What Types of Continuing Professional Development Training Courses Do Healthcare Assistants Employed in Community Care Settings Think Should Be Conducted Face-To-Face or Online?

Abstract

Aim: This study was undertaken to explore what types of continuing professional development (CPD) clinical training courses Healthcare Assistants think should be conducted by face-to-face or online methods. Methodology: A purpose-built piloted questionnaire was utilised to collect data. A total of 71 completed questionnaires were included in the data analysis. The participants were all consenting adults aged between 20 - 61 years. Results: The face-to-face learning method was thought of as the preferred method by 45/71 (63%) of the participants while 9/71 (14%) of the participants thought of online learning as their preferred method. Interestingly, 17/71 (23%) thought of blended learning as their preferred method. Among 20 popular CPD courses, participants preferred 16/20 (80%) for the face-to-face training method and 3/20 (15%) of the courses for online training methods. There was an equal preference for 1/20 (5%) course. Conclusion: The face-to-face training/learning method remains the dominant preference for HCAs, but online training/learning is gaining popularity, especially among younger computer-literate learners. A blend of the two methods may satisfy proponents of traditional teacher-centric training/learning styles on one hand and those supporting digitally aided student-centric training/learning on the other.