Continuing Education Class Research Articles

Continuing education for systematic reviews: a prospective longitudinal assessment of a workshop for librarians.

ObjectiveThis prospective, longitudinal study explored the impact of a continuing education class on librarians’ knowledge levels about and professional involvement with systematic reviews. Barriers to systematic review participation and the presence of formal systematic review services in libraries were also measured.MethodsParticipants completed web-based surveys at three points in time: pre-class, post-class, and six-months’ follow-up. Descriptive statistics were calculated for demographics and survey questions. Linear mixed effects models assessed knowledge score changes over time.ResultsOf 160 class attendees, 140 (88%) completed the pre-class survey. Of those 140, 123 (88%) completed the post-class survey, and 103 (74%) completed the follow-up survey. There was a significant increase (p<0.00001) from pre-class to post-class in knowledge test scores, and this increase was maintained at follow-up. At post-class, 69% or more of participants intended to promote peer review of searches, seek peer review of their searches, search for grey literature, read or follow published guidelines on conduct and documentation of systematic reviews, and ask for authorship on a systematic review. Among librarians who completed a systematic review between post-class and follow-up, 73% consulted published guidelines, 52% searched grey literature, 48% sought peer review, 57% asked for authorship, and 70% received authorship.ConclusionsAttendance at this continuing education class was associated with positive changes in knowledge about systematic reviews and in librarians’ systematic review–related professional practices. This suggests that in-depth professional development classes can help librarians develop skills that are needed to meet library patrons’ changing service needs.

A Program to Enhance Writing Skills for Advanced Practice Nurses.

Advanced practice RNs (APRNs) make important contributions to scholarly journals that are derived from scientific evidence and clinical practice. This article presents a writing program designed to enhance the writing skills of APRNs with a series of online modules, a workshop, and a manuscript checklist. The writing program was implemented in a Doctor of Nursing Practice program and evaluated with a writing self-efficacy scale and open-ended questions. Findings indicate self-efficacy was high after the writing program, and participants found the checklist to be useful. This program has potential as a course in a nursing school's curriculum or as a continuing education class. Participants can use the program's tools to maintain their writing skills and enhance publication success throughout their careers. [J Contin Educ Nurs. 2019;50(3):109-114.].

Emotional Reactions to War: What's in a Name?

Edited by Jacquelyn H. Flaskerud, RN, PhD, FAANSchool of Nursing, University of California, Los Angeles, California, USAA lecture at a university continuing education class drew my interest for its...

Teaching Teachers from Standards to Lessons

Funds from Wisconsin Space Grant Consortium were used to provide scholarship stipends to upper elementary and middle school teachers, enabling them to take a continuing education class through the University of Wisconsin-Green Bay Education Outreach Program and/or participate in workshops sponsored by Crossroads at Big Creek. The objective of the class and workshops was to help teachers gain content knowledge and develop lessons aligned with the proposed Next Generation Science Standards.

Outcomes of a Continuing Education Course on Intravenous Catheter Insertion for Experienced Registered Nurses

Many experienced nurses report a lack of confidence in their intravenous (IV) catheter skills despite training with a phlebotomist and designated orientation time with the IV team. This study assessed the success of an IV catheter insertion continuing education class aimed at improving experienced nurses' skills levels, confidence, and knowledge regarding IV catheter insertion, maintenance, and infection prevention. Through a partnership between a hospital and a college of nursing continuing education program, a 1-day course was provided for 33 experienced nurses. The educators sought to determine whether a continuing education course improved the knowledge and skills of experienced nurses regarding the insertion of peripheral IV catheters and whether the nurses retained the knowledge and skills learned in a formal IV course over time. The findings showed that the continuing education IV course improved the knowledge and skills of experienced nurses. Improvement in knowledge was shown immediately after the course and 8 to 12 weeks later. Skills improvement with regard to infection prevention and policy adherence was evident. Because confidence data were collected with two different scales before and after the course, they were unusable for statistical testing. Further study is needed to determine whether nurses' confidence levels would improve after the implementation of a formal IV course. Replication studies are also needed to validate the results with a larger sample size.

Tai Chi Exercises Benefit Even Oldest Adults

Tai Chi Exercises Benefit Even Oldest Adults

The Effects of the Gatekeeper Suicide-Awareness Program for Nursing Personnel

This study evaluates whether a short training program can improve nurses' abilities to recognize and effectively respond to patients exhibiting suicidal behavior. The study is a randomized controlled trial. Ninety-eight nurses in the experimental group attended the regular monthly continuing education class and a 90-min Gatekeeper Suicide-Awareness Program. Ninety-seven nurses in the control group only attended the regular monthly continuing education class. Before and after the different educational interventions, all the nurses were asked to complete a questionnaire to link demographic data and to access their awareness of suicide warning signs and their responses if encountering a potentially suicidal individual. Nurses who participated in the Gatekeeper Suicide-Awareness Program were much more aware of suicide warning signs and more willing to refer patients for professional counseling. We suggest that nursing personnel's continuing education include a training program for suicide prevention.

