Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

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https://ir.ua.edu/handle/123456789/7250
The DNP is a practice doctorate in nursing which prepares graduates to function at the highest level of nursing practice. The DNP curriculum includes development of a clinical practice project. This “DNP project” is designed to synthesize scholarship in an advanced nursing practice specialty or an area of health care leadership. Practice immersion experiences provide the context within which the project is completed. Students develop the project under the direction of a team, including program faculty, the student, the clinical advisor, the faculty advisor, and alumni mentors.

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Browsing Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects by Author "Bartlett, Robin"

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    Diabetes Management in Rural Mississippi Before and During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Program Evaluation
    Sparks, Whitney B.; Bartlett, Robin; Glenn, Christina; Robertson, Donald; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
    Introduction: Management of type 2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM) in rural Mississippi was impacted by the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic resulting in an increase in telemedicine patient care visits. There is little evidence concerning the long-term quality outcomes of telehealth management of chronic diseases such as T2DM; thus, there is a need for examination of patient outcomes associated with telehealth provided care. Methods: To evaluate the efficacy of telehealth in T2DM management, a rural Mississippi clinic was home to a program evaluation to compare A1C measurements of patients with T2DM seen in face-to-face office visits during the year prior to the onset of COVID-19 to those seen during the pandemic which included a mixture of telehealth and face-to-face visits. Results: Pre COVID-19 data included 430 male and 531 female patients (face-to-face visits only). Post COVID-19 data included 507 male and 593 female patients (combination of face-to-face and telemedicine visits). Mean A1C levels were not statistically significantly different for patients between the two years compared; however, participants who received a combination of face-to-face and telehealth visits were more likely to have an uncontrolled A1C. There were no gender differences in A1C in the pre or post COVID 19 groups. In the post COVID-19 group, age was not significantly associated with A1C level (controlled vs. uncontrolled); however, in the pre COVID-19 group, age was significantly associated with A1C control (ages 18-45: 12.2% uncontrolled vs. ages 46-75: 6.4% uncontrolled). There was no significant change in follow up compliance. Discussion: Because few patients actually participated in telehealth visits, there are insufficient data to determine if telemedicine is an efficacious strategy to provide chronic diabetes management in this rural clinic. More data from telehealth visits are needed to determine telemedicine’s impact in rural outpatient diabetes management.
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    Improving Self-Management of Chronic Knee Osteoarthritis Pain through Patient Education
    Navas Nunez, Mauricio A.; Bartlett, Robin; Hirshbein, Sheila Rosemberg; University of Alabama Tuscaloosa
    Osteoarthritis is a widespread health issue affecting more than one-fifth of adult Americans. The symptom burden associated with osteoarthritis is significant, including discomfort, reduced quality of life, pain, and limited movement. With the aging of the population, the prevalence of osteoarthritis is expected to increase. Self-management of pain can improve outcomes for osteoarthritis patients. Therefore, this quality improvement project sought to evaluate the efficacy of implementing a patient education program in enhancing self-management of chronic knee osteoarthritis pain by reducing pain levels, use of pain medications, and patient revisits. Outcomes were also evaluated in terms of their impact on physical activity levels, quality of sleep, mood, and side effects from prescribed pain medication. The site for the project was an outpatient orthopedic clinic. Data were collected using SPAASMS (S- Score for pain, P- Physical activity levels, A- Additional pain medication, A- Additional Physician/ER Visits, S- Sleep, M Mood, S- Side effects) Score Card at pre-and post-intervention. The project lasted for four weeks. Participants consisted of 40 osteoarthritis patients aged 67.37 ± 10.42 years. The findings indicated that program participation resulted in a significant reduction in pain levels and use of pain medications, as well as a significant increase in physical activity levels (p<.05). Significant improvements were also seen in mood, medication side effects, and the overall SPAASMs score (p<.05). However, pain-related clinic revisits did not reduce significantly after the program (p>.05). Therefore, the program enhanced pain management amongst osteoarthritis patients.