Continuing education among Chinese nurses: A general hospital-based study

Abstract

SUMMARY Background Continuing education (CE) is increasingly critical for nurses to keep abreast of rapid changes in patient care due to advancements in knowledge and technology. Objective The objective of this study was to explore Chinese nurses’ perceptions on continuing education, how best CE practices meet their learning needs, and the motivation and barriers nurses face in completing CE. Methods A cross-sectional study of 2727 hospital-employed Chinese nurses from ten general hospitals was conducted from September to October 2010. Nurses’ perceptions on CE, as well as motivational and preventive factors in CE were assessed. Results The majority of nurses (97.3%) attended CE activities in the last twelve months. More than 92.2% of the nurses were familiar with the value of CE. Nurses expected CE activities to take place within a five-day period and to consist of 2 h per activity. The major factors that motivate nurses to participate in CE are the desire to gain and update their knowledge of the newest nursing development and procedures, to improve their practical skills and comprehensive qualities, to maintain professional status and to receive an academic degree. Factors that hindered nurses’ participation in CE included time constraints, work commitments, a lack of opportunity, cost of the courses and previous negative experiences with CE programs. Conclusion Chinese nurses considered CE an extremely important measure to further develop their professional competency. Nurses’ actual expectations for CE and the motivation and barriers for participation in CE from nurses’ individual, family and hospital perspective must be taken into the account in order to make CE programs more effective.

Quality indicators applied in a nursing continuing education program of a high complexity university hospital from Brazil: II - satisfaction indicators

“…These results reinforce the idea that, for professionals, the offering of courses is a more important criterion than the relative quality itself, even if there is dissatisfaction with the organizational aspects as observed in other studies (NI et al, 2014). However, nurse educators are increasingly aware of the importance of measuring the Continuing Education Program results beyond the levels of participation and satisfaction of professionals (ANCC, 2014).…”

“…All aspects of the course were highly rated by professionals, showing contentment with the course content or theme. The outdated teaching methods, lack of purpose of the course, inexperienced teachers or even the relevance of the course were not considered impediments to participate in Continuing Education (NI et al, 2014). Apparently, for the population studied here, the fact that a course is offered is more important than "quality or satisfaction" itself with the event, reinforcing that those professionals look for training in the workplace and understand the limitations of this method.…”

Continuing Formal Education for Nurses in Ghana: The Perception of Non-Professional Nurses

“…The non-professional nurses conceived that by engaging in continuing formal education, they would be abreast with contemporary nursing skills and techniques which they would, in turn, impart on t h e i r colleagues and nursing students (Nsemo et al 2013;Perfetto, 2015;Ni et al, 2014;Richards & Potgieter, 2010). This perception is paramount as most non-professional nurses' work in remote villages where there are an inadequate n u m b e r o f nurses.…”

“…These findings were confirmed by Sarver, Cichra and Kline (2015), who posited that nurses perceived engaging in continuing education as a means of increasing their opportunities to get jobs, expanding their knowledge and gaining personal satisfaction. Nurses perceive engaging in continuing education as valuable and of great importance, as the knowledge that they obtain from school enhances their professional skills and competencies (Baxter et al, 2013;Govranos & Newton, 2014;Ni et al, 2014;Nsemo et al, 2013). Continuing education is also perceived by t h e nurses as b ein g beneficial to their personal and professional growth, as well as augmenting the quality of care delivered to patients (Richards & Potgieter, 2010).…”

Attendance indicators for students in long-term nursing courses at a university hospital

“…Similar studies are absent, but factors related to no participation in continuing education are related to deficits in nursing staff, health work activities, cost of courses, no release to participation and participation outside of working hours (e.g. BREWER, et al, 2006;NI, et al, 2014).…”