Cultural Competence of Healthcare Professionals Caring for Breastfeeding Mothers in Urban Areas

Breastfeeding is strongly influenced by cultural considerations. Therefore, culturally competent healthcare professionals can provide more appropriate breastfeeding support and information. The purpose of this study was to measure the general cultural competence of healthcare professionals caring for breastfeeding mothers in an urban area. Healthcare professionals involved in the care of breastfeeding mothers in New York, NY were surveyed utilizing Campinha-Bacote's Inventory for Assessing the Process of Cultural Competence Among Healthcare Professionals-Revised (IAPCC-R) and a demographic data instrument. Of 141 surveyed healthcare professionals, 128 completed the questionnaire. There were 18 physicians, 69 nurses, and 41 other allied health professionals in this sample. Of those surveyed, 76% reported a majority of their clients' cultural background differed from their own, 56% had studied cultural diversity in school, and 68% had attended a continuing education class on the subject. The mean score on the IAPCC-R was 68 +/- 9, which is culturally aware on Campinha-Bacote's continuum of culturally incompetent, culturally aware, culturally competent, and culturally proficient. There was no statistical difference in IAPCC-R scores whether or not the respondents had attended courses in school or worked with a more diverse population. Professionals who had attended continuing education courses on cultural diversity had significantly higher total scores (69 +/- 9 vs. 65 +/- 7, P = 0.021) and scores for cultural skill (14 +/- 2 vs. 13 +/- 2, P = 0.002) and desire (17 +/- 2 vs. 16 +/- 2, P = 0.011). Twenty-three percent of the participants achieved a score of cultural competence. They were more likely to have attended continuing education courses on cultural diversity (31% vs. 7%, P = 0.0003). The majority (77%) of healthcare professionals caring for breastfeeding mothers in urban areas did not achieve a score of cultural competence.

Medical Librarian 2.0: Use of Web 2.0 Technologies in Reference Services

Health sciences librarians have widespread interest in Web 2.0 technologies and the ways they can be utilized in health sciences libraries. Mark Funk, AHIP, 2007/08 president of the Medical Library Association (MLA), with his theme “Only Connect” and the appointment of the MLA Task Force on Social Networking Software, has highlighted this interest. Recognizing this interest, MLA sponsored a webcast, “Web 2.0 Principles and Best Practices: Discovering the Participatory Web,” and an online continuing education class, “Web 2.0 101: Introduction to Second Generation Web Tools.” M. Sandra Wood, AHIP, FMLA, noted in her introduction, “By the time this volume is published, newer technologies will have appeared as the Web is constantly changing” (p. 2). However, this text will serve both as a primer for those health sciences librarians who are just exploring the topic and need a foundation and as a source of ideas for those ready to implement some of the technologies. Chapter authors of this text are well known in the field of health sciences library technology, and many of them are bloggers on technology topics. A variety of Web 2.0 topics are discussed, including Web 2.0 librarianship, virtual reference services, and use of really simple syndication (RSS), podcasting, streaming video, content management, wikis, and mash ups. Some essays include research results on the use of the technology. Illustrations or screen shots are also included to clarify the issues presented, software names, and references for further analysis. It should be noted that some of the essays are very technical, for example, the chapter on streaming video and the explanation of the architecture of content management systems. This was the one drawback in a text that otherwise provides fundamental information. Wood is the editor of several Haworth journals of interest to health sciences librarians as well as of numerous books for the publisher. She has thirty-five years of experience as a medical reference librarian and is an active member of MLA and the Special Libraries Association. She is a Distinguished Member of the Academy of Health Information Professionals, is a Fellow of MLA, and has served on MLA's Board of Directors. It is noted that the material was copublished simultaneously in Medical Reference Services Quarterly, volume 26, supplement number 1. However, this supplement is not included in the subscription cost of the journal. Although some of the authors have published on similar topics, the material seems to be new for this supplement. An index is included not only to the technologies, but also specific software and technology implementation examples. As Wood notes in the introduction to the book, “Web 2.0 technologies facilitate libraries getting the right information to the right user at the right time” (p. 3). This text will provide the foundation and examples to help health sciences librarians move in that direction.

