Civility Training for Nursing Students Made Easy: A Pilot Project

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Primary Author:</td>
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Anthony Delos Reyes, DNP, RN, BC</td>
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Co-Principal Investigators/Collaborators:</td>
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<p align="left">N/A</p>
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Organization:</td>
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South Seattle College</td>
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Abstract</h2>
<h3>
Purpose</h3>
<p>The purpose of the project was to provide nurse educators with a ready-to-use tool that offers civility training to nursing students and to assess the impact of the tool’s effect on nursing students’ perceptions on incivility. </p>
<h3>
Background</h3>
<p>Uncivil behaviors committed by nursing students can result in a negative learning environment, hostility, violence, and medical errors. If unaddressed in nursing school, these behaviors may also extend to incivility in the nursing workforce. Regulatory agencies, such as the American Association of Colleges of Nursing, the Institute of Medicine, the Joint Commission, and boards of nursing have recognized the positive impact of civility on patient and staff outcomes. With that said, they have recommended the implementation of strategies to support it. Unfortunately, many nursing instructors feel powerless and are underprepared when it comes to managing the rising problem of incivility in nursing education. </p>
<h3>
Materials & Methods</h3>
<p>A convenience sample of seven nursing students in a single clinical cohort from a community college within an urban city participated in this pilot project in October 2013. A pretest/posttest design was used. Participants completed the pretest (Incivility in Nursing Education [INE] Survey ©), online civility training module ("Civility, You, and Mizzou" ©), and posttest (INE Survey). The INE Survey measured the nursing students’ perceptions of uncivil student and faculty behaviors and their perceived frequency. Cronbach α range for the tool is 0.85 to 0.96. </p>
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Results</h3>
<p>After completion of the module, there was a positive change (range of 14-29%) in student perception levels for uncivil behaviors listed on the INE Survey. Additionally, participants report that the module increased their knowledge on civility and it also provided them with helpful strategies to prevent and deal with incivility.</p>
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Conclusion</h3>
<p>Findings of this study provide supportive evidence for the need of effective civility training approaches. Adopting the useful, ready-to-use civility module, provides nurse educators with a valuable resource that fosters a culture of safety and civility in academic settings.</p>
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Bibliography</h3>
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<li>
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<p>© Improvement Science Research Network, 2012</p>
<p>The ISRN published this as received and with permission from the author(s).</p>