Effect of a physical assessment educational program on clinical practice

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to investigate the effect of an educational program on physical assessment skills for registered nurses focusing on respiratory and cardiovascular systems.

Methods: Design: Survey research using a self-administered questionnaire was used. Methods: The study was conducted in the physical assessment education program and the clinical settings. The study involved 104 registered nurses who completed a self-administered questionnaire, distributed immediately and 2 months after the physical assessment education program. The data were analyzed using the Wilcoxon signed-rank test.

Results: The usage frequencies of 19 physical assessment skills increased after the educational program. The most frequently cited barrier to using these skills changed from a lack of knowledge to a lack of confidence and insufficient time.  Before the program, the hospital nurses used their physical assessment skills more frequently than the home-visit nurses, but the reverse became true afterward. Nurses who recognized that they needed physical assessment skills that were learned through education showed a tendency to use these skills in nursing practice.

Conclusions: These results suggest that the educational program on physical assessment skills affected the use of these skills in clinical practice for this study cohort for this study cohort.