Using Implementation Intentions to Teach Practitioners: Changing Practice Behaviors via Continuing Education

This study evaluated the effectiveness of implementation intentions on increasing the use of a practice behavior among mental health practitioners who attended a one-day continuing education class. Seventy-eight practitioners were randomly assigned to one of two classes on psychiatric advance directives. One class incorporated instruction in implementation intentions (N=40) and the other class did not (N=38). Implementation intention training involved having the participants describe the best time and place to use a practitioner-guided procedure to assist consumers to complete a psychiatric advance directive. Use of the practitioner-guided procedure was the dependent variable in this study. Use of the procedure in practice was assessed three months after the class via an electronic self-report survey. There were no statistically significant differences between the two class conditions in participant characteristics or preclass or postclass knowledge of and intentions to use the procedure. Fifty-four participants (69%) responded to the three-month follow-up survey, indicating that they had used the practitioner-guided procedure. The results of the follow-up survey showed that overall those attending the class that incorporated implementation intentions used the practitioner-guided procedure significantly more often than those in the other class (80% versus 58%). The effect of implementation intentions on utilization of the practitioner-guided procedure was evident among practitioners whose postclass intentions were high but below the median for the overall sample (chi(2)=7.1, df=1, p<.01). Implementation rates among practitioners with the highest post-class intentions were equivalent in the two class conditions. Incorporating implementation intentions into continuing education classes can increase the use of practices taught in these classes among well-motivated practitioners.

The Theory of Planned Behavior Applied to Continuing Education for Mental Health Professionals

This study evaluated the effects of a continuing education class that applied the theory of planned behavior to the intentions and behavior of mental health practitioners. In 2006 a total of 94 mental health practitioners were randomly assigned to either a standard continuing education class or one that applied principles of the theory of planned behavior. The class topic was a brief, self-report tool that assesses felt need for employment among people with serious mental illnesses. Participants' intentions to apply the tool were evaluated before and after each class. Participants' implementation of the tool was measured three months after the class. The class guided by the theory of planned behavior significantly and substantially increased the participants' intentions to use the tool in comparison with the standard class. Significantly more participants in the theory-guided class than in the standard class (74% versus 42%) had applied the tool by the three-month follow-up. Among those who implemented the assessment tool, the participants in the theory of planned behavior class also assessed significantly more of their caseload. The theory of planned behavior can improve and may be well suited to continuing education in psychiatry.

The Theory of Planned Behavior Applied to Continuing Education for Mental Health Professionals

This study evaluated the effects of a continuing education class that applied the theory of planned behavior to the intentions and behavior of mental health practitioners.In 2006 a total of 94 mental health practitioners were randomly assigned to either a standard continuing education class or one that applied principles of the theory of planned behavior. The class topic was a brief, self-report tool that assesses felt need for employment among people with serious mental illnesses. Participants' intentions to apply the tool were evaluated before and after each class. Participants' implementation of the tool was measured three months after the class.The class guided by the theory of planned behavior significantly and substantially increased the participants' intentions to use the tool in comparison with the standard class. Significantly more participants in the theory-guided class than in the standard class (74% versus 42%) had applied the tool by the three-month follow-up. Among those who implemented the assessment tool, the participants in the theory of planned behavior class also assessed significantly more of their caseload.The theory of planned behavior can improve and may be well suited to continuing education in psychiatry.

Racist Film: Teaching The Birth of a Nation

Racist Film:Teaching The Birth of a Nation Paul McEwan (bio) The Birth of a Nation (D. W. Griffith, 1915) is all too seldom taught in film studies classes, given its centrality to the development of narrative film and its usefulness as an extreme filmic example of racial misrepresentation. I teach the film in my introductory class, in film history, in film theory, and in a special topics class on historical fiction films. While the film is the focus of my research and a text I find endlessly fascinating and disturbing, it obviously presents numerous challenges in a film classroom because of its virulently racist content. It is also a three-hour silent film that can be difficult to fit into screening schedules and challenging for entry-level students who generally have no experience with silent film. But the payoffs for teaching the film are well worth its challenges, and not because it is some kind of "classic" that needs to be appreciated. The film is one of the most effective tools I have for teaching ideological analyses of film, for understanding audience reception, and for considering the ways in which films can "tell" history. Preparation is, of course, key for this film, since students need to be at least somewhat aware of what they are about to see. I tell them that this is a central text in the history of cinema, and that it brought together many of the techniques of narrative filmmaking that Griffith and others had been developing. At this point in the semester, my students have seen a range of silent films, have been taught the concept of the cinema of attractions, and are aware that Hollywood narrative techniques did not spring into existence fully formed. I also warn them that the film is one of the most racist things they will ever see, that it was the subject of protests in 1915, and that the history it purports to tell is an extremely biased one. Some kind of balance is essential to this introduction, which I provide in class beforehand and in a handout that they receive by e-mail before the screening. In general, it is more important that they are prepared to see the film as racist rather than as a formal masterpiece, so that is what I emphasize. All of our screening choices are, on some level, endorsements of a given film–unless we go out of our way to convince the students otherwise. Students naturally assume that there is some lesson to be learned from each film, and in this case that lesson is primarily about racism and not about the history of silent cinema. There is a risk, though, to overemphasizing the film's racism. In a continuing education class I taught at Northwestern some years ago, I had a much more diverse group of students than I have had in any of the more traditional classes I have taught since—a diversity of races, ages, and social backgrounds. Since I was trying to be careful about the racism in the film, and wanted to make it clear that I was not endorsing it, I explained more of the context at the beginning, including [End Page 98] the fact that the film had been used as a recruiting film by the KKK.1 At the end of my introduction, one African American student asked me "why do we have to watch a Klan recruiting film in this class?" Her question got at the heart of my reasons for using this film. I backtracked somewhat, explaining more about its significance as a milestone of narrative, and also about my motivations for providing a lesson in the particularities of early twentieth-century racism and the centrality of mediated images to that racism. She was moderately satisfied with the answer, but there was no escaping the fundamental issue: as an African American woman living in Chicago, she did not need any lessons in racism, least of all from me, a white Canadian ten years her junior. My primary reason for teaching this film—to give students a sense of the depths of American racism—does not apply to every student. Even a...

