Continuing nursing education: what resources do bedside nurses use?

Continuing nursing education (CNE) has traditionally been considered a formalized learning experience. However, the results of this study indicated nurses providing direct patient care in a tertiary care hospital seldom participate in such activities. The nursing staff do use a variety of resources, both material and personnel, to meet their immediate learning needs. Most of their CNE activities appear to be undertaken within their work environment. The results of this study provide nurse educators and managers insight into how they can augment "on-the-job" learning opportunities for staff nurses.