Nursing Commons^™

Not A Phase: Lgbtq+ Teens -- How We Can Save A Life, Jennifer Carner

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

This DNP project was conducted to address suicide and risk-taking behaviors of LGBTQ teens and how adults can improve the long-term outcomes of LGBTQ teens by being supportive adults. LGBTQ+ teens are at 4 times higher risk of suicide than their non-LGBTQ+ peers (The Trevor Project, 2021). The Suicide Prevention Resource Center, 2008, found a teen having one caring adult in their lives decreases the risk of suicide. The project's goal was to educate adults to increase their comfort levels in terminology, their understanding of the developmental stages of teens, and how to provide protective factors to help reduce the …

Standardized Daily Family Updates To Improve Patient Satisfaction Scores On A Pulmonary Medical Progressive Care Unit, Quentin Butterfield

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Communication remains one of the most challenging aspects of healthcare. COVID-19 added another layer of communication breakdown in the form of visitor restrictions that limited or removed visitation for hospital-positive patients. Guided by the principles of Jean Watson’s theory of human caring, a literature review was performed to determine best practice evidence related to improvements in communication.

A daily family update form was drafted to guide the nurses of a pulmonary medical progressive care unit in providing standardized daily family updates to improve communication through consistency of information shared. Patients identified family members they would like to receive daily updates …

Benefits Of Ambulation In Older Adult Population, Kelsie E. Wilkes

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Background: Loss of mobility is an outcome of aging. Decreased ambulation leads to a loss of mobility and ultimately a loss of independence. There are additional health risks associated with loss of mobility. There can be challenges to facilitating ambulation and mobility in an aging population.

Objective: A literature review of the benefits of ambulation/mobility and the risks of loss of mobility was conducted. The purpose was to promote ambulation/mobility in a community-based setting and educate those caring for the adult population about the importance of ambulation.

Methods: A presentation was provided to staff and participants of …

Implementation Of Lean Principles During Operating Room Turnovers, Makenzie Marshall

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Background

Many operating rooms across the country face the daunting task of making their turnovers between surgical patients quicker and more efficient. Turnover time is defined as the time it takes to clean an operating room and set up the next sterile field between surgical patients. The time begins when the patient leaves the operating room suite and stops when the next patient enters the same suite. Running an operating room is a complex and costly endeavor, and even small shortfalls can have a snowball effect, leading to delays, wasteful spending, and substandard patient outcomes; therefore, it is imperative to …

Sepsis Identification In The Long-Term Care Facility, Shonna Bible

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

BACKGROUND: Each year approximately 1.7 million people in the United States develop sepsis, and an estimated 270,000 Americans die from this disease (Center for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2020). Early recognition, and identification is essential in decreasing potential for mortality in this population.

METHODS: During a two-week period six individual sessions via a one-hour presentation was provided on evidence based best practice of sepsis recognition. A pretest was utilized to determine prior knowledge of sepsis recognition. A post-test was provided to evaluate the effectiveness of the educational material. Finally, a survey was conducted to provide input for …

Improving Parent/Guardian Awareness Of Kindergarten Entry Health Requirements, Paul Prince

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Ensuring students meet health requirements to enter Kindergarten is a time-consuming process. By improving education to parents to help them discern differences between PreK and Kindergarten requirements, the health of students can be optimized and the time burden for administrators and school nurses can be reduced. There is evidence that parents/guardians better respond to non-written material delivered through push notification or email. A 5-minute video presentation was distributed to 24 parents/guardians of PreK students. Project impact was measured through a pre/post survey evaluating levels of confidence in child readiness for Kindergarten. Results identified that parent/guardian confidence was increased after education. …

Implementation Of New Teaching Strategies By Psychosocial Rehabilitation Center Staff To Increase Member Participation And Retention Of Newly Referred Members, Joseph Warren Ledesma Perez

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Non-profit organizations like psychosocial rehabilitation centers operate largely on reimbursements and funding from government agencies and charitable organizations, respectively. Since reimbursements are based on units of service provided, the center’s operations rely heavily on the attendance and participation of its members in the provided sessions. Charitable institutions, also require fund recipients to provide a report of outcomes and the impact the funds have on the recipients or the community at large. Members’ participation at the chosen site was reported to be low, which led to a projected unsustainability of operations if the numbers did not improve. Equipping the staff facilitating …

