Continuing professional education: Motivations and experiences of health and social care professional’s part-time study in higher education. A qualitative literature review

Abstract

Objectives: To understand the motivations and experiences of health and social care professionals undertaking part-time, accredited, continuing professional education in higher education Design: A review following systematic principles Data Sources: Systematic searches for literature published between January 2000 and December 2015 using the database: SCOPUS, Web of Science, Medline, PsychINFO, Social Policy and Practice and CINAHL.Review methods: Studies were included if they were published in the English language and were qualitative in design, focussing on the motivations and experiences of staff engaged in part-time, accredited, higher education study. Three reviewers appraised the quality of the selected studies.Results: Thirteen qualitative studies were identified for the review. Motivating factors for staff to engage in part-time, accredited, continuing professional development study included: personal and professional drivers, influence of workplace/management and funding and availability. Key themes in relation to how staff experienced study included: the demands of adjusting to the academic requirements of higher education study; the experience of juggling competing demands of study, work and family; and the presence or absence of support for part-time study in the personal and professional arenas. Conclusions:Health and social care professionals experience a number of challenges when engaging in part-time, continuing professional education in higher education institutions. A significant challenge is the juggling of competing demands of study, work and family, and this may have a negative impact on learning. Research is needed to inform how higher education can address the specific learning needs of this population and develop pedagogic approaches that are both responsive to need and support of effective learning.Continuing professional education: motivations and experiences of health and social care professional's part-time study in higher education. A qualitative literature review 2

‘Prevent undernutrition and prescribe oral nutritional supplements correctly’: an educational intervention for district nurses

“…Verbal feedback indicated that because of their full schedules at the health care centers, many DNs felt the time they spent working on the practical exercise was insufficient to complete the assignment as thoroughly as they would have liked. Other studies have found that difficulty finding time for continuing education can be an important obstacle to health care professionals' development (Boreham et al, 2013;Berggren et al, 2016;Burrow et al, 2016). In the future, health care center managers should be specifically asked to set aside a period of time during working hours that DNs can use to complete the written assignment.…”

Motivation and personal challenges while enrolled in higher education: The pathway to becoming a baccalaureate nurse

“…Burrow, Mairs, Pusey, Bradshaw, and Keady [12] identified that a consistent challenge among adults who decided to obtain a higher educational degree, was the ability to balance work, school, and family effectively. Adult students, who have a family, work, and attend school, have to walk a fine line so that they don't alienate any part of their life.…”

“…Our participants found the motivation form their families and co-workers. Burrows et al [12] provided evidence indicating that support can come from families and co-workers. The ability to successfully meet their goals and the needs of others, puts adult learners in a challenging position-something that these participants had to deal with on a daily basis.…”

Developing a digital learning version of a mentorship training programme

“…It is difficult to say whether this was a more profound issue with the new digital mode of delivery or whether this is an inevitable challenge for part time students. Certainly recent evidence suggests that the competing demands of study, family and work impacts on the lives and the academic performance of health professionals undertaking part time continuing professional education programmes (Burrow et al, 2016). It may also be that whereas students on the face to face course are given study leave to attend the study days held in university, there is a perception by managers that less time is required for the on line course.…”