Victoria Pigott MSN, CNS, RN
The College of Nursing and Health
Professions background
 History of educational opportunities
 Nursing programs established in 1988
 Started with the ASN and BSN programs
 1995 started the MSN program
 2008 DNP
Distance Education
 Video delivered courses in 1992
 Internet delivered courses in 1997
 Podcasting courses in 2007
 Opportunities for working professionals to obtain a
degree
Distance Education Tools
 DVD’s
 Live videostreams (lectures and demonstrations)
 Archived videostreams (lectures and
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demonstrations)
Online group discussions
Podcasts
Online testing
Email and listservs
Online library access
Continuing Education Mission
 College of Nursing Mission statement includes
 Provide professional development courses and
offerings for registered nurses
 Onsite (USI campus) continuing education
offerings started in 1989
 Online continuing education started in 1998
Online Continuing Education
 Learning needs of nurses and health care providers
 Relevant content
 Competency development
 Flexible learning schedules
 Asynchronous (24 hour access to program content)
 Timelines to encourage program completion but
flexible to allow for working professionals
“Education in your Time and Place”
Our First Offering –
Anticoagulation Therapy
 Approached by a pharmaceutical representative who
identified the need for an Anticoagulation Therapy
education program
 Worked with national anticoagulation experts to
determine content
 Worked with distance education professionals, IT
experts, and faculty to design course delivery
 Developed and delivered the first program in November
1998 with 35 participants
Accreditations
The college of nursing achieved ANCC accreditation in
2008. Prior to this we were accredited providers
through the Indiana State Nurses Association (ISNA)
The Diabetes program was named the first
Competency program available through ANCC
Developing the Critical Access
Hospital Education Network
 A synchronous and asynchronous web delivery of
education to nurses in CAH
 The synchronous component allows interaction
between the presenter and the CAH nurses
 The asynchronous allows viewing at the convenience
of the nurse.
Critical Access Hospitals (CAH)
Continuing Education
 Recruit critical access hospitals in southern Indiana to
participate in pilot project
 Supported by a grant from
Southwest Indiana Area Health
Education Center (SWI-AHEC)
Goal #1
Provide access and support the professional
development of rural hospital nurses in the
Southwest Indiana Area Health Education Center
(SWI-AHEC) area
 Provide easy access and affordable CE to nurses in
critical access hospitals located in SWI-AHEC
region.
 Encourage professional development among the
rural nurses serving Indiana.
 Minimize the expense to the hospitals participating
in the project.
Goal #2
Establish an education communications network
for CAH nurses.
 Purchase equipment required for participation by
the three SWI-AHEC region critical access hospitals.
 Collaborate with hospital staff to install equipment.
 Provide ongoing instruction and consultation
relative to use of the equipment.
Goal #3
Develop and present six (6) one hour CE presentations.
 Initiate the collaborative development of six CE
presentations engaging ANCC nurse planners, hospital
vice presidents of nursing and education directors, and
college/university faculty and staff (University of
Southern Indiana, University of Evansville, IVY Tech State
College, Evansville, and Vincennes University.
 Provide six continuing education presentations.
 Document attendance and analyze evaluation data of the
education presentations.
Goal #4
Foster professional development of nurses in critical
access hospitals; encourage staff nurse presentations
 Promote collaboration of ANCC nurse planners and
nurses employed in critical access hospitals in the
development of CE offerings.
 Provide assistance to nurses during their presentation.
Recap Phase One
 Three CAHs were recruited for the pilot project
 Gibson General Hospital Princeton, Indiana
 St. Mary’s Warrick, Boonville, Indiana
 Perry Memorial, Tell City, Indiana
 Equipment needed was purchased
 Needs Assessment completed
 Staff nurses
 Administration
 Five offerings have been completed and are archived on
the website.
Presentation Topics
 What Nurses Need to Know About Ostomy Care
 CBC Interpretation for Nurses
 Severe Hypoglycemia and Sepsis
 General Orthopaedic Concepts for Nurses
 Physical Assessment
 Assessing the Neurological Patient
Program Delivery
 Flyers, PPT’s, quizzes, evaluations, & sign up sheets
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are sent to the Critical Access Hospitals prior to the
presentation.
Presentations begin promptly at 1:00 and last no
more than one hour.
Time is allowed for questions.
The Critical Access Hospital proctors obtain all
pieces from participants and send to USI.
USI sends back CEs for distribution
At program completion it is archived and available
What We Have Learned
 Evaluating data
 Nurse feedback from each offering
Staff nurses love the idea of joining their colleagues
in a live lecture.
 The needs assessment obtained from the nurses was
used to determine the presentations.
 The program has helped to alleviate some fears of
online education.
Administrative feedback covering the first four
offerings:
 “Allows the hospital to help nurses obtain continuing
education credits and maintain their certification.”
 “Our verbal feedback has been very positive. The
nurses feel like they have learned from each session.”
 “As a small hospital we don’t have a dedicated nurse
educator so this is a great way to offer quality
education for staff.”
 “We have had requests for similar in-services for our
respiratory therapy staff and our Rehab staff; PT and
OT”
Sustaining the Program
 Continue to offer a monthly CE for nurses in
Critical Access Hospitals
 Offer the program to Critical Access Hospital at a
reasonable fee per nurse
 Work with staff nurses to develop the programs
they feel are important to their practice
2010 Plan
 Program ongoing
 Additional rural hospitals joining
 12 offerings planned and the list is published
 Working on offerings for 2011 and continuing to
recruit\invite rural hospitals to join.
 Annual needs assessment to be complete by July 31 and
2011 offerings will be published prior to December 31.
Thank you