Evaluation of Effectiveness of a Continuing Education Program on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing

Eunice R Rosner; Jane R Willis; Karen K Mulawski; Alice S Boone; Harvey B Lipman; Janet F Hindler

doi:10.29074/ascls.20.3.146

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Eunice R Rosner, EdD
Jane R Willis, EdD

are formerly of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office of Workforce and Career Development, Atlanta GA

Karen K Mulawski, MA⇑
Alice S Boone, MPH

are health scientists, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Office of Workforce and Career Development, Atlanta GA

Address for correspondence: Karen Mulawski MA, California Department of Health Services, 850 Marina Bay Parkway E164, Richmond CA 94804. (510) 412-14014. kmulawski{at}nltn.org.

Harvey B Lipman, PhD
1. is senior mathematical statistician, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Coordinating Center for Infectious Diseases, Atlanta GA
Janet F Hindler, MCLS
1. is senior specialist in clinical microbiology, the University of California at Los Angeles Medical Center, Los Angeles CA

Abstract

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the effectiveness of a course designed to increase use of the most recently published Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute (CLSI) standards for antimicrobial susceptibility testing (AST) and reporting.

DESIGN: A one-day continuing education course in AST was designed and delivered at multiple sites. Data collected from course evaluations, pre- and post-tests, and pre- and post-practices assessments were used to evaluate the effectiveness of the training.

SETTING: The same course was held in 31 cities across the United States (US).

PARTICIPANTS: Clinical laboratory scientists who attended the courses.

MAIN OUTCOME MEASURES: Participant satisfaction; AST knowledge; number of labs using most recent CLSI standards; compliance with 28 specific CLSI AST recommendations.

RESULTS: Data indicate a high level of participant satisfaction, a gain in AST knowledge, an increase in the number of laboratories acquiring the most recently published CLSI guidelines, and improvement in 4 of 28 specific AST practices.

ABBREVIATIONS: ABC = active bacterial core; APHL = Association of Public Health Laboratories; AST = antimicrobial susceptibility testing; CDC = Centers for Disease Control and Prevention; CE = continuing education; CLSI = Clinical and Laboratory Standards Institute; CME = continuing medical education; NLTN = National Laboratory Training Network; VISA = vancomycin-intermediate Staphylococcus aureus; VRSA = vancomycin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus.