Nurse Practitioner Students' Knowledge Assessment and Perceived Preparedness to Triage Ophthalmology Complaints in a Primary Care Setting: An Educational Intervention

Grace R Reilly; Adrienne W Scott; Nancy G Russell; Kimberly McIltrot; Stephen D Sisson

doi:10.1055/s-0043-1771355

Nurse Practitioner Students' Knowledge Assessment and Perceived Preparedness to Triage Ophthalmology Complaints in a Primary Care Setting: An Educational Intervention

J Acad Ophthalmol (2017). 2023 Oct 3;15(2):e232-e236. doi: 10.1055/s-0043-1771355. eCollection 2023 Jul.

Authors

Grace R Reilly^{1

2}, Adrienne W Scott², Nancy G Russell³, Kimberly McIltrot³, Stephen D Sisson⁴

Affiliations

¹ Drexel University College of Medicine, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
² Wilmer Eye Institute, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.
³ Johns Hopkins University School of Nursing, Baltimore, Maryland.
⁴ Department of Medicine, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine, Baltimore, Maryland.

Abstract

Purpose In this proof-of-concept pilot study, we aimed to increase nurse practitioner (NP) student knowledge of ophthalmology to prepare NPs for encounters in primary care settings. The Association of University Professors of Ophthalmology (AUPO) and the American Academy of Ophthalmology (AAO) endorse core knowledge that medical students should achieve. We assess the effectiveness of an innovative ophthalmologist-led curriculum based on these competencies tailored to issues NPs encounter in primary care. Methods Johns Hopkins University NP students enrolled in a pre-post-cohort study and educational intervention. The didactic program was developed according to AUPO and AAO core ophthalmology content for medical students and was taught in-person by an ophthalmologist. Pre-post-assessments evaluated students' perceived readiness to encounter ophthalmic issues in the clinic and baseline knowledge of core competencies of ophthalmology. Results A total of 42 NP students were included in the analysis. NP students improved in core knowledge and readiness to encounter ophthalmology issues. After the educational event, there was a statistically significant improvement in students' ratings of preparedness to obtain a focused history, exam, perform initial management and decide the urgency of a referral for acute painless vision loss ( p < 0.001), chronic vision loss ( p < 0.001), or a patient with a red/painful eye ( p < 0.001). Students showed a statistically significant improvement in postdidactic event core ophthalmology knowledge assessment scores ( p = 0.002). Conclusion Primary care NPs are increasingly the initial point of contact for patients with ophthalmic complaints, and thus, high-quality and thorough education regarding ophthalmology triage and referral for NPs is necessary. NP student comfort with and knowledge of ophthalmic complaints and triage may be improved by a brief educational intervention taught by an ophthalmologist early in the NP curriculum.

Keywords: Nurse practitioner; interprofessional; medical education; ophthalmology education; primary care.

The Author(s). This is an open access article published by Thieme under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonDerivative-NonCommercial License, permitting copying and reproduction so long as the original work is given appropriate credit. Contents may not be used for commercial purposes, or adapted, remixed, transformed or built upon. ( https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ ).