QR code linked videos to enhance competencies in rural nursing

Abstract

In developed countries such as Canada and the United States (US), nurses who work in rural critical care and emergency settings are faced with many infrequent procedures and skills requiring high levels of competency to perform safely (Decker & Hine, 2015; Gibson & McDermott, 2014). Procedures such as ventilation and pacing are not part of everyday work for rural nurses but may be crucial to the survival of the patient (Decker & Hine, 2015; Gibson & McDermott, 2014). In addition to the low-volume nature of these competencies, they are often needed in urgent situations, with quick action required by the nurse to positively affect patient outcomes (Hendrickx & Winters, 2017; Lawford & Giles, 2012; MacKinnon, 2012). Rural nurses struggle to maintain these competencies due to issues such as infrequency and lack of exposure to critical care skills (Saqe-Rockoff et al., 2019). A proposed solution to this practice problem involves applying a ‘just-in-time' (JIT) strategy where a brief, concise, and targeted informational video is offered via quick response (QR) codes placed at point-of-care, on or near the associated equipment in the rural emergency department (ED). This paper discuses the outcomes of a project designed to assess the validity of this proposed solution to improve competencies and self-efficacy among rural emergency nurses.

Supplementary Material Video: Clinical Practice Bytes: Quick Review on How to Set Up a Pleur-Evac (Dry Suction) for Chest Drainage. This two-minute video demonstrates setting up a chest drainage unit.