Increasing Cancer Survivorship Knowledge Through Individualized Cancer Survivorship Packets, Ashley Atkins

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

This project was developed with the aim of formulating an individualized educational packet that would improve patients’ knowledge of their initial cancer diagnosis and provide additional information to facilitate a smooth transition from treatment to remission. Using a pretest and posttest, quantitative data was collected pertaining to 10 different types of patient education. The pretest survey collected eight questions that related to gathering information about their cancer diagnosis, resources, and knowledge level. The DNP Project Leader secured a Cancer Survivorship Guide through the American Society of Clinical Oncology that was added to the initial cancer survivorship education for all patients. …

Implementing Obesity And Comorbidity Education In A Faith-Based Setting, Tammy Lynn

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

The aim of the study was to increase knowledge of the damaging consequences of obesity and related comorbidities. Obesity has reached epidemic proportions on a global scale and increases the potential health risk of many associated diseases. Faith-Based organizations have been found to be optimal resources for public health education. The shared beliefs and comradery are a source of support and encouragement for those who face many of life’s challenges, as well as life’s joys. The purpose of the project was to investigate the effectiveness of education delivered in a Baptist church on the topics of obesity and related comorbidities. …

Changing The Ways Bedside Nursing Staff Think About ‘All Things Urinary Catheters, Angela Foard

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

The purpose of this project was to bring attention to the importance of the bedside nursing staff’s "back to the basics" approach to nurse-led interventions to help reduce the number of increasing hospital-acquired infections (HAI), specifically catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTI). The motivation to address this problem was due to the bedside nursing staff under-utilizing best practice interventions to prevent insertions and re-insertions of urinary catheters. A high number of urinary catheter insertions and re-insertions increases the risk of a CAUTI. Evidence-based interventions should be reinforced and utilized by bedside nursing staff to prevent insertions and re-insertions. Evidence-based nurse-led practices …

Improving The Mental Health And Wellness Of Middle School Educators Post-Covid19, April Pearson

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

U.S. public school teachers of all educational levels were challenged during the COVID-19 pandemic to provide education to students in alternative ways; face-to-face, hybrid model, or remote learning. This resulted in teacher stress, dissatisfaction, and turnover. Locally, after the 2020-2021 school year at East Iredell Middle School, 9 out of 22 educators resigned or transferred due to the stress and fatigue of teaching students in a hybrid model during the COVID-19 pandemic. The purpose of this project was to promote the health and wellness of middle school educators. The PICOT statement is, what is the effect of an educational program …

Improving Care Of Women Experiencing A Pregnancy, Belinda T. Ferguson

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

The purpose of the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) project was to provide evidence-based staff education at a pregnancy resource center to increase staff/patient engagement and communication by implementing a clinical practice change and use of a DNP student-developed discharge summary referral form (DRF) to assist with assessing patient’s needs, evaluating access to services and utilization of medical care and health promotion services. The overall aim of this project is to increase care with medical follow-up and seek to address improving engagement and communication with patients during their care and after discharge from the Pregnancy Resource Center (PRC). The major …

Incentive Spirometer Use In Trauma Patients 65 Years And Older With Rib Fractures/Chest Trauma, Sharon F. Ali

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Geriatric patients 65 years old and older admitted to the medical surgical trauma unit with rib fractures had increased readmission rates to the trauma ICU, due to respiratory insufficiency within the last 12 months. This DNP project followed all patients admitted to the trauma service of a Level I trauma hospital with rib fractures/blunt chest trauma during the months of February 2-April 30, 2022. The focus was on the nurse-driven protocol, which included providing incentive spirometer education to the trauma patient for aggressive pulmonary hygiene and documenting patients’ achievements and goals into the medical record. Registered nurses (RN) were asked …

Dnp Project Active Anson, Melissa C. Griffin

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Objectives: To implement and evaluate the effectiveness of using a mobile app to encourage hospital workers to increase their physical activity.

