Effectiveness of a psycho-oncology training program for oncology nurses: a randomized controlled trial
Mené au Japon auprès de 96 infirmières en oncologie, cet essai randomisé évalue l'efficacité d'un programme de formation en psycho-oncologie pour améliorer leurs connaissances dans la prise en charge de patients atteints de cancer et présentant des troubles psychologiques
Objective : Oncology nurses are expected to play an important role in psychosocial care for cancer patients. The aim of this study was to examine whether a novel training program aimed at enhancing oncology nurses' ability to assess and manage common psychological problems in cancer patients would improve participants' self-reported confidence, knowledge, and attitudes regarding care of patients with common psychological problems (trial register: UMIN000008559). Methods : Oncology nurses were assigned randomly to either the intervention group (N = 50) or the waiting list control group (N = 46). The intervention group received a 16-h program, the content of which focused on four psychological issues: normal reactions, clinically significant distress, suicidal thoughts, and delirium. Each session included a role-play exercise, group work, and didactic lecture regarding assessment and management of each problem. Primary outcomes were changes in self-reported confidence, knowledge, and attitudes toward the common psychological problems between pre-intervention and 3 months post-intervention. Secondary outcomes were job-related stress and burnout. Intervention acceptability to participants was also assessed. Results : In the intervention group, confidence and knowledge but not attitudes were significantly improved relative to the control group. No significant intervention effects were found for job-related stress and burnout. A high percentage (98%) of participants considered the program useful in clinical practice. Conclusions : This psycho-oncology training program improved oncology nurses' confidence and knowledge regarding care for patients with psychological problems. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.