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A Step Towards Understanding Cultural Competence In Public Health Nurses, Michelle Macdonald

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

This paper examines issues in cultural competencies in public health nursing. Using the evidence based approach; this paper integrates literature and public health nurses’ perspective in understanding cultural competence in practice. A focus group of 16 participants from a Midwestern county revealed the themes; culture is inclusive, cultural competence is a process, and moral distress in the provision of culturally competent care. Findings suggest that public health nurses take a broad perspective on cultural competency in their practice.

Accessing The Development Of Undergraduate Nursing Students On Their Cultural Awareness Journey, Victoria Kyarsgaard

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

In the United States there is an ever-increasing diversity of the populations receiving health care service. The newly graduated nurse needs to be prepared to step into a variety of roles quickly, armed with the understanding of what is needed to provide effective care, including cultural awareness. Nursing education programs must provide the education that students require to be equipped to effectively meet the needs of patients related to their diverse characteristics.

Understanding of the nature and process of human learning is critical to the development of educational curricula. The purpose of this systems change project was to better understand …

The Effect Of Practice Facilitation On Diabetes Outcome Measures, Margaret Joy Longley

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Diabetes is one of the most serious public health problems of the twenty first century (Albright, 2007; Glasgow et al., 1999). The rate of increase in the occurrence of diabetes and its complications has placed a tremendous burden on the American health care system and threatens to affect close to one third of the population in the next thirty years. Diabetes complications markedly reduce the quality and length of life and contribute to enormous health care costs. Several large studies have shown that effective treatments and practices may substantially reduce the impact of diabetes (Herman, 2007).

Performance measures for diabetes …

An Innovation To Transform Diabetes Care, Sonda Tolle

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

The prevalence of diabetes is on the rise and this demand for services challenges health care organizations to provide quality, cost-effective care. The current system and processes at St. Joseph’s Area Health Services (SJAHS) needed redesigning to optimize quality diabetes care. This necessitated the need to move forward with a systems change project to transform diabetes care. The purpose of this study was to compare outcomes on glycemic control between current practice and a diabetes evidence-based practice toolkit by collecting retrospective data pre and post-toolkit implementation. The review of the literature from 2003-2011 endorsed the need to evaluate an innovation …

Implementing Change In The Cardiac Operating Rooms, Amy White

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Change is occurring rapidly throughout healthcare. The effects of these changes are felt at the global, national, state, and organizational level. At a large, Midwest teaching institution, there are many initiatives that must be implemented throughout the organization quickly. In this organization, eight cardiac operating rooms are constantly experiencing change. Successful implementation of changes in policies, procedures, and practice is essential to providing the best possible care for the patients in cardiac surgery.

The purpose of this system change project was to increase staff involvement in the change process by discussing barriers to implementation, and allowing cardiac surgery staff to …

Cultivating Caring In Nursing Education, Patricia Fahey Bacon

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

There has been an increase in incivility in nursing education. The uncivil behaviors that are demonstrated most frequently are anger, frustration, and disrespect toward others. The uncivil behaviors may be exhibited by nursing faculty or nursing students. The reasons for uncivil behavior are varied and are identified in studies by nurse researchers. While the problem of incivility has been difficult to resolve, it is important to address incivility because it is in fact escalating in nursing education. It is hoped that the integration of caring theories within nursing education will lead to an understanding and expression of caring behaviors, which …

Responses To A Faculty Development Workshop On Simulation, Linda Blazovich

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Mistakes in the healthcare system are occurring at an alarming rate and most nurse managers find that new graduates are not prepared to deal with the complex patient situations they encounter in the work setting. It is imperative that nursing education find ways to increase the quality of their graduates. One method to improve nursing education is with the use of simulation. However, nursing faculty are ill-prepared to use simulation competently and effectively. The literature lacks any research that looks at the impact of specific methodologies used in the education of faculty in the use of simulation. The study, Responses …

Simulation In Nursing Education: A Family Approach, Stacey Van Gelderden

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Purpose Statement: The project’s purpose is to determine if the use of low-fidelity simulation (role-play) is an effective teaching-learning strategy to educate sophomore level baccalaureate nursing students on the importance of family assessment and communication. Another purpose for the project was to design and develop a credible and reliable simulation rubric which can be used for faculty to evaluate nursing student abilities to conduct family assessment and communication skills in a simulation setting. Finally, this systems change project (SCP) was designed to help redesign the Minnesota State University, Mankato (MSM) basic undergraduate nursing curriculum by integrating a family as …

Improving Safety In The First Hour Following Total Joint Replacement Surgery, Susan E. Heitman

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

The purpose of this systems change project was to review and analyze the literature as well as evaluate patient data related to the practice of bypassing the post anesthesia recovery room (PACU), or Phase 1 recovery, in a Critical Access Hospital. The overarching question for this project was: When is it safe for the total joint replacement patient receiving spinal anesthesia with or without sedation to bypass Phase 1 recovery in a Critical Access Hospital?

Methods: This project was grounded in Participative Action Research, Change Theory and the nursing theory of Relationship Based Care. A chart review of 168 patients …

Opioid Tolerant: A Survey Of Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetist Self-Perceptions Of Pain Management In The Care Of Opioid Tolerant Patients, Rebecca King

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

The overall aim of this systems change project is to identify the specific barriers to optimal care faced by Certified Registered Nurse Anesthetists (CRNAs) who are managing the pain of opioid tolerant patients, so as to eliminate those barriers.

The postoperative pain of opioid tolerant patients is substantially undertreated, implicitly requiring changes in their treatment for both ethical and economic reasons. These changes will require growth in CRNA skills and thinking. Benner’s conceptual framework has been used to describe this growth in opioid tolerant pain management from novice to expert.

A literature review informed the formulation of a descriptive survey …