title: Being refreshed: evaluation of a nurse refresher course.
abstract: In light of the current nursing shortage, registered nurses who have been away from clinical practice are a valuable resource. This article examines the effectiveness of a structured nurse refresher course to return nurses to employment and to prepare them for effective clinical practice. This course was successful in returning 78% (n = 37) of the survey respondents to nursing employment and was found to be highly effective in preparing these nurses in the six areas included in the course. This refresher course may serve as a model for the development of more structured refresher courses for inactive nurses.
authors.affiliation: Continuing Education Department, UNC-Chapel Hill School of Nursing, CB #7460, Carrington Hall, Chapel Hill, NC 27599-7460, USA.
authors.forename: Jennifer M
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Hawley
authors.forename: Barbara Jo
authors.initials: BJ
authors.lastname: Foley
mesh_terms: D001291:Attitude of Health Personnel; D002983:Clinical Competence / Q000592:standards; D004509:Education, Nursing, Continuing / Q000458:organization & administration*; D004518:Education, Professional, Retraining / Q000458:organization & administration*; D004651:Employment / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007318:Inservice Training / Q000458:organization & administration*; D009657:North Carolina; D015402:Nursing Education Research; D009740:Nursing Staff / Q000193:education* / Q000523:psychology; D010561:Personnel Staffing and Scheduling / Q000458:organization & administration; D015397:Program Evaluation; D012944:Social Support