Portal de Periódicos da CAPES

NP022 Enhancing Critical Care Knowledge Through Case Studies

2012; Elsevier BV; Volume: 28; Issue: 5 Linguagem: Inglês

10.1016/j.cjca.2012.07.837

1916-7075

J. Sukumaran, Violante Augusta Batista Braga, D Murray, Madette Galapin,

Education and Critical Thinking Development

With the introduction of mechanically ventilated patients to the cardiac intensive care unit (CICU) at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, a need to prepare staff for the new challenges was presented. To manage this new patient population, the nurses in CICU were enrolled in a modified critical care education program at a local community college. A phased-in approach was necessary to continue to meet the staffing demands of the unit and the learning needs of the staff. This approach resulted in the delay of clinical application of newly-acquired knowledge and skills by several months.Strategies to bridge this gap were necessary. With feedback from staff, a series case studies and quizzes were developed by a Late Career Initiative nurse to challenge critical thinking, refresh, maintain, and support their acquired knowledge. These were disseminated to staff in multiple formats.Positive feedback from the nurses indicated the success of this effort. As such, this strategy will continue to be utilized as an ongoing educational tool for CICU. The use of this tool may encourage the nurses to reflect on clinical experiences and participate in the development of more case studies as learning tools for others. With the introduction of mechanically ventilated patients to the cardiac intensive care unit (CICU) at Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, a need to prepare staff for the new challenges was presented. To manage this new patient population, the nurses in CICU were enrolled in a modified critical care education program at a local community college. A phased-in approach was necessary to continue to meet the staffing demands of the unit and the learning needs of the staff. This approach resulted in the delay of clinical application of newly-acquired knowledge and skills by several months. Strategies to bridge this gap were necessary. With feedback from staff, a series case studies and quizzes were developed by a Late Career Initiative nurse to challenge critical thinking, refresh, maintain, and support their acquired knowledge. These were disseminated to staff in multiple formats. Positive feedback from the nurses indicated the success of this effort. As such, this strategy will continue to be utilized as an ongoing educational tool for CICU. The use of this tool may encourage the nurses to reflect on clinical experiences and participate in the development of more case studies as learning tools for others.