education plays an important role in achieving organizational goals through a combination of organizational and the workforce interests . nowadays , training is an essential factor 
 contributing to greater efficiency of the staff and organizations . in fact , it is a vital investment that will lead to internal promotion , staff development and success of organizational 
 plans . training is an investment in achieving productivity and employee retention through providing career development and job satisfaction in the long run 
 ( 1 - 2 ) . training programs are essential for the survival and viability of the organization in the competition 
 arena ( 3 ) . the literature review suggests that certain training programs do not demonstrate any efficacy in improving the quality of patient 
 care ( 4 ) . in order to expand the capacities and improve educational outputs , it is crucial to develop and adopt new models of clinical education 
 for nurses ( 5 ) . in addition to the theoretical knowledge , vocational training should enhance the technical capacity and quality of services , 
 leading to innovation ( 6 ) . training programs must be organized in such a way that they enhance the beneficial capabilities of employees 
 ( 7 ) . in - service training includes a set of measures taken to promote empowerment and competency among employees for the better undertaking 
 of their tasks , thus helping the organization to achieve its goals ( 8) . previous research has shown that job characteristics and professional factors can contribute to the involvement of employees in in - service training ( 9 ) . hence , they need to be updated about theoretical and practical knowledge in this field ( 10 ) . 
 in fact , in - service training serves to update the staff 's occupational knowledge and professional skills and improve the best practices for fulfilling various tasks and responsibilities 
 ( 8) . another important point concerning the in - service training of the nursing staff is their active participation in such programs . active participation 
 of nurses in in - service training can lead to effective learning and development in their field of work . one of the factors contributing to greater involvement of the staff in such programs 
 is the utilization of adult learning principles . adults are aware of learning objectives , guide their own learning , and they are self - assessor ( 11 ) . moreover , self - centered learning has been offered as a lifelong learning technique in medical education ( 12 ) . the in - service training programs for 
 the nursing staff have been implemented in various forms and methods in iran , but have unfortunately left little impact on their occupational outcomes ( 13 ) . 
 due to the limited knowledge , undefined concepts and undeveloped relationship between concepts , it s necessary to explore nursing in - service training components and design a streamlined model 
 for nursing staff training . this study intended to provide a new model of in - service training for the nursing staff . this study was conducted in two stages . in the first stage , the grounded theory was adopted to fully examine the training process of nursing staff . in the second stage , 
 the findings were employed through walker and avants strategy for theory construction ( 2005 ) ( 14 ) so as to design an optimal model 
 for in - service training of the nursing staff . the participants confidence 
 and real answers to the questions were limitations of the study . for collecting deeper and better data , the researcher found a part - time job in one of the hospitals . the samples comprised a total of 35 nurses , nursing managers , training managers and senior managers working at the hospitals . the sampling was initially purposeful and then theoretically based on emerging concepts and continued until data saturation . the data were collected through semi - structured interviews , field notes and literature review . each interview was recorded by a digital device and then implemented on the same day after listening for several times . the data were analyzed through corbin and strauss method ( 2008 ) involving coding for concepts , analysis for contexts and processes , analysis for consequences , 
 and finally integration of categories to build theoretical framework ( 15 ) . analytical techniques included comparisons , asking 
 questions , flip - flop technique , and waving - the - red - flag technique . the comparisons constantly evaluated the phenomena , concepts and events in terms of similarities 
 and differences . the questions were continuously asked about the essence of the data , covering topics such as who , what , when , where , how and with what consequences . waving - the - red - flag technique served to find out in what circumstances a phenomenon always occurs or usually does not occur . in this way having developed the descriptive theory , the walker and avants strategy for theory 
 construction ( 2005 ) was employed to generate a prescriptive theory . at first , a set of relevant core concepts were outlined to expand the model . the core concept 
 was derived from the grounded theory and main concern of the participants so as to further expand the model . at the next stage , the paradigmatic and meta - paradigmatic 
 concepts within the model were identified , followed by a review of related literature . finally , the concepts and statements were extracted from the selected texts , which were then systematically organized into a model . the strategies presented by guba and lincoln were adopted to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the results ( 16 ) . the researcher was continuously involved with the data , which were confirmed by the participants , the research team and two outsider experts ( credibility ) . moreover , two members of the research team coded the interviews independently and finally reached a consensus ( dependability ) . in collecting and recording the data , sufficient time was allocated ( 18 months ) and utmost accuracy was exercised ( confirmability ) . this study was approved by the ethics committee of the baqiyatallah university of medical sciences . moreover , furthermore , 
 the participants remained anonymous with the right to withdraw from the study at any stage . certain parts of the interviews were not recorded upon request of the participants and none of the interviews 
 were disclosed to maintain the confidentiality of private data . the strategies presented by guba and lincoln were adopted to ensure the accuracy and reliability of the results ( 16 ) . the researcher was continuously involved with the data , which were confirmed by the participants , the research team and two outsider experts ( credibility ) . moreover , two members of the research team coded the interviews independently and finally reached a consensus ( dependability ) . in collecting and recording the data , sufficient time was allocated ( 18 months ) and utmost accuracy was exercised ( confirmability ) . this study was approved by the ethics committee of the baqiyatallah university of medical sciences . moreover , furthermore , 
