(1081) Standardized Critical Care Training Improves Nursing Confidence and Interprofessional Attitudes

Introduction: Optimal care of the critically ill requires advanced knowledge and skills from an interprofessional team. Team failure accounts for up to 80% of medical errors. Since 1995 the Fundamental Critical Care Support course (FCCS) has provided standardized critical care education to an interprofessional audience. The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of FCCS training on nurse confidence with the management of critical patients and attitudes towards Interprofessional Education and Multidisciplinary care (IEMC).

Methods: A prospective pre-post intervention design was conducted using a convenience sample of nurses attending an interprofessional FCCS course between May 2018 and November 2019. Confidence in 11 domains of critical care management were measured using 5-point Likert scales with a summed total administered retrospectively pre-course, immediate post, and 3-months post-course. Nurse attitudes towards IEMC were assessed using the Student Perceptions of Interprofessional Clinical Education-Revised Instrument version 2 (SPICE-R2) tool. Descriptive, parametric, and non-parametric methods were used to analyze data with level of significance set as alpha=0.05.

Results: In total, 113 registered nurses participated in the pre-course survey. The post-course survey included demographics and was completed by 90 (79.5%), with 80 (70.8%) completing the follow-up survey. Mean age was 34.0 and females predominated (76/90, 84.4%). Average years in practice was 7.4. Nurses practicing exclusively in the intensive care setting made up the largest group (49/89, 55.1%). Significant increases in pre- to post-course confidence were reported across all critical care domains (all; p< 0.0001) and these gains persisted in the 3-month follow-up period. Retrospective pre-course analysis indicated overestimation of pre-course confidence in Respiratory Failure (p=0.0485), Sepsis (p=0.0247), and Ethics (p=0.0374). Attitudes toward IEMC improved overall (p < 0.0001) with significant increases in 7 of the 10 areas assessed.

Conclusions: Standardized critical care training significantly increased nurse confidence in the management of critical illness and improved attitudes towards IEMC. Further studies are needed to determine if these benefits translate into improved patient care and outcomes.