Extending continuing education to rural area nurses

In response to the educational needs of rural Midwest nurses, several federal grants have been administered cooperatively by the continuing education (CE) departments of Creighton University School of Nursing and the University of Nebraska College of Nursing. This article focuses on the developmental process and outcomes of the last two of eight modules designed for rural nurses. The modules were presented as separate 1-day offerings and then made available as library loan items that included written and audiovisual materials. At the conclusion of the final grant period, a 2-day "Teach-the-Trainer" seminar was held that not only made all previously developed resources available to rural nurse volunteers, but also provided practical experience in teaching techniques. Participants' pre- and post- "Comfort Scales" were computed and revealed a general increase in their "comfort" of presenting the modules on their own (e.g., requesting CE credit, determining audiovisual use, and using handouts).