 the participants remained anonymous with the right to withdraw from the study at any stage . certain parts of the interviews were not recorded upon request of the participants and none of the interviews 
 were disclosed to maintain the confidentiality of private data . the participants included 20 nurses , 5 nursing managers , 6 education managers and 4 senior managers . there were 17 male and 18 
 female samples aged 27 to 51 years old with a mean age of 39.08 . this study obtained 5 major themes , 10 main categories and 22 sub - categories ( table 1 ) . the major themes and main categories derived from the data 
 the major themes and main categories derived from the data 
  the core concepts included unsuccessful mandatory education , empowering education , organizational challenges of education , weakness in educational management , and educational - job resiliency . unsuccessful training was the main concern of the participants , while the empowering education was the core concept extracted from the data . the ultimate objective of the research was achieved through analyzing the first - stage findings through walker and avant s method . since the core category and grounded theory in the first stage involved effort for empowering education , the second stage adopted the empowering education model as the core concept . moreover , the paradigmatic concepts of human , learning , nursing and environment were taken into account as the literature review revolved mainly around the new model , where the conceptual framework was composed of other concepts . the researcher extensively and systematically reviewed the entire available literature concerning the core concept and the relevant paradigmatic concepts , whose correlations and contributing factors were identified based on the results obtained from the grounded theory research . in this regard , english and persian literature were searched for several key model concepts and elements as follows . 
  the nurses in this model adopt a holistic approach to learning . in this regard , the nurses pursue a type of education that can enhance knowledge and practical skills . in this model , malcolm knowles theory : he believes the main approaches for adults learning is the problem - solving and collaborative research . 
  2 . clinical monitoring performance model : clinical supervision uses four key components of training , advocacy , facilitating and feedback . 
  3 . the pattern of the iranian red crescent society staff training by poorkarimi et al : this pattern contains resolution of problems related to organizational structure and attention to motivational mechanisms . 
  empowering education obtained from the combination of grounded theory and results of comprehensive search empowering education entails characteristics including participatory training of the nursing 
 staff in terms of planning and implementation , problem - solving approach , result - oriented content , training implementation practices , focus on motivational factors , fostering the searching skills , 
 and clinical performance monitoring ( figure 1 ) .   empowering education model 
  as illustrated in the figure , employees through search in training categories and educational topics can lead to self - direction . there are three additional factors contributing to both self - directed learning and practicality , including motivation , employee participation in training design and educational implementation and problem - solving approach . problem - solving approach refers to training the topics in which employees are having difficulty when doing their job duties . in addition to these topics , there are two underlying factors that can affect all the other factors , 
 including tackling the organizational challenges and overcoming the inefficiencies of educational management . organizational challenges refer to some of the organizational procedures that are in conflict with the nature 
 and goals of educational programs , for example , financial constraints and conflicts arisen by different management divisions against education . in the empowering education , such organizational challenges must be eliminated . self - directed learning represents self - centeredness and initiative in learning . also , practicality is application of training in job functions . there have so far been numerous models designed for in - service training of staff . the basic models mainly focused on the procedures and functions of staff training 
 ( 17,18 ) for instance , craig suggested that staff training process is composed of five stages : planning , analysis , design , 
 implementation and development ( 19 ) . some experts in the design of educational models put more emphasis on teaching methods and materials ( 20 ) . others believe that the most important component of staff training is the teaching method and how pedagogical concepts are conveyed ( 21 ) . this study rather emphasized the effectiveness 
 of staff training through modifying its essence and goals . moreover , self - direction and practicality are two main components of empowering education aligned with the effectiveness of nursing staff training . the empowering education 
 adopted several pragmatic strategies such as fostering the searching skills , clinical performance monitoring , motivational factors , staff participation in the design and implementation of training , problem - solving approach , tackling 
 organizational challenges , and overcoming the inefficiencies of educational management . chen and klimoski ( 2007 ) proposed a model that focuses mainly on  teaching methodand  providing the essential grounds for staff training  
 ( 22 ) . in fact , this study presented a new teaching method , where the nursing staff participate in the design and implementation of 
 training programs . the participation of nursing staff in the design and implementation of the training programs can render the content materials desirably proportionate to the staff needs and wishes . ( 2010 ) 
 proposed a model for in - service training of staff at the iranian red crescent society ( ircs ) , where the educational effectiveness was achieved through a greater concentration on motivational factors 
 ( 23 ) . the same motivational factors have been incorporated into the model presented by the current study . in a research on in - service staff training at a rehabilitation center , 
 saunders ( 2009 ) concluded that the staff will perform successfully and fruitfully when they feel the support , supervision and responsibility of the management ( 24 ) . 
