UTILIZING POPULATION-SPECIFIC EDUCATION TO IMPROVE THE CONFIDENCE OF GERIATRIC TRAUMA CARE PROVIDERS

Abstract

Geriatric patients make up a large percentage of emergent presentations to critical access hospitals. Persons over the age of 65 bring with them multiple co-morbidities, polypharmacy, and complications with care due to aging physiological processes. Health care professionals are faced with the challenge of considering these factors while performing emergent and lifesaving treatments. This purpose of this project was to provide population specific education to health care professionals to increase self-efficacy in providing trauma care to persons 65 years of age or older. A literature review was performed to determine which factors can have the most detrimental effects on geriatric patient mortality after a traumatic injury. Research of the literature was also used to generate an education program for providing trauma care specific for the geriatric population. The target audience for this program was health care professionals in a critical access hospital in Northwest Kansas. The audience evaluated perceptions of self-efficacy in providing evidence-based care to injured geriatric patients using pre- and post-presentation Likert scale surveys. Wilcoxon signed ranks test determined that a statistically significant improvement in self-efficacy was gained through the education program.