Methods: Project was open and advertised to all hospital employees in a small rural community hospital in the south-eastern United States through flyers, bulletin boards, emails, banners and in-person registration assistance. Registered participants completed a 30-day walking challenge and recorded their daily step counts. Participants received a gift bag with fitness items such as water bottles. The three highest step count participants were awarded prizes. Weekly prize drawings were conducted for participants with 10,000 steps per day. Post challenge …

Smartphrases: Optimizing Discharge Education In Limited English Proficiency (Lep) Spanish-Speaking Patient Encounters, Somer Knight

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Health inequities due to communication barriers exist at a high rate for those who identify with limited English proficiency. This quality improvement project aimed to decrease these inequities by providing pre-translated discharge instructions (AVS) to patients who receive surgical services and recover in the pediatric post anesthesia care unit (PACU) of a state hospital. Specifically, this project examined if the availability of pre-translated instructions (SmartPhrases) increased nurse and interpreter satisfaction with the discharge process, and improved their perceived level of equitable care they are able to provide. Discharge instructions were gathered from the participating surgical and interventionist teams, and the …

Trauma Admission Guidelines For Elderly Isolated Orthopedic Injuries, Jessica Lauren Hamrick-Welchel

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

A rise in complications at a southeastern level one trauma center had the trauma department and performance improvement personnel looking for a cause and a solution. It was determined through data mining that the patient population that was driving certain complication cohorts above acceptable levels was the injured elderly patient admitted by the non-surgical hospitalist group. Patients admitted by this group commonly sustained a single injury, mostly hip fractures. Elderly patients are admitted by this group in efforts of successfully managing the many co-morbidities these patients typically possess with co-management by the orthopedic group to manage the injury. A meeting …

Faculty Perception Of Student Nurse Compassion Post-Simulation Experiences, Lisa Alley

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

Compassion is a common, foundational component in nursing and remains a challenge for faculty to continue to employ into nursing students. As simulation technology continues to gain momentum, faculty have expressed the benefits and downfalls as related to simulation and nursing education throughout the literature. A qualitative study was performed at a community college school of nursing to assess faculty perceptions of nursing students compassion post-simulation experiences. A survey was administered to faculty to obtain their perceptions.

Working Through A Virtual Reality: Empowering Experienced Nurses Through Hybrid Orientation Programs, Latoria Massey

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

The year 2020 was not the year of the nurse that many expected. Frontline teammates were put at risk for so much more than just the usually fast-paced clinical and ethical decisions of their time. In a matter of months, the same professionals that were noted for being hard-working, diligent individuals were now fatigued, burned out, and working under some stressed and unrealistic constraints. The staffing needs in several acute care facilities changed drastically as the global crisis now known as COVID-19 continued to spread. Nationwide redeployment models were initiated, pulling many nurses into new unchartered territory. Among the stress …

Bullying In Nursing, Amanda Vargas

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

Abstract not available

Cardiac Telemetry Monitoring: Understanding Misutilization And How To Ameliorate, Stanley Yeargin

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

Inappropriate usage of cardiac telemetry in the hospital setting is a problem that plagues healthcare facilities almost ubiquitously. By writing orders for a telemetry monitor when it is not needed, providers are potentially increasing the costs of that patients stay in multiple areas. The goals of this project are to decrease telemetry monitoring misutilization, thus decreasing costs in several different areas. The plan is to create interventions, based on literature reviews of previous studies, and enact new guidelines that will lead to success of project goals. This plan could have significant impacts in the areas of patient length of stay, …

Pandemic Recovery In Nursing: Labor Shortage And Financial Devastation, Rebecca Rogers

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

The COVID-19 pandemic inadvertently caused one of the greatest nursing labor shortages in history. Many healthcare organizations were forced to rely on external agency nurses to staff their organizations and care for large volumes of patients. The high demand for these nurses caused an increase in costs for external contracted labor. The costs of external agency use became financially devastating for healthcare organizations who had not budgeted for this expense and still the external agency use did not resolve the issue of nursing labor shortages. Learning and recovering from the labor and financial costs of the COVID-19 pandemic requires an …

Reducing Hospital Readmissions Using The Self Care Deficit Theory, Katherine Decillis Taylor

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

This project aims to reduce inpatient hospital readmission occurrences within 30 days of an initial inpatient hospitalization. Patients at high risk for readmission may have deficits in their ability to meet self-care needs after discharge. Orem’s Self-Care Deficit Nursing Theory provided the theoretical framework for the project. The education provided by this project can teach nurses to identify patients who may be at high risk for readmission. Once identified, nurses can advocate for the patient’s needs.

