Effect of Online Palliative Care Training on Knowledge and Self-Efficacy of Direct Care Workers.

Kim et al. (2021) tested a two-hour online class about palliative care. The learners were direct support staff who work with adults with intellectual or developmental disabilities.

Staff took a knowledge quiz before the class, right after, and again one month later. They also rated their confidence to help a client who is dying.

Knowledge scores jumped right after the course and stayed high four weeks later. Confidence also rose, but the lift showed up only at the one-month check.

In short, a quick Zoom-style lesson made staff feel ready to talk about pain, comfort, and end-of-life choices.

Wilson et al. (2023) ran a nearly identical pre-post study with Australian disability staff. Their two-module course on psychotropic meds boosted knowledge too, yet almost two-thirds of staff dropped out before the five-month follow-up. The UK palliative-care study kept more staff engaged, hinting that end-of-life content may feel more urgent than medication content.

Kingsdorf et al. (2024) also saw big knowledge gains after a Czech e-learning course for autism caregivers. Like Jinsook, they used short video lessons and online quizzes, showing the format travels across countries and topics.

Matson et al. (1999) surveyed 334 North-American staff and found most felt 'not trained at all' to monitor medications. That gap still exists; the new two-hour model offers a low-cost way to start closing it.

You can add the free two-hour palliative-care module to your next staff meeting. Staff leave with concrete phrases to use when a client stops eating or prefers comfort care over the hospital. Pair it with the SPECTROM med-training slides for a one-day 'care and comfort' package that meets both palliative and medication standards without long webinars or travel costs.