A quasi-experimental research study identified obstacles to continuing education for women in the health care fields to determine if these obstacles were characteristic to continuing education for women in general. Questionnaires were distributed to 50 women health care providers within one hospital in a small community in Arizona and to 50 students in a nursing program at the local community college. Sixty-nine responses were used: 46 hospital employees and 23 students. A high correlation was noted between the real and perceived obstacles to continuing education by the health care workers and those obstacles overcome by the nursing students. The obstacles perceived by health case workers as those preventing their continuing education were: money, time, child care, motivation, fear, feeling too old, health issues, and lack of direction. The research indicated that multidimensional sociological factors played a significant role in the true barriers to continuing education for women. Due to the nature of specific skill-based training of many health care workers, continuing education obstacles were symptomatic of other needs that were potentially negatively reinforced by the health care infrastructure. (Appendixes contain the instrument and a list of 98 references.) (YLB)