MO‐A‐T‐6C‐01: Managing Respiratory Motion in Radiation Oncology

Intrafraction motion is an issue that is becoming increasingly important in the era of image‐guided radiotherapy. Intrafraction motion can be caused by the respiratory, skeletal muscular, cardiac and gastrointestinal systems. Of these three systems, much research and development to date has been directed towards accounting for respiratory motion. Respiratory motion causes deleterious effects during the imaging, planning and delivery of radiation therapy. The management of respiratory motion in radiation oncology is the subject of this continuing education class which aims to advise medical physicists involved in the external beam radiation therapy of patients with thoracic and abdominal tumors that move due to respiratory motion. This session will describe the magnitude of respiratory motion, discuss radiotherapy‐specific problems caused by respiratory motion, explain techniques that explicitly manage respiratory motion during radiotherapy and give recommendations in the application of these techniques for patient care, including quality assurance guidelines for these devices. The techniques to be described include respiratory gating, breath‐hold techniques, forced shallow breathing and respiration‐synchronized radiotherapy. This session intends to reflect the current state of the scientific understanding and technical methodology in imaging, treatment planning and radiation delivery for radiation oncology patients with tumors affected by respiratory motion. Issues requiring further study will also be raised. The educational objectives of this course include:1. Appreciate the effects of respiratory motion during the imaging, planning and delivery of radiotherapy.2. Learn the various techniques that have been clinically applied to manage respiratory motion.3. Understand the general and specific quality assurance requirements for different respiratory management techniques.4. Describe the clinical process for managing patients with tumors affected by respiratory motion.

Enhancing critical thinking in paramedic continuing education.

Critical thinking has become a buzzword, especially in medical education. The challenge is first to determine what skills compose critical thinking and what teaching techniques promote critical-thinking skills, and then to determine how to apply these techniques effectively and efficiently to a given population in the classroom. This article begins with a working definition of critical thinking and explores the parameters and skills implied or stated in the definition. Then a teaching environment constructed around a model of critical thinking and characteristics of the audience is described. A specific teaching method, suggested by research and designed to exercise critical-thinking skills, is then applied to a specific patient problem in a continuing education class. Preliminary outcomes are presented. The purpose of this article is to propose a productive and efficient educational method for promoting and enhancing critical-thinking skills appropriate for paramedic-level continuing education.

Effects of continuing education

Even though greater than 60% oncology patients experience pain sometime during the course of their illness, management of this pain still remains an enormous clinical problem. Based on this report, it would appear that pain assessment and management would be a key concern in the care of oncology patients. Yet, from previous research, it is clear that a lack of pain assessment documentation exists, which essentially means legally assessment has not been performed. Because a lack of knowledge about pain could be a major reason for inadequate pain documentation, a continuing education class was designed for oncology nurses regarding pain assessment and the need for subsequent documentation of that assessment. This study evaluated the different groups of nurses: (a) a control group who attended the class, (b) an experimental group who attended the class and received a laminated pain assessment tool, and (c) a group who did not participate in the class; effects on pain assessment documentation. Effectiveness was measured by extracting pain assessment documentation from charts. No significant differences in documentation scores were noted across the three groups. Recommendations and nursing implications concerning continuing education strategies and pain assessment documentation are made.

Analysis of reference transactions using packaged computer programs.

Motivated by a continuing education class attended by the authors on the measurement of reference desk activities, the reference department at Scott Memorial Library initiated a project to gather data on reference desk transactions and to analyze the data by using packaged computer programs. The programs utilized for the project were SPSS (Statistical Package for the Social Sciences) and SAS (Statistical Analysis System). The planning, implementation and development of the project are described.