Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Oncology Nurse Hazardous Drug Safe Handling Competencies, Jacob N. Woller

College of Nursing and Health Sciences Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Project Publications

Purpose: Healthcare workers are potentially exposed to hazardous drugs (HDs) in the workplace, especially with chemotherapeutics used in oncologic treatment. Exposure to HDs increases the risk of adverse health effects. Personal protective equipment (PPE) as one control to prevent exposure. A Northeast academic medical center required implementation of annual competencies on HDs to comply with national standards detailed in United States Pharmacopeia (USP) Chapter 800. This project sought to evaluate the effectiveness of this HD competency and evaluate the PPE practices of healthcare workers who are frequently involved with HDs

Methods: A hands-on HD annual competency was developed …

Using Audit And Feedback To Improve Compliance To Medication-Assisted Treatment Recommendations, Jacob Burns, Melanie Keiffer

College of Nursing and Health Sciences Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Project Publications

Using Audit and Feedback to Improve Compliance to Medication-Assisted Treatment Recommendations

Jacob Burns, DNPc, RN

Project Advisor: Melanie Keiffer, DNP, APRN, ANP-BC, CNE

Abstract

Background: Of the 111 opioid deaths reported in the State of Vermont in 2019, 30 were found to be prescription opioid-related and accidental. Medication Assisted Therapy (MAT) programs support patients with substance use disorders, promoting recovery and preventing overdose. Vermont uses the “Hub and Spoke” model to increase the availability of MAT for patients with OUD (Opioid Use Disorder) by increasing the number of primary care providers who prescribe buprenorphine. Hubs are the specialty opioid treatment …

Optimizing Secure Patient Messaging Workflow In A Vermont Primary Care Clinic, Kimberly S. Oleary

College of Nursing and Health Sciences Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Project Publications

Optimizing Secure Patient Messaging Workflow in a Vermont Primary Care Clinic

Kim O’Leary, DNPc, RN

DNP Advisor: Margaret Aitken, DNP, AGNP, ANP-BC

Site Mentor: James Williamson, MHA, Site Supervisor, Adult Primary Care

Background: Secure patient messaging is a popular tool designed for non-urgent questions, yet patients sometimes use it to relay urgent concerns. As office workflows tend to prioritize responses to other methods of communication, this presents a potentially unsafe situation in which clinical staff may not respond to these urgent messages in a timely manner.

Purpose: To develop a methodology to improve the timeliness, effectiveness, and safety of secure …