The Geriatric Emergency Nursing Education (GENE) course: an evaluation

To evaluate the impact of the GENE course on emergency nurses' geriatric best practices in the emergency department (ED).

A convenience sample of 102 emergency nurses who attended the GENE course at the San Diego convention center on October 3, 2004.

A prospective method of data collection, with data collection before, immediately after, and three months after attending the course, was used to evaluate the short-term impact of the GENE course on emergency nurses' geriatric knowledge and geriatric care best practices.

After attending the GENE course, emergency nurses showed increased a) knowledge of geriatric concepts (p < .000, alpha = .01) and b) self-rated ability to provide care in areas such as functional assessment, assessment of depression, delirium, dementia, polypharmacy, and appropriate referrals to services. ED nurses reported significantly greater utilization of particular geriatric assessment tools and greater incorporation of knowledge and skills related to the assessment of pain, polypharmacy, elder abuse and neglect, and atypical presentation of illness as part of their practice. Finally, a significant increase in the number of emergency departments that incorporated geriatric protocols of care was reported (p = .003, alpha = .05).