Nursing best practices and standards of care are continually changing. As more evidence is gained and new advances in technology emerge, nurses need to update stt heir knowledge to imbibe 21 century nursing practice. Continuing education help nurses to acquire new knowledge and skills necessary to be in efficient service delivery. This study assessed the perception of nurses on the need for continuing education and factors affecting continuing education of nurses and also identify motivational factors for continuing education in nurses. The population of study include nurses working in Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria. Both quantitative and qualitative methods of data collection were used. Clustered sampling technique was adopted to select nurses within the different units of the hospital. Informants for the qualitative component were purposively selected. Questionnaires and In-depth interviews were the techniques of data collection. The result showed that majority of the respondents (94.4%) perceived higher education is relevant to the practice of nursing. The study further reveal that perceived factor affecting continue education for nurses include lack of time and financial constraints. Lastly, the perceived factors motivating nurses towards continue education is sponsorship by government and other NGOs. It was therefore recommended that the Government should make it mandatory for hospitals to sponsor their staff for the BNSc program. Universities offering the degree programme in Nursing should also start part time BNSc programs so that diploma certified nurses can be motivated to go for their degrees.
- Mfuh | Anita | Y. | yaanita1234563@gmail.com | +234, Lukong | C. | S. | @ | +234
- Knowledge, Service Delivery, Motivational Factors.
- PERCEPTION OF NURSES TOWARDS CONTINUING EDUCATION IN A TERTIARY HOSPITAL IN NORTHERN NIGERIA
