Citation

Francis-Coad J, Etherton-Beer C, Bulsara C, Nobre D, Hill AM. Geriatr. Nurs. 2016; 38(2): 133-140.

Affiliation

School of Physiotherapy and Exercise Science, Curtin University, GPO Box U1987, Perth, WA, 6845, Australia.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2016, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.gerinurse.2016.09.001

PMID

27769640

Abstract

The aims of this study were to evaluate establishing and operating a web-based community of practice (CoP) to lead falls prevention in a residential aged care (RAC) setting. A mixed methods evaluation was conducted in two phases using a survey and transcripts from interactive electronic sources. Nurses and allied health staff (n = 20) with an interest in falls prevention representing 13 sites of an RAC organization participated. In Phase 1, the CoP was developed, and the establishment of its structure and composition was evaluated using determinants of success reported in the literature. In Phase 2, all participants interacted using the web, but frequency of engagement by any participant was low. Participatory barriers, including competing demands from other tasks and low levels of knowledge about information communication technology (ICT) applications, were identified by CoP members. A web-based CoP can be established and operated across multiple RAC sites if RAC management support dedicated time for web-based participation and staff are given web-based training.

Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Language: en