Development of online cancer resources to support pre-registration nurses and allied health professionals.

Cancer rates are increasing, and more people are living with cancer and its consequences. Healthcare students will be caring for people affected by cancer in all clinical contexts. However, pre-registration programmes can include limited cancer education and not all students will have the opportunity for a clinical placement in a cancer setting. This can result in healthcare students feeling unprepared to care for people affected by cancer. To address this need, nine e-learning modules, collectively called The Foundations of Cancer Care, have been developed to support students' knowledge, understanding and confidence about cancer. This article outlines the development and peer review of The Foundations of Cancer Care. The resultant modules are freely available to all those with an Open Athens account or NHS or UK university email address via the NHS Learning Hub (https://learninghub.nhs.uk).

The impact of oncology education on practice--a literature review.

Cancer care currently enjoys a high national profile in the UK, with a growing emphasis on cancer education for nurses and allied health professionals, however, there is dearth of research into the effectiveness and impact of cancer education on practice. This paper explores the context of cancer care and education and reviews the literature regarding the relationship between the two. It explores the assumption that education positively influences practice and contributes to the health care agenda by supporting the need for further research in this area.

How do participants of a post registration oncology nursing course perceive that the course influences their practice?--A descriptive survey.

The high incidence of cancer necessitates informed and skilled cancer care, a concept highlighted in a number of Government reports. However, there is little research, which explores the relationship between cancer education and practice. This paper reports a descriptive survey to explore the perceived impact of a post registration oncology-nursing course on practice. It aimed to determine how much the oncology nursing course impacted on practice and what aspects impacted the most. Postal questionnaires, using primarily closed questions, were sent to all post-registration nurses (n=171) who had undertaken an oncology-nursing course at one cancer centre between 1996 and 2003. The course was perceived to have a positive impact on practice and the subjects perceived to be most beneficial included those relating to communication skills, attitudes to cancer and psychological support. In conclusion, the study suggested that there is a positive relationship between oncology education and practice. This research may be used to inform discussions to support current and future investment in oncology education.