- 學位論文
Training needs assessment of health care professionals in a developing country - Saint Lucia
Training needs assessment of health care professionals in a developing country - Saint Lucia
並列摘要
BACKGROUND: Embedded in the mission statement of the ministry of health in Saint Lucia is the provision of holistic health and services to the entire population. In pursuit of this mission, healthcare is delivered at public facilities throughout the country. The ultimate goal of any healthcare provider is the satisfaction of the patient; greater outcomes and a cadre of personnel who can deliver that outcome are necessary. The demand on healthcare institutions to move towards accreditation and providing quality patient care is increasing, therefore, adequate and continuous training are necessary to achieve this ultimate goal. Training of healthcare professionals is only provided at one local institution, primarily to nurses. OBJECTIVES: The aim of this study was to assess the training needs of health professionals and its influencing factors, set up a framework for policy development of training, customize training to meet local needs and to rejuvenate the need for professional development of healthcare personnel within local authorities. METHODS: The study utilized a self-completed close-ended structured questionnaire with a core set of 30 questions. The target groups were healthcare professionals employed in public healthcare facilities in Saint Lucia. RESULTS: There was a 70.5% response rate of which 79.1 % were female. The majority of respondents (43.1%) were between ages 29 to 39 years. 56.1% of respondents were nurses followed by physicians 15.8%. As anticipated, a majority (56.5%) of respondents were from the main hospital, Victoria Hospital. The need for continuing professional education was rated the highest priority followed by research audit activities, which implies the healthcare professionals believe that these tasks and activities are important to their further development. Generally, they also believe that organizational changes can improve their performance on various tasks. The evidence suggests that an overwhelming majority of participants indicated a desire for training in communication skills, clinical tasks and research methods. CONCLUSION: This study has shown that the needs assessment of healthcare professionals in Saint Lucia was especially timely, with the pending commissioning of the new national hospital and reopening of the renovated St. Jude Hospital. It is recommended that authorities charged with the responsibility for providing ongoing/continuous training for the various disciplines, plan and execute programmes to meet the needs of the people they represent.