived knowledge of how to perform care tasks, their perceived need to know how to perform care tasks, and their tested knowledge of how to perform care tasks. Multivariate regression analyses also showed significant effects between changes in nurse assistants' perceived need to know how to perform care tasks and their perceived knowledge of how to perform care tasks, change in job satisfaction and change in their satisfaction with the staff. The findings suggest that completing this training program has a significant impact on nurse assistants' knowledge.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 54-03, Section: A, page: 1111.

Thesis (PH.D.)--THE UNIVERSITY OF AKRON, 1993.

School code: 0003.