Date of Award/Publication

5-2017

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

M.S. in Advanced Practice Nursing

First Supervisor

Colleen Donegan

Second Supervisor

Nancy Wilk

Third Supervisor

Christine Nelson-Tuttle

Abstract

Background: Continuing education is fundamentally necessary to ensure ongoing competency of nurses in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU). There are many effective methods of continuing education, but there is a gap in continuing education for ICU nurses for high-risk low-frequency therapies (HRLFT).

Objectives: The purpose of this project was to determine if the implementation of Just-in-Time Education (JITE) for HRLFT in the Pediatric Intensive Care Unit (PICU) improved nurses’ feelings of competence, comfort, and safety when utilizing these interventions.

Methods: JITE checklists for nurses were developed for HRLFT in the PICU. The checklists were reviewed by the staff nurse and charge nurse when a nurse was assigned to a patient with a HRLFT. All nurses in the PICU received an email explaining the project and a pre-survey regarding their feelings of competence and comfort in regards to HRLFT before implementation of JITE checklists. Three months later the nurses received a post-survey addressing the same questions and questions regarding the effectiveness of JITE.

Results: Compared with baseline results, the post intervention survey showed nurses felt more comfortable and competent caring for patients receiving HRLFT. Nurses reported being more comfortable asking for education reinforcement and valued the one-on-one review time with the charge nurse. Eighty five percent of the nurses felt JITE should be continued and 15 percent were neutral.

Conclusions: The results of this study show that utilization of JITE provides a cost and time efficient method to ensure minimal competence for HRLFT in the ICU.

Download

Share

COinS