EDUCATING SCHOOL NURSES TO CARE FOR HIV-INFECTED CHILDREN IN SCHOOL

Effects of an educational program on school nurses' knowledge and atti tudes about human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection in children a nd changes in practice as investigated. Participants (N = 205) attende d a one-day workshop held of 11 sites in New Jersey. Content was clini cally focused and derived from a needs assessment of a sample of schoo l nurses throughout New Jersey. An adult education,format was used, wi th interactive and affective teaching strategies modeled on the AIDS T raining Program of the California Nurses' Association. Subjects were p retested and posttested for knowledge and attitudes about HIV in child ren. An identical posttest mailed three months later included a self-r eport of change in practice since attending the workshop. Knowledge an d attitude scores were significantly higher at program completion (p < .0001). Three months after the program, knowledge scores had fallen h ut not to pretest levels. No significant difference existed between at titude scores after the program and three months later. On self-report of change in practice, respondents indicated they instituted or impro ved universal precautions, and were more comfortable in teaching child ren, staff, and their communities about HIV.