Design of A Cancer Learning Needs Survey: A Tool for Identifying Learning Needs of Staff Caring for Cancer Patients in an Acute NHS Trust

Abstract

This short report describes a cancer learning needs survey tool that was designed as part of a cancer learning needs analysis conducted within a large National Health Service (NHS) teaching trust. The cancer learning needs analysis was conducted in response to the recommendation “that all health care professionals involved in cancer care receive appropriate training and continuing professional development (CPD) through development of training/CPD strategies” [1]. In addition, the provision of education and training to health care staff is expensive, with the annual NHS investment in education and training reported to be over £2.5 billion [2]; therefore, the purpose of the survey tool was to ensure the delivery of cost-effective education and training to support the lifelong learning needs of staff and subsequently improve standards of care for cancer patients in an acute hospital trust. A previous study (data not shown) identified that patients with cancer were cared for throughout the organisation and not just in oncology units. Furthermore, Wood [3] proposed that if we are to provide safe and optimal care to patients with cancer at all stages of the disease, then specialists and non-specialist staff of all disciplines would benefit from support and training in cancer issues. Thus, the survey tool was developed to analyse the learning needs of staff employed throughout the trust (approximately 5,500 health care staff). Hughes [4] developed a qualitative training needs analysis toolkit to assess learning needs of NHS staff; however, this tool was designed to be implemented at the level of the department rather than across a large organisation. Therefore, a mixed method tool was developed to conduct a large-scale cancer learning needs analysis. The survey tool included questions that asked respondents to gauge their confidence in knowledge and skills in caring for patients with cancer. Respondents could select one of four possible levels of confidence for each question, which would generate categorical data that could be analysed using the chi-squared test to identify significant learning needs. Questions were composed following a study of complaints made by cancer patients and their families/carers between April 2003 and June 2005 (data not shown), which identified two key issues concerning competence in practice: communication skills and knowledge of cancer treatments and their side effects. The tool was developed in consultation with key health care professionals, acknowledged herein. Following consultation with the organisation’s clinical audit team, a proposal of the survey method, together with a draft of the survey tool, was presented to the project steering group, and suggested amendments were made. The revised survey tool was then presented to the organisation’s Cancer Nurse and Allied Healthcare Professionals’ Forum; peer review comments were welcomed, and minor amendments were made (Fig. 1). Preliminary findings from a pilot study (data not shown) indicate that the questionnaire is an effective tool for identifying the learning needs of staff working with cancer patients in an acute hospital setting; the questionnaire is Supported by: Macmillan Cancer Support, UK