Maximizing your Patient Education Skills (MPES): a multi-site evaluation of an innovative patient education skills training course for oncology health care professionals.
OBJECTIVE
To evaluate the acceptability and relevance of the Maximizing your Patient Education Skills (MPES) course and to determine whether it significantly improved knowledge regarding patient education (PE) theory, self-assessed PE competencies, and PE skills using case based vignettes.


METHODS
1-Group, multi-site, pre-post-intervention. Participants completed a pre-assessment (T1), participated in the 4-h MPES course, and then a 3-month post-assessment (T2). A focus group was conducted with sub-set of participants.


RESULTS
98 (75%) of participants completed both time points. Participants were highly satisfied with MPES and found it to be relevant. Results showed that MPES had a significant impact on all of our outcome measures.


CONCLUSIONS
Findings from this study show that oncology HCPs knowledge of patient education theory, self-assessed competencies and skills can improve after participating in a brief problem-focused and interactive workshop.


CONCLUSIONS
Given the evidence that well-planned education and support can contribute to a number of positive health outcomes and the evidence that HCPs may lack the skills to teach and support patients and their families effectively, these results suggest that MPES course may be of value to oncology professionals. Efforts to further develop this course include exploring alternative funding models and using different learning platforms.
Jones
Jennifer M
JM
Princess Margaret Hospital, University Health Network, Toronto, ON, Canada. jennifer.jones@uhn.on.ca
Papadakos
Janet
J
Bennett
Cathy
C
Blacker
Susan
S
Catton
Pamela
P
Harth
Tamara
T
Hatton-Bauer
Jane
J
McGrath
Krista
K
Schwartz
Farrah
F
Turnbull
Gale
G
Walton
Tara
T
Jusko-Friedman
Audrey
A
D000368:Aged; D003142:Communication; D004496:Education, Continuing; D005260:Female; D017144:Focus Groups; D006282:Health Personnel / Q000193:education*; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008495:Medical Oncology / Q000193:education*; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000628:therapy; D010353:Patient Education as Topic; D011361:Professional Competence / Q000592:standards*; D011369:Professional-Patient Relations