Impact of a Sepsis Educational Program on Nurse Competence

• Published in: The Journal of continuing education in nursing Vol. 46; no. 4; pp. 179 - 186
• Main Authors: Delaney, Margaret M., Friedman, M. Isabel, Dolansky, Mary A., Fitzpatrick, Joyce J.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States SLACK INCORPORATED 01.04.2015
• Subjects: Adult; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Clinical Competence; Computer-Assisted Instruction; Critical Care Nursing - education; Curriculum; Education, Nursing, Continuing - organization & administration; Educational Resources; Educational Strategies; Emergency Nursing - education; Female; Health education; Health Knowledge, Attitudes, Practice; Humans; Internet; Male; Middle Aged; Nurses; Nursing Staff, Hospital - education; Practice Guidelines as Topic; Sepsis; Sepsis - diagnosis; Sepsis - nursing; Teaching Methods
• ISSN: 0022-0124; 1938-2472
• DOI: 10.3928/00220124-20150320-03

Sepsis is an emerging life-threatening entity and a worldwide epidemic. Nurses are in key positions to identify patients with sepsis, mobilize the medical team, and implement interventions. A study of self-assessed nurse competence was conducted to determine the influence of a specially designed sepsis education program on nurses’ perceived ability to identify early, intervene, and care for patients with sepsis. The program was a multimodal design incorporating online interactive didactic presentations, video vignettes, pre- and postknowledge tests, and high-fidelity medical simulation scenarios. A sample of 82 critical care and emergency department nurses in a 1-year critical care nurse training program was used for this study. Pretest and posttest module knowledge scores and self-assessed competence data were collected and analyzed. No improvement in the overall self-assessed competence scores was found; however, self-perceived frequency of use of competence behaviors improved. Participants felt more competent on three sepsis-targeted statements, and posttest knowledge scores showed significant improvement. 2015;46(4):179–186. J Contin Educ Nurs. 2015;46(4):179–186.