Comparison of Three Different Modes of Teaching Enrolled Nurses on Asthma Management

Introduction. A group of nurse clinicians and educators at a tertiary hospital created their first online asthma management training program for enrolled nurses (ENs). The primary aim of the study was to compare the effectiveness of 3 modes of teaching, namely, traditional classroom lecture (TCL), E-learning (EL), and a combination of E-learning and traditional classroom lectures (EL + TCL). The second aim was to examine factors associated with the retention of knowledge in asthma management and the learning preference of ENs. Methods. ENs were assigned to any one of the teaching methods. A pre-post study design was used to assess their knowledge on asthma management prior to teaching and 3 months after teaching. Results. Of the 162 ENs recruited, 59 were assigned to TCL, 55 to EL, and 48 to EL + TCL. A total of 145 (89.6%) ENs completed the 3-month follow-up study. There were significant differences in the mean scores for pre and 3 months post knowledge assessment for all 3 modes of teaching (P <.001). Furthermore, results showed that only 36 (22.2%) ENs would like to choose an asthma management course using EL, compared with 100 ENs (61.7%) preferring EL + TCL and 26 (16.1%) preferring TCL. In all, 156 (96.3%) ENs reported that the training program was useful to health care workers, and 138 (95.2%) ENs were able to apply what they learned to their practice setting. Conclusion. Nurses' demographics and clinical settings did not affect knowledge retention. There were no significant differences in retention of knowledge among the 3 modes of teaching. However, there seems to be an increase in preference for the combination mode of teaching (EL + TCL) as compared with either method alone.