Good Practice from Marchusa A. Huff, IUPUI |
| Title | Online Orientation for Perioperative Nursing |
| Course or Project | J360 and CE 004 Introduction to Perioperative Nursing |
| Audience | Experienced undergraduates |
| Active | Spring 2001, still active |
| Background Information | Perioperative nursing is designed as a clinical elective for undergraduate nursing students and a continuing education orientation course for registered nurses new to the operating room. This Web-enhanced course introduces the learner to the role of the Perioperative Nurse providing a realistic preview of knowledge required and skills needed and is used to prepare students for senior Capstone experiences in the operating room. |
| Teaching Challenge | Selection of the best technology to define, explain, expand and visualize a concept related to the skills in this skill-based course was a challenge. Avoiding text-heavy modules was a concern for maintaining student interest. Availability of a course management package that supported the course on a continuous basis and provided help for students as needed. |
| Good Practice | 1) Reviewed current
class content and gained consensus from experienced operating room educators
about essential or basic content.
2) Conferred with individuals who had graphics and computer technology backgrounds to bounce off ideas about best methods to visualize an idea. 3) Created first three modules and tested these on undergraduate students who were in the traditional face-to-face course. Photographs from actual students in the operating room were scanned, saved as jpeg files and incorporated throughout the text. 4) Used feedback from students to revise and add to these modules. 5) Participated in three Tech Camp offerings at the IUPUI Center for Teaching and Learning to gain insight and skills to continue development of technology in the course. 6) Utilized the Indiana University Oncourse course management system to offer the course for undergraduate students for academic credit. Oncourse is also used for the continuing education offering to registered nurses through the School of Nursing Center for Lifelong Learning. |
| Impact | Use or resources available at the University and in the Hospital were inexpensive and extremely valuable. Students were given extra credit points for evaluating the course in writing and providing constructive feedback. Based on their feedback, I continued to develop four more modules and have improved my use of digital images, digital video and designing testing materials to include in the course. |
| Assessment | Collection of data included paper and pencil evaluations from each group of baccalaureate students and each group of registered nurses who participated in the online course. Background information about the learner includes prior experience with computers and Web courses. We have found that this approach to teaching basic surgical nursing content enables more student nurses to explore the role of the O.R. nurse each semester. It provides a means for orienting new employees more frequently and can be used as the core course for registered nurses new to the O.R. Undergraduate nursing students are more technologically savvy than those in the past. This course meets the need of new, younger college students and the information needs of registered nurses. It appeals to different learning styles and allows the course to be taught at a distance over a short duration or within a full 14-week academic semester. Registered nurses complete course one in a two-week time frame and it is referred to as the OR nurse ‘Core’ course. |
| Keywords | Collaboration/teamwork,
orienting students, real-world problems, career preparation,
visualizing concepts |
| Technical Format | Streaming video, Oncourse, custom composited graphics with text, Flash animation, digital stills, PowerPoint |
Last updated:
4 May, 2007
Comments and
Questions | (317) 278-4833
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