Needs assessment for a patient education program in a nursing department. A Delphi approach.

Nursing staff members reported patient education activities in a teaching hospital during a needs assessment conducted as a three-round modified Delphi study. Members of the clinical practice committee and nursing staff members from all patient units were surveyed during three consecutive rounds. Results include the characteristics and priorities of nursing staff members' current interventions related to patient education. Programmatic directions for the nursing service organization, including the development of inservice education programs for creating a formal teaching plan, were identified.