Online biostatistics: evidence-based curriculum for master's nursing education

J Nurs Educ. 2014 Apr;53(4):229-32. doi: 10.3928/01484834-20140326-01. Epub 2014 Mar 26.

Abstract

Rapid changes in health care delivery require nurses to attain advanced knowledge, skills, and attitudes in biostatistics to provide high-quality, safe patient care. Advances in educational technologies support the delivery of graduate nursing education in online formats. Given the diversity of learning styles among graduate nursing students and the specific challenges in delivering biostatistics content in traditional formats, it is vital to include different delivery formats to engage and meet the learning needs of graduate nursing students who take biostatistics courses online. This article describes the pioneering approach of one graduate nursing program to implementing best practices for delivering an online biostatistics course to help master's-prepared nurses attain both statistical literacy and statistical communication skills.

MeSH terms

  • Biostatistics*
  • Computer-Assisted Instruction*
  • Curriculum
  • Diffusion of Innovation
  • Education, Nursing, Graduate / methods*
  • Evidence-Based Nursing / education*
  • Humans
  • Internet
  • Nursing Education Research
  • Nursing Evaluation Research
  • Nursing Methodology Research