PT - JOURNAL ARTICLE AU - Rosner, Eunice R AU - Willis, Jane R AU - Mulawski, Karen K AU - Boone, Alice S AU - Lipman, Harvey B AU - Hindler, Janet F TI - Evaluation of Effectiveness of a Continuing Education Program on Antimicrobial Susceptibility Testing AID - 10.29074/ascls.20.3.146 DP - 2007 Jul 01 TA - American Society for Clinical Laboratory Science PG - 146--153 VI - 20 IP - 3 4099 - http://hwmaint.clsjournal.ascls.org/content/20/3/146.short 4100 - http://hwmaint.clsjournal.ascls.org/content/20/3/146.full SO - Clin Lab Sci2007 Jul 01; 20 AB - 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.