Education for registered nurses who care for children with complex, continuing physiological needs

There is an increasing population of children who have complex and continuing physiological needs whose social, psychological, emotional and developmental needs are best met at home, rather than in a hospital environment. However, one of the many factors which can impede children who have complex and continuing health needs being discharged from hospital is a lack of staff who can provide care and support for them and their families. Increasing the number of staff who are able to provide such support may therefore assist in improving the provision of appropriate care for this group. However, despite the recognition of the needs of children with complex and continuing health needs and their families, there is currently a relative lack of post registration nurse education specific to this client group. This paper reports on the rationale for development, design, and evaluation of a module of study for staff who care for children with complex needs and their families. The evaluation includes module content, sharing learning with other modules of study, the potential for using distance learning approaches, and the potential tension between learning and academic study.