Evaluating rural nurses for preparation in implementing nutrition interventions

With the increase in wellness programs, earlier hospital discharges, higher health care costs, and more home health care, rural nurses are required to generalize their practices and draw from a more extensive knowledge base. The purpose of this study was to examine nursing interventions, specifically nutrition education practices, based on nutrition knowledge that is used in health promotion. A stratified random sample of rural nurses from hospitals, nursing homes, and community health agencies in North Dakota was invited to participate in this study. Data were obtained via questionnaires. The questionnaire consisted of two parts: the first analyzing demographic data and the second analyzing nutrition knowledge. Nutrition information requests were received by 90.9 percent of the practicing registered nurses. The community/public health nurses had the highest nutrition knowledge scores while medical-surgical hospital nurses had the lowest nutrition knowledge scores. With nutrition information and education being a frequently sought intervention by the rural health client, it would seem that registered nurses should be highly prepared and knowledgeable to meet these clients' needs.