Impact of a multimodal anatomy CPD course on intravenous cannulation skills – An Irish radiographers and radiation therapists’ perspective

Abstract

Radiographers and radiation therapists continually upgrade their knowledge to remain informed and competent in modern radiological imaging techniques. Despite the generally agreed upon significance of anatomy for successful interpretation of imaging modalities, its link with clinical performance of radiographers and radiation therapists has not been highlighted before. The above-stated gap in the literature was addressed by employing an anatomy-based CPD course and investigating its influence on intravenous cannulation and administration skills of 10 radiographers and 4 radiation therapists. The course comprised interactive anatomy tutorials (employing vascular histology e-modules and vascular prosections), lectures and simulation sessions to practice IV cannulation. Likert questionnaires were employed to gauge attitudes and interests, prior to and after the course. At the end of the course, participants perceived anatomy prosections/dissection more useful compared to other learning modalities, including social media, textbooks, e-learning, plastic models and lectures. This corresponded with a significant increase in their perceived level of anatomy knowledge and confidence in identifying structures on prosections, and tracing vessels on radiographs and body surface. Anatomy-based CPD course was valued with regards to their career progression and enhancement of anatomical knowledge. Furthermore, the use of prosections and hands-on practical sessions was highly commended and a desire to attend similar future courses was expressed. Lastly, participants identified factors facilitating or hindering course attendance and offered advice to improve efficacy of future courses. We conclude that an interactive anatomy-based CPD—employing multimodal pedagogies—can be effective in enhancing anatomy knowledge and clinical competence of radiographers and radiation therapists.