Evaluation of the psychiatric nursing training program of the College of Nursing Mulleriyawa through Context, Input, Process, and Product (CIPP) Model

Abstract

The psychiatric nursing training program of the College of Nursing Mulleriyawa is the only training available for student nurses in this field. There is no evidence for the evaluation of this program in the past. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the program according to the students viewpoints, using the Context, Input, Process, and Product (CIPP) model. A cross-sectional study was carried out among 250 nursing students at the College of Nursing, Mulleriyawa. The self-administered questionnaire drawn from the CIPP evaluation model was used to collect data. Descriptive statistics were used for analyzing data by SPSS 21.0. For comparing the four (Context, Input, Process, and Product) evaluation methods, the KruskalWallis test was used. Ethical approval was obtained from the National Institute of Mental Health, Sri Lanka. The most leading evaluation method was the Product evaluation method, in which students showed the highest satisfaction. They agreed that the program enhanced their subject knowledge (Mean = 4.0, SD ± 0.7), attitudes (Mean = 3.7, SD ± 1.2) and necessary competencies at the end of the program (Mean = 3.7, SD ± 0.7). Further, they felt that the training sessions were useful. The Process evaluation showed the least satisfaction compared to the other evaluation methods. The students' least satisfied areas were engaged in research activities (Mean=2.3, SD ± 1.2) and time allocation for clinical practice (Mean = 2.5, SD ± 1.2). According to the result, these four evaluation methods can be ordered as follows in terms of satisfaction. Product evaluation > Context evaluation > Input evaluation > Process evaluation. The product part is the most exciting part of the program. The students are least satisfied with the process part. Based on the results, the policymakers should initiate strategies to revise the program fulfilling the inadequacies.

The psychiatric nursing training program of the College of Nursing Mulleriyawa is the only training available for student nurses in this field. There is no evidence for the evaluation of this program in the past. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the program according to the students viewpoints, using the Context, Input, Process, and Product (CIPP) model. A cross-sectional study was carried out among 250 nursing students at the College of Nursing, Mulleriyawa. The self-administered questionnaire drawn from the CIPP evaluation model was used to collect data. Descriptive statistics were used for analyzing data by SPSS 21.0. For comparing the four (Context, Input, Process, and Product) evaluation methods, the KruskalWallis test was used. Ethical approval was obtained from the National Institute of Mental Health, Sri Lanka. The most leading evaluation method was the Product evaluation method, in which students showed the highest satisfaction. They agreed that the program enhanced their subject knowledge (Mean = 4.0, SD ± 0.7), attitudes (Mean = 3.7, SD ± 1.2) and necessary competencies at the end of the program (Mean = 3.7, SD ± 0.7). Further, they felt that the training sessions were useful. The Process evaluation showed the least satisfaction compared to the other evaluation methods. The students' least satisfied areas were engaged in research activities (Mean=2.3, SD ± 1.2) and time allocation for clinical practice (Mean = 2.5, SD ± 1.2). According to the result, these four evaluation methods can be ordered as follows in terms of satisfaction. Product evaluation > Context evaluation > Input evaluation > Process evaluation. The product part is the most exciting part of the program. The students are least satisfied with the process part. Based on the results, the policymakers should initiate strategies to revise the program fulfilling the inadequacies