Educational priorities for the future of emergency nursing
by Valdez, Anna Maria, Ph.D., CAPELLA UNIVERSITY, 2008, 149 pages; 3315963

Abstract:

The purpose of this study was to examine how and to what extent current societal and healthcare trends will impact the educational needs of the emergency nurse. Additionally, this study sought to draw upon that information to facilitate the development of expert consensus about the major educational priorities for emergency nurses during the time period of 2008-2018. While there is a limited amount of current research related to the societal and healthcare trends that are impacting emergency nursing, an extensive literature review produced no studies that identified educational priorities in emergency nursing. A mixed methodology, qualitative-then-quantitative study design using a Delphi method was employed for this research. The three-round Delphi study engaged a total of 50 emergency nursing experts with prior experience in emergency nursing education to identify societal and healthcare trends and major educational priorities of relevance to emergency nurses. Participants in the Delphi study were recruited from a variety of sources including emergency nursing listservs and expert referral. A field test was conducted to validate the study instrument used during the first round of research. Three rounds of questioning resulted in a total of 42 societal and healthcare priorities and 63 educational priorities with moderate to high consensus achieved in all categories. Societal and healthcare trends that were ranked as having the most significant impact on emergency nursing included emergency department overcrowding, increasing patient complexity and acuity, access to healthcare, mental and behavioral health needs, and an aging population. Educational themes or topics that were ranked as being an extremely high priority for emergency nursing included critical thinking, core emergency nursing competencies, triage, pediatric patient care, medication and patient safety, and individualized orientation programs for emergency nurses. An analysis of the highest priority educational themes indicates that emergency nursing experts are concerned with not only the content of educational programs but also the pedagogy used to provide educational opportunities to current and future emergency nurses. Additional research on the efficacy of educational programs in emergency nursing, particularly those that are designed to facilitate critical thinking skills and the development of core competencies is warranted.

 
AdviserJulia Bronner
SchoolCAPELLA UNIVERSITY
SourceDAI/A 69-07, p. , Jan 2009
Source TypeDissertation
SubjectsEducation Health Sciences; Adult education; Nursing
Publication Number3315963
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