Hands-On Training for Nursing Staff Is Necessary to Boost Competency and Meet Federal Requirements

"Having competent staff means they have the knowledge and skills, and that knowledge goes to the hands," said Amy Stewart, RN, DNS-MT, QCP-MT, RAC-MT, Curriculum Development Specialist at the American Association of Directors of Nursing Services. During an educational session titled "How to Competently Address Staff Competencies" at the annual American Health Care Association conference in San Diego on October 9, 2018, Stewart discussed strategies that directors of nursing can take towards fulfilling the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services' Phase 2 requirement for conducting and documenting annual facility-wide assessments. The requirement seeks to ensure that long-term care organizations can competently care for resident populations during day-to-day operations and emergencies. To that effort, Stewart suggested increased hands-on training, whether that be through skill or demonstration fairs, investing in teaching staff for specific skills, increased use of learning management systems, or lecture series followed by tests. According to Stewart, people generally retain only 10% of what they read, 20% of what they hear, and 30% of what they see, but the figure rises up to 90% of what they've seen demonstrated and are given the opportunity to practice.