What are the training needs of emergency department resuscitation nurses? A scoping review

Abstract

Background

The emergency resuscitation nurse is a challenging and specialised role at the forefront of critical care practice in the emergency department. Despite their extensive specialist knowledge and skill requirements, in Australia there is no state-wide or nationally agreed approach to how to best provide training that meets a set of fixed objectives and requisite skills for resuscitation nurses. Due to an ageing nursing population and increasing workforce attrition, an efficacious accelerated pathway to acquire specialist resuscitation nursing knowledge, is necessary.

Aim

The aim of this review is to identify, consolidate and summarise the available evidence on the training needs for the requisite clinical and non-technical skills of emergency resuscitation nurses

Eligibility criteria

Papers about nurses currently working in the emergency department; including Nurse Unit Managers (NUMs), Clinical Nurse Educators (CNEs), Clinical Nurse Consultants (CNCs), Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNSs), Registered Nurses (RNs) and Enrolled Nurses (ENs) were included. The review included primary and non-primary research, including papers addressing how emergency nurses are trained. There was no date limitation set to ensure all results could be reviewed. Papers that were not published in English, included nurses who were not working in the ED, or included doctors, allied health, and other staff where population cohorts could not be distinguished, were excluded. Abstract only, editorials, conference posters or oral presentations, were also excluded.

Sources of evidence

Searches were conducted in MEDLINE, CINAHL and EMCARE. The authors conducted extensive hand-searching of the included study reference lists as well as the grey literature to ensure that all relevant literature was captured.

Methods

A scoping literature review was conducted.

Results

Data extraction was conducted on the final 33 articles (23 peer reviewed studies and 10 competency and practice standards documents). Specific training requirements to achieve competence in the requisite clinical and non-technical skills in resuscitation nursing do not exist. A decline in competency without regular reinforcement was reported. Multi-modal approaches, incorporating diverse teaching methods, show potential in enhancing knowledge retention and skill acquisition.

Conclusion

Resuscitation nursing lacks a standardised training approach in Australia, leading to a gap in ensuring consistent skill acquisition and knowledge among nurses. Research is required to identify what resuscitation nursing skills and training are necessary to ensure practice effectively meets the needs of patients.