 that was considered in the current research . concerning how to tackle the organizational challenges , this research has suggested that the solution is to inform and guide the hospital administrators . ( 2012 ) introduced and examined a new model which fosters the mutual understanding and resolution of the patients problems on the part of nursing staff . this model focused on communication techniques , 
 attempting to find out how the staff listen to complaints , assist the patients to express their problems and how to correctly respond the patients ' questions ( 25 ) . in fact , the model 
 concentrated on training practices . similarly , the new model proposed in the current study concentrated on training practices . however , it incorporated an extensive teaching method based on self - directed learning , 
 where the adoption of strategies and evaluation of its outcomes are assigned to the learners themselves ( 11 ) . self - directed learning is a process in which students are engaged 
 in identifying the pedagogical needs , setting the learning objectives , identifying the resources for learning , selecting and implementing the educational strategies , and evaluating the learning outcomes 
 ( 26 ) . the self - directed learning mainly serves to foster the searching skills ( 27 ) . self - direction in medical education 
 has been adopted as a lifelong learning strategy ( 12 ) . parsons and rollyson j ( 2012 ) proposed a model proving effective and efficient in teaching the behavioral 
 techniques and skills among the nursing staff , known as evidence - based education ( 28 ) . second , it will match the behavioral skills as a practical model . in their study , 2013 ) demonstrated that in - service training can be far more effective when the pedagogical materials are relevant to 
 the actual profession of nursing ( 9 ) . ( 2011 ) found that task analysis could provide an ideal technique in outlining the content of pre - service and in - service 
 training ( 29 ) . in simple terms , the above studies suggested that nursing staff training content should be practical and proportionate to their job description . clinical monitoring is a modern , on - the - way - of - achieving - recognition 
 approach within the nursing community . in fact , it is deemed a mechanism aiming to promote the professional knowledge and skills of nurses ( 30 ) . ( 2004 ) presented a model for nursing staff training , where the syllabus was devised based on the pedagogical needs of nurses as the lessons were delivered by the nursing staff themselves ( 31 ) . both features have been integrated into the empowering education model so as to eliminate the defects in educational management . a model proposed by khademolhosseini ( 2012 ) involved " professional discipline and avoidance of negligence " 
 ( 32 ) . first , khademolhosseini s model has been designed as a strategy to train nursing students in academic settings . second , the specified classic model has been designed based on educational discipline , whereas the model presented in the current study focuses on the empowerment of the staff . askarinejad ( 2013 ) provided a self - development model , 
 involving the creation of informal learning opportunities , tangible support of the staff and providing time , information , resources and reward strategies aiming at achieving a developmental model ( 33 ) . the strategies mentioned above have been proposed generally to overcome the organizational challenges throughout the training procedure . empowering education is a model devised for in - service training of nurses that can desirably match the training programs with andragogical needs for the nursing staff . owing to its practical nature , the empowering education facilitates the occupational tasks and improves the competency and professional skills among nurses . in this regard , poor organizational settings might hinder the successful implementation of empowering education model , which can be promoted through participation of the senior managers .
introduction : in - service training of nurses plays an indispensable role in improving the quality of inpatient care . need to enhance the effectiveness of in - service training of nurses is an inevitable requirement . 
 this study attempted to design a new optimal model for in - service training of nurses . 
 methods : this qualitative study was conducted in two stages during 2015 - 2016 . in the first stage , 
 the grounded theory was adopted to explore the process of training 35 participating nurses . 
 the sampling was initially purposeful and then theoretically based on emerging concept . 
 data were collected through interview , observation and field notes . moreover 
 , the data were analyzed through corbin - strauss method and the data were coded through maxqda-10 . in the second stage , the findings were employed through walker and avants strategy for theory construction so as to design an optimal model for in - service training of nursing staff . 
 results : in the first stage , there were five major themes including unsuccessful mandatory education , empowering education , organizational challenges of education , poor educational management , and educational - occupational resiliency . empowering education was the core variable derived from the research , based on which a grounded theory was proposed . 
 the new empowering education model was composed of self - directed learning and practical learning . 
 there are several strategies to achieve empowering education , including the fostering of searching skills , clinical performance monitoring , motivational factors , participation in the design and implementation , and problem - solving approach . 
 conclusion : empowering education is a new model for in - service training of nurses , which matches the training programs with andragogical needs and desirability of learning among the staff . owing to its practical nature , the empowering education can facilitate occupational tasks and achieving greater mastery of professional skills among the nurses .