Nurses operating within the rural or remote setting sometimes find themselves with a hefty workload of attending to patients’ healthcare issues in addition to other duties which go beyond their normal schedule. A case in point is the continued training needs of these rural staff especially in third world or undeveloped countries. It is indeed very tricky for them to access further education due to limited resources. Educational facilities, for instance, are not readily available for such endeavours. It is against this backdrop that nurses in remote areas require comprehensive methods which they can use to pursue further education bearing in mind that healthcare needs are very dynamic hence the need to update their basic training and education.
To begin with, healthcare organisations both in the private and public sectors should embrace study programs that are internally organised (Kreger, 1991). This can take the approach of after work-study especially during the evening hours when patient attention is not at its peak. The study modules can be tailor-made to fit the limited time available owing to the fact that remote area nurses are often on-call throughout the seven days of the week.
In cases where internal study programs cannot be implemented, study leave can be organised for the nursing professionals to advance their primary training knowledge and abilities. Study leave programs can be affected on a rotational basis for those nurses who are pursuing further education.
Nevertheless, there are some instances when some nurses in undeveloped countries cannot afford the cost of continuing education. It is therefore imperative for scholarship programs to be put in place to cater for such eventualities. They can also be assisted to travel from one location to another when there is a need to acquire educational skills from other distant locations (Billgs & Halstead, 2009).
Internal study programs can also be supplemented by distance learning through online programs. This will save time and other resources. Finally, these training modules can be enhanced by short term seminars and workshops.
References
Billgs, D.M. and Halstead, J.A. (2009). Teaching in nursing: A guide for faculty. St. Louis: Elsevier Saunders.
Kreger, A. (199 1) Remote Area Nursing Practice: A Question of Education. Perth: Council of Remote Area Nurses of Australia.