Diminishing disparities with an online blended-learning approach — ASN Events

Diminishing disparities with an online blended-learning approach (#234)

Eliza Bott 1 , Maree Bransdon 1
  1. Central Integrated Regional Cancer Service, Queensland Health, Brisbane, QLD, Australia

The opportunity to facilitate cancer courses for Queensland Health staff on a Learning Management System (LMS) was seized by CIRCS for a blended-learning approach to the provision of clinical education. CIRCS provides this approach through Tele-education and the Brightspace by D2L LMS.

As at July 2015 there were 56,558 staff working in Queensland Health’s clinical stream; 36,045 of which were working in the nursing stream. These health professionals are spread across sixteen Hospital and Health Services (HHSs) and 1,722,000 square kilometres of land. In rural, regional and remote areas of the state the challenge of providing access to quality teaching and training is magnified by geographical distance. Consequently, providing face-to-face clinical education is neither sustainable nor practical.

CIRCS has embraced a blended-learning approach to ADAC, utilising Brightspace by D2L and Tele-education to maximise teaching and training outcomes. An integrated and intuitive solution was needed to engage the nursing stream, increase the ability of Queensland Health to offer cancer care treatment, and support the teaching and training of an abundant number of users with varying computer-literacy levels.

ADAC supports health professionals with developing the necessary knowledge and clinical skills for the safe handling and administration of antineoplastic drugs via different routes. ADAC follows a strict governance process and enables Queensland Health’s HHSs to comply with various standards, protocols, guidelines and legislation.

As at August 2015 CIRCS’s blended-learning approach has reached almost 2,000 health professionals from across all of Queensland Health’s sixteen HHSs. These 2,000 health professionals have been provided with quality teaching and training in an incomparable amount of time to attending face-to-face clinical education sessions. CIRCS has expanded on its initial deliver of ADAC and now also facilitates the Paediatric Antineoplastic Drug Administration Course (ADAC), ADAC Reassessment of Clinical Competency and ADAC for the Non-Cancer Setting to Queensland Health staff.

#COSA2015