Developing and testing training materials on elder abuse and neglect for nurse aides

The prevention of resident abuse and neglect is a critical concern for nursing homes. In this project, educational materials for paraprofessional nursing home workers were developed based on input from Hawaii's nurse aides. When asked about abuse, respondents were quick to report feeling abused themselves, by patients, patients families, and supervisors. While expressing high regard for older adults and pride in their jobs, they noted that working conditions (e.g., short staffing) and lack of knowledge about managing conflict and difficult situations could lead to frustration. The stories of the paraprofessionals and their suggestions for managing stress ''so we don't take it out on others'' were incorporated into a 12-minute video drama and a 12-page booklet. These materials were tested among 105 nurse aides at seven workshops in Honolulu nursing homes. Participants gave the video, booklet, and interactive workshop high ratings and reported a significant increase in job satisfaction from pre-test to post-test.