Abstract
Background: Nurse practitioners (NP) new to cancer care are entering practice without any standardized oncology curriculum. This gap in knowledge can lead to poor patient outcomes, risk management vulnerabilities, and high clinician attrition. Existing online continuing education programs use the traditional Power Point teaching method. The ONc-PoWER course follows an avatar NP, new to oncology, as she encounters common clinical dilemmas in cancer care. Content is presented and then quickly applied to “real” case based situations. The interactive course provides constant feedback and motivation to the learner. The purpose of this study is to describe the ONc-PoWER course curriculum. Method: The Oncology Nurse Practitioner Web Education Resource (ONc-PoWER) is an online course developed and funded as education specifically for NPs in their first year of oncology practice paired with an onsite mentor (physician, nurse practitioner or physician assistant). The course was developed based on the Oncology Nursing Society’s Competencies for Entry to Practice. The course consists of 5 interactive modules: (1) the new patient visit, (2) presenting a patient with cancer, (3) cancer visits across the continuum of care, (4) palliative and hospice care, and (5) self-care and professional development. The course also has an evaluation for the NP or mentor for applying the content of the course to clinical practice. The course is being offered free of charge nationally to 100 NPs for a 6-month period. The NP can earn continuing education credit for content completion. Results: The primary outcome is the NPs perceived level of knowledge and confidence in the delivery of cancer care pre and post the ONc-PoWER curriculum. Onsite mentor will provide evaluation. The NPs attention to patient reported outcomes will also be measured pre and post curriculum. Curriculum overall will be assessed by the NPs and onsite mentors. The course just opened to formal evaluation, preliminary data consists of senior NP’s “testers” of the program. Conclusion: The course is available through the University of Pittsburgh Blackboard Learning System with an assigned instructor to monitor, organize and track the student’s progress through the course.