Improving Effective Communication During A Pandemic, Stephanie Brooke Greene

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

The COVID-19 pandemic has negatively impacted communication in healthcare. The purpose of this project was to develop a clear and uniform communication tool for healthcare members to utilize during conversations with patients, families, and caregivers. This communication tool was developed for healthcare workers, as a guide during conversations, to ensure all questions and needs are met. The communication tool is expected to show improvement in healthcare communication during a pandemic. Improvement in healthcare communication will be reflected in improved patient experience scores.

Wound Nurse Specialists’ Pressure Injury Knowledge And Specialty Support Surface Preferences, Catherine Koutroumpis

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

Low-level foam specialty support surfaces are negatively affecting the number of hospital-acquired pressure injuries that occur each year and overall skin health of acute care patients. Lack of knowledge by wound care specialists on different types of therapy could lead to patients not receiving the best possible specialty surfaces available. An online anonymous survey of 19 certified wound care nurses was conducted. The survey examined the nurses’ knowledge of pressure injuries using the Pieper Zulkowski Pressure Ulcer Knowledge test (PZPUKT) and choice of specialty support surface for prevention of pressure injuries. One hundred percent of nurses scored 80% and higher …

Utilization Of Hiv Care Coordination Programs To Address Gaps In Care, Jessica Chavis

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

This project evaluated the use of HIV care coordination programs in healthcare and their impact on care. The purpose of this project was to evaluate the role of HIV care coordination programs and their relationship with patient outcomes. The goal was to provide education on the benefits of these programs and how the lack of their presence in today’s healthcare system impacts transmission and general patient care. The plan of implementing a care coordination program at a local health department was established. Gaps in care, increasing medication adherence, and improving viral suppression rates were targeted by addressing social, mental, and …

Undergraduate Nursing Students’ Attitudes Toward Mental Illness And Psychiatric Nursing As A Career Choice, Sharon Zurline

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between the attitudes of undergraduate nursing students toward mental illness, and the interest in choosing psychiatric nursing as a desirable career choice. Methodology: A nonexperimental descriptive study design was chosen for this study. Sample size of 18 undergraduate nursing students participated in the self-reported survey, The Mental Health Nursing Education Survey (MHNES) Part 2. This survey has 43-items that report the attitudes and beliefs toward people diagnosed with mental illness and towards mental health nursing and scored on a 7-point Likert Scale. Findings: Data reported from the survey report …

Yearly Endometriosis Education For Reproductive Nurses, Jessica Boyer

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

Reproductive and infertility nursing is an ever-growing subspecialty of women’s health where education and nursing resources are often limited and these nurses learn the majority of their skills through experience. Endometriosis is an increasingly common disease that reproductive nurses are encountering in growing numbers. A thorough literary analysis discovered the importance of early diagnosis to aid in a patient’s overall prognosis and long-term success with symptom management. A continuing education curriculum was created and implemented in a reproductive clinic in the South Eastern United States as a yearly learning opportunity for reproductive nurses in an effort to review the fundamentals …

The Impact Of An Employee Action Program On Staff Accountability And Nursing Retention, Amber Crouse

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

Nurse staffing retention rates have decreased in the last 5 years among hospitals nationwide. This decrease in retention of qualified, trained nurses has led to a decrease in the delivery of high-quality care putting patient safety at risk of compromise. The purpose of this project was to propose a leadership education program for the basis of improving staff accountability regarding equal standards; thus, this will ultimately impact nurse staff retention in a positive manner. The leadership education program was meant to streamline management accountability processes in a large academic medical center for improving nurse staff retention rates. The results of …

Crisis Redeployment: An Evidence-Based Plan For Nursing, Lauren Setzer

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

Abstract not available

Nursing Attitudes To Hospice Care In The Intensive Care Unit, Claudia Lacivita

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

Nurses deliver care to patients 24 hours per day and are experts in the care of critically ill patients in the intensive care unit (ICU). The critical care nurse is trained to assess, treat, and monitor severely ill patients to facilitate their recovery, but may often feel ill-prepared and lacking the support usually available to the hospice or palliative care nurse. It also can be difficult to refocus when the desired outcome changes from stabilizing and getting a critically ill patient better to hospice or end-of-life care (EOLC). The purpose of this project was to improve the delivery of care …