An evaluation of learner perception of competency and satisfaction with three models of an interdisciplinary surge capacity course.

Disaster preparation is a major public health issue, and hospitals play a front-line role in responding to emergencies and disasters. A key concern identified by clinicians is one of being overwhelmed by patients but also by their families and the general public in the event of a disaster. In response to this concern, an online, workplace-based, interprofessional course in surge capacity building was developed and delivered to 72 health and allied staff from five acute care and community health care organizations.

Internationally educated nurses' experiences with an integrated bridge program.

Background: Countries around the world are experiencing a current and projected ongoing shortage of nurses. Internationally educated nurses are an underused, valuable human resource that could reduce the nursing shortage. A bridge program, with several innovations bundled into one program, was developed specifically to meet the needs of internationally educated nurses.

Getting the right information to the table: using technology to support evidence-based decision making.

Healthcare executives report that it is difficult to access the research literature and once found, it is frequently not relevant. A study was conducted to explore ways in which healthcare executives, enrolled in the EXTRA program, used a virtual desktop environment. Despite some design and function limitations, the desktop was perceived positively by most participants and was effective in supporting evidence-informed practice and decision making.

Emergency medical and health providers' perceptions of key issues in prehospital patient safety.

Objectives: To date, most patient safety studies have been conducted in relation to the hospital rather than the prehospital setting and data regarding emergency medical services (EMS)-related errors are limited. To address this gap, a study was conducted to gain an in-depth understanding of the views of highly experienced EMS practitioners, educators, administrators, and physicians on major issues pertaining to EMS patient safety. The intent of the study was to identify key issues to give direction to the development of best practices in education, policy, and fieldwork.

The impact of an online interprofessional course in disaster management competency and attitude towards interprofessional learning.

A recent national assessment of emergency planning in Canada suggests that health care professionals are not properly prepared for disasters. In response to this gap, an interprofessional course in disaster management was developed, implemented and evaluated in Toronto, Canada from 2007 to 2008. Undergraduate students from five educational institutions in nursing, medicine, paramedicine, police, media and health administration programs took an eight-week online course.

Evaluation of patient satisfaction with tailored online patient education information.

Patients are using the Internet for access to standardized health information in ever-growing numbers. Although increased access to health information can be helpful, the quality of information varies widely. All too often, the information retrieved is incomplete, inaccurate, or inappropriate.

Impact of an online course on infection control and prevention competencies.

Aim: This paper is a report of a study to examine the impact of an online course on nurses' and allied healthcare professionals' competency in infection prevention and control and the influence of organizational climate on knowledge transfer.

Background: Nosocomial infection, globalization, international travel and bacterial resistance are among the factors contributing to heightened awareness of the importance of infection prevention and control in today's healthcare environment. An online course in infection control was developed to facilitate the delivery of standardized training to large numbers of health providers.

Effectiveness of a 6-week online course in the Canadian Triage and Acuity Scale for emergency nurses.

Introduction: There is increasing interest in 5-level triage systems in emergency departments; however, the adoption of a new system places heavy training demands on ED department nurses and physicians. One emerging training option is online learning. The purpose of this study was to explore the effectiveness of an online course in the 5-level Canadian Triage and Acuity Scale (CTAS) on the clinical practice of the triage nurse.

Development of an online, team-based programme in telecare.

Few health-care providers have experience of delivering telecare and access to formal training is limited. We therefore developed an online training programme in telecare. A participatory design approach was used and telecare providers were invited to participate in each stage of the course design cycle.

Becoming a web-based learner: registered nurses' experiences.

Aims: The purpose of the study was to describe Registered Nurses' experiences when taking a web-based course from either the workplace or home, and the impact of their learning on clinical practice.

Rationale: Little is known about the web-based learners' experience, particularly when courses are accessed from the nursing practice setting. Even less is known about whether nurses transfer their web-based learning to clinical practice.

A descriptive study of registered nurses' experiences with web-based learning.

Aims: To describe the experiences of registered nurses (RNs) who enrolled in a web-based course from either their home or the workplace.

Rationale: In order to maintain competency in rapidly changing health care systems, and meet the challenge of overcoming traditional barriers to continuing education, RNs need access to innovative educational delivery methods. As yet, little is known about the web-based learners' experience, particularly when courses are accessed from the nursing practice setting.