Patient Education in Rural Community Hospitals: Registered Nurses' Attitudes and Degrees of Comfort.

This study examined whether academic preparation, years of experience, or job role influenced registered nurses' attitudes regarding patient education, the frequency of assuming teaching roles, and the degree of comfort in providing patient education. This quantitative study used a survey tool sent to 412 registered nurses in five rural community hospitals. There were 273 surveys returned (66.3%). Data were analyzed using descriptive statistics, factor analysis, and analysis of variance with post hoc testing. Role ambiguity emerged with a significant difference based on educational preparation. Job role showed a significant difference in competency and comfort with patient education. Years of experience yielded significant differences in the registered nurses' degree of comfort in teaching within two of the three factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]