ABSTRACT
Syringe drivers are commonly used within palliative care to assist with maintaining adequate symptom control. Two of the most common, the Graseby MS16A and MS26, have been associated with a number of serious clinical incidents which have been linked, in part, to inadequate training. This article reports on the results of an online learning programme on managing syringe drivers in palliative care undertaken by 5380 learners between September 2003 and October 2006. The results show that this flexible form of learning environment is acceptable to learners and can lead to improvements in both knowledge and understanding of palliative care issues. Using an online learning model allows large numbers of learners to be educated at minimal cost to either them or their organisation.
Subject(s)
Attitude of Health Personnel , Computer-Assisted Instruction/methods , Education, Nursing, Continuing/organization & administration , Infusion Pumps , Internet/organization & administration , Nursing Staff , Chi-Square Distribution , Clinical Competence , Equipment Failure , Feedback, Psychological , Health Services Needs and Demand , Humans , Infusion Pumps/adverse effects , Nursing Education Research , Nursing Staff/education , Nursing Staff/psychology , Oncology Nursing/education , Palliative Care , Program Evaluation , Self-AssessmentABSTRACT
National referral guidelines have been developed for patients with suspected oesphago-gastric cancer with the aim of reducing the delay from presentation to referral and, therefore, reducing overall delay in diagnosis. This study evaluates the impact of these guidelines and shows that they have resulted in a significant decrease in the time from referral to endoscopy for patients. Nurses can further contribute to this by increasing patient awareness of symptoms. A course is being developed to provide the necessary knowledge.