Evaluation of a Chronic Condition Self-Management (CCSM) eLearning programme (Irish College for General Practitioners) and assessment of suitability for use with other health professionals

Background Currently, many health professionals lack the requisite knowledge to support the principles of chronic condition self management (CCSM), and many lack the application skills required to employ this client centred... [ view full abstract ]

Background
Currently, many health professionals lack the requisite knowledge to support the principles of chronic condition self management (CCSM), and many lack the application skills required to employ this client centred approach in their clinical practice. An eLearning Programme (Higgins & Murphy, 2011) has been previously found to be effective in augmenting the self efficacy of health professionals in utilising these skills.

Purpose of the Evaluation
The aim of this study is to evaluate a Chronic Condition Self-Management (CCSM) eLearning Programme (Irish College of General Practitioners) and assess it’s suitability to a range of health professional groups.

The objectives of this evaluation include:
1. to undertake an evaluation process to inform the modification of the training package to meet the needs of different health professionals;
2. to determine changes in participants’ CCSM self-efficacy following completion of the eLearning Programme;
3. to assess participants’ intended practice changes in the workplace following the eLearning Programme.
4. to identify participants perceptions of barriers to making CCSM related changes in their work practice and methods for overcoming barriers.

Study Design
The study incorporated a pre and post test survey design. Essentially a baseline measure is taken, usually under a pre-intervention condition, an intervention is then introduced and any subsequent change that occurs thereafter is assumed to be caused by the intervention (Duncan et al 1994).

Findings
The CCSM programme certainly appeared to be effective in supporting participants to incorporate CCSM principles into clinical practice. The findings support the contention that participants from diverse professional backgrounds can increase their level of CCSM self-efficacy through participation in the programme. These results largely support a willingness across the diverse health professional groups involved to engage in a more proactive approach once they are given the skills and the tools to put this approach into practice.