ABSTRACT
In a time of changing health care and funding restraints in institutions, continuing education and staff development departments are being challenged to produce better prepared nurses at reduced costs per employee. Improvements in how nurses are prepared are needed to ensure higher levels of competence without increasing the cost. This article describes the development and use of a practical strategy for mastery learning known as Student-Oriented Learning Outlines or SOLOs. This approach has been found to be effective in producing improvements in learning and ultimately patient care while reducing cost to the institution.
Subject(s)
Clinical Competence , Curriculum , Education, Nursing, Continuing/organization & administration , Learning , Nursing Assessment , Nursing Staff/education , Nursing Staff/psychology , Humans , Nursing Assessment/standards , Nursing Evaluation ResearchABSTRACT
Although this article discusses earthquake preparedness for the New Madrid seismic zone, registered nurses in any location will be on the front line as patient caregivers and managers in the event of a damaging earthquake. Two self-instructional modules were developed to educate registered nurses about earthquake preparedness. Statistical analyses of pretest and posttest scores from nurses who completed the modules and from nurses who participated in a control group reveal that the modules are effective educational tools. This information will make them more effective as nurses during and after an earthquake and emphasizes the need for their involvement in disaster mitigation and planning.
