Education Programmes in Nursing : A Mini Review from Evidences

Aim: The aim of this paper is to review the literature on what facilitates or inhibits continuing education in nursing and to identify ways to make continuing education more effective. Background. Healthcare professionals have always been encouraged to update their knowledge and maintain clinical competence. The rapid changes currently taking place within healthcare systems have increased the pressure from direct care providers, professional bodies and the general public for nurses to engage in continuing education programmes. Despite a growing body of empirical research on this topic, the effectiveness and impact of continuing education remains underexplored. Method. A literature search was conducted in January 2005 using CINAHL, Medline, the Cochrane databases and the Internet.