Nurses’ Experiences of Continuous Professional Development

Objective: To explore nurses’ experiences of Continuous Professional Development (CPD) and factors that influenced CPD uptake. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was used. A convenient sample of 80 nurses from two private hospitals in Amman was approached during February 2009. A self report questionnaire was used to collect data after verifying the validity and suitability of the items investigated. Descriptive statistics, content analysis and ANOVA were used to answer the research questions. Results: Enhancing quality of nursing care was reported as the prime motivator to uptake CPD activities. The top four motivators were: improving performance, increasing professional knowledge, increasing self-esteem, and enhancing the status of the profession. These factors overlapped with respondents reasons for CPD involvement, and a general consensus of opinion was reached among respondents on the meanings of CPD. Expressed barriers for uptaking CPD indicated four themes: Difficult access to CPD; relevance of CPD; work-life balance, and maximizing the outcome of CPD. Equal and need-based opportunities of CPD activities were recommended. Significant differences were found between the mean scores of nurses’ perception of their willingness to undertake CPD activities during annual leave of off days in terms of hospital (p .001), gender (p 0.019) and years of experience (p 0.019). Considering the same characteristics, significant differences were also noted on their readiness to pay for CPD activities (p 0.049, p 0.046, p 0.046) and in improving performance (p 0.001, p0.002, p00.02). No significant difference was found in terms of age. Generally, most of the items that differed significantly were related to intrinsic factors. Conclusion: The type of CPD activity depends on individuals’ goals coupled with the hospital s nursing managers’ immediate and felt needs. The driving forces to uptake CPD clearly indicated nurses’ commitment towards quality care to promote the nursing profession.