End-of-Life Care Training for Respiratory Therapy Students

Abstract

Background:

Respiratory therapy students have a variety of clinical experiences throughout their education program, which may include participating in end-of-life care needs for a dying patient. Research is limited regarding the incorporation of end-of-life care training in respiratory therapy education programs. The purpose of this study was to assess the effectiveness of an education intervention implemented in respiratory therapy education programs to improve perceived knowledge and self-efficacy of participating in end-of-life care.

Methods:

A repeated measures design was used to assess changes in students’ perceived knowledge and self-efficacy before and after completing a series of four 30-minute end-of-life training sessions. Following completion of the training sessions, an online self-administered questionnaire was distributed to the students at the participating schools that measured retrospective pre-post training. Items were measured on a 5-point rating scale. The survey was developed based on a review of previous published survey instruments. Statistical significance was set at <.0125 for Bonferroni correction of multiple comparisons.

Results:

Of the 14 community college respiratory therapy programs invited to participate, 4 accepted the invitation to participate in the end-of-life training. 77 students completed the pre-post questionnaire. Most students reported that they had not received prior training in their respiratory therapy program regarding routine extubations (57.1%), terminal extubations (75.3%), or end-of-life care (71.4%). Paired t-test results revealed significant increases in knowledge in end-of-life care (P < .001), comfort with communicating with dying patients (P < .001), comfort with communicating with grieving family members (P < .001), and preparedness for participating in end-of-life care needs (P < .001). 74% of students agreed or strongly agreed that the training sessions increased their understanding and preparedness for participating in end-of-life care.

Conclusions:

Education training sessions can be effective in improving perceived knowledge and self-efficacy of students regarding end-of-care needs of dying patients and families. More education and training are needed in respiratory therapy education programs to help prepare students for end-of-life care required in clinical practice.

Results of the Pre-Post Analysis on the End-of-Life Training Effectiveness

Items	Pre-test	Post-test	t(76)	p	Cohen’s d
	M(SD)	M(SD)
Knowledge of end-of-life care services	3.23(1.21)	4.39(.54)	-9.88	<.001	1.03
Comfort communicating with dying patients during end-of-life care	3.47(1.23)	4.22(.79)	-6.51	>.001	1.02
Comfort communicating with grieving family members during end-of-life care	3.42(1.17)	4.14(.81)	-6.59	>.001	.97
Adequately prepared for how to participate in end-of-life care needs for a dying patient	3.18(1.21)	4.13(.75)	-8.68	>.001	.96