Needs Assessment of Continuing Education Programs for Nursing Staff Working in Zanjan University of Medical Sciences

The range of nurseschr('39') plans in medical centers has changed their educational needs in the meantime, determining educational needs of nurses continuously is necessary. Therefore, the present study was designed and conducted to determine the educational needs of nursing staff in hospitals affiliated to Zanjan University of Medical Sciences.

This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted on all nurses in hospitals and educational and medical centers affiliated to Zanjan University of Medical Sciences. 331 of these individuals were selected by simple random sampling. A researcher-made questionnaire was used to collect information in two sections: demographic information and questions related to specialized courses. Data were analyzed using descriptive indices, one-group t-test through SPSS.

Among 331 participants in the study, 182 (55%) were female nurses and 149 (45%) were male nurses. The mean age of participants was 32 years for women and 36 years for men. Four periods of adult resuscitation, mechanical ventilation, ECG interpretation and maternal resuscitation and preeclampsia with mean and standard deviation of 4.68±1.035, 4.38±0.801, 4.27±1.70 and 4.12±0.980, respectively had the highest mean among other periods.

Needs assessment of nurses as a target community along with using the opinion of nursing experts and managers can lead to greater effectiveness in developing courses.