Geriatric Oncology: Educating nurses to improve quality care



 DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The overarching goal of this R25 proposal is to develop and implement a national educational curriculum in geriatric oncology for oncology nurses. There is an urgent need for this initiative because cancer is a disease associated with aging. The number of "baby boomers" age 65 and older is expected to double by the year 2030 leading to a projected 67% increase in cancer incidence in this age group. The Institute of Medicine highlights the current and projected future shortage of nurses with experience in geriatrics who will be needed to care for this growing population of older adults. Less than 1% of nurses and less than 3% of advanced practice nurses are certified in geriatrics. This proposal will fill this gap in knowledge through a multidisciplinary, interactive, targeted curriculum in geriatric oncology for competitively selected oncology nurses nationwide. It will culminate in teams of nursing participants developing their own plans to integrate geriatric oncology principles and practices into their home organizations. The specific aims of this application are: 1) To develop a comprehensive geriatric oncology curriculum for nurses, with input from top-level multidisciplinary faculty from around the country, which will advance nurses' knowledge, attitudes, and skills related to caring for older adults with cancer; 2) To implement this geriatri oncology curriculum with national workshops for competitively selected nurses nationwide; 3) To evaluate the effectiveness of a comprehensive, interactive geriatric oncology curriculum for nurses based on knowledge acquired from pre- to post-conference; 4) To evaluate the impact of a comprehensive geriatric oncology curriculum on the development of geriatric oncology nursing initiatives nationwide by measuring the progress and outcomes of workshop activities and changes initiated by the participants in their home settings; and 5) To disseminate the findings from these conferences. These aims will be achieved through four annual conferences (followed by monthly conference calls open to all participants) which will train a total of 400 competitively selected oncology nurses across the nation who will attend in teams (a manager, educator, and direct care provider) from their institution. This 21/2 day conference consists of a comprehensive yet targeted educational curriculum delivered by nationwide experts in geriatrics, oncology, and nursing education. Conference attendees will use this information and develop plans for integration of this knowledge into their own organizations. We will follow their progress at 6, 12, and 18 months post-conference. This proposal unites the fields of nursing, geriatrics, and oncology through the creation of an educational curriculum of geriatric principles geared to oncology nursing professionals who are caring for an aging oncology population with the ultimate goal of improving the knowledge of evidence- based care of older adults with cancer.