Community-based educational programs for cancer nursing

A United Way grant allowed the Department of Nursing Research and Education to make available its expertise in cancer nursing and establish itself as a resource for oncology. Community educational needs were assessed by a questionnaire sent to outside agencies prior to designing an oncology educational program. In a 9-month period, 57 classes at 21 different facilities representing 417 hours of instruction were provided. Nurses attending the classes totaled 1,175. Results showed an increase in scores from pre-test to post-test, indicating that participants demonstrated increased knowledge as a result of class participation. This funding provided the catalyst to prepare a large number of community hospital nurses in the complex care of oncology patients.