Assessment of Self-Efficacy and Practice Change Following Pressure Injury Education in a Long-Term Care Facility

The purpose of this scholarly project was to evaluate if pressure injury education improved nursing knowledge and self-efficacy in the prevention and management of pressure injuries with the intent to improve practice. A literature review was conducted to evaluate educational interventions for adult learners and nursing roles in the care process. Existing studies indicated that patient outcomes are improved when nurses have adequate knowledge in pressure injury prevention. This quality improvement project was implemented in a long-term care facility with 28 nursing staff. The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality pressure injury best practices presentation was the basis for the educational intervention with both didactic and interactive identification of best practice. Validated instruments included a pre- and posttest questionnaire applying Beeckman’s Pressure Ulcer Knowledge Assessment Tool Version 2.0. posttest assessment of self-efficacy and levels of learning prior to and after pressure injury education, and the Pressure Ulcer Management Self-Efficacy Scale for Nurses. The pre- and posteducation scoring demonstrated improved knowledge of pressure injury intervention and management. The statistical analysis employed the Wilcoxon signed-rank test, which revealed compelling results. With a test statistic of 21.0 and a p value lower than the predetermined alpha level (.0018), the null hypothesis was confidently rejected in favor of the alternative, which suggests pressure injury education had a positive effect on the performance of the surveyed individuals. These findings underscore the importance of ongoing education in health care settings. The data strongly suggest that continuous learning can enhance the knowledge and self-efficacy of nurses and certified nursing assistants, ultimately contributing to improved patient care and outcomes.Keywords: pressure ulcers, pressure injuries, long-term care, nursing education, pressure ulcer prevention, control, nursing knowledge