Project Handbook

Introduction to the DNP Project

Overview of the DNP Project

The DNP project demonstrates a synthesis of the DNP Program Outcomes and represents an opportunity for the student to investigate a clinical practice or systems health care issue. The focus is broad and includes not only direct care issues, but interventions and programs that indirectly influence outcomes for a defined population. Examples are evidence-based practice changes in direct clinical care, interventions designed to improve outcomes for an aggregate or population, administrative interventions to improve population health outcomes or delivery of care, and policy interventions to improve population health conditions. The project should focus on the scholarship of practice, with an emphasis on internal validity rather than external generalizability. Upon completion of the DNP Project the student will have the knowledge and experience to evaluate, synthesize and use the best available evidence to provide cost effective high quality care and promote the best patient outcomes. The DNP Project is aligned with the American Association of Colleges of Nursing (AACN) Essentials of Doctoral Education for Advanced Nursing Practice (2021).

Students will conduct their DNP Projects independently during DNP practicum courses with the guidance of their DNP team and practice mentors. Documentation of the project is a cumulative scholarly paper which the student will then present in their final DNP project defense.

AACN Essentials for Doctoral Education (2021):

Domains are broad distinguishable areas of competence that, when considered in the aggregate, constitute a descriptive framework for the practice of nursing. The new Essentials delineates the domains essential to nursing practice, including how these are defined, what competencies should be expected for each domain at each level of nursing, and how those domains and competencies both distinguish nursing and relate to other health professions. The Domains include:

Domain 1: Knowledge for Nursing Practice encompasses the integration, translation, and application of disciplinary nursing knowledge and ways of knowing, as well as knowledge from other disciplines, including a foundation in liberal arts and natural and social sciences.
Domain 2: Person-Centered Care focuses on the individual within multiple complicated contexts, including family and/or important others. Person-centered care is holistic, individualized, just, respectful, compassionate, coordinated, evidence-based, and developmentally appropriate.
Domain 3: Population Health spans the healthcare delivery continuum from prevention to disease management of populations and describes collaborative activities with affected communities, public health, industry, academia, health care, local government entities, and others for the improvement of equitable population health outcomes.
Domain 4: Scholarship for Nursing Practice involves the generation, synthesis, translation, application, and dissemination of nursing knowledge to improve health and transform health care.
Domain 5: Quality and Safety, as core values of nursing practice, involves enhancing quality and minimizing risk of harm to patients and providers through both system effectiveness and individual performance.
Domain 6: Interprofessional Partnerships involves intentional collaboration across professions and with care team members, patients, families, communities, and other stakeholders to optimize care, enhance the healthcare experience, and strengthen outcomes.
Domain 7: Systems-Based Practice prepares nurses to lead within complex systems of health care. Nurses must effectively coordinate resources to provide safe, quality, equitable care to diverse populations.
Domain 8: Informatics and Healthcare Technologies are used to provide safe, high quality care, gather data, form information to drive decision making, and support professionals as they expand knowledge and wisdom for practice.
Domain 9: Professionalism involves cultivating a sustainable professional nursing identity, perspective, accountability, and comportment that reflects nursing’s characteristics and values.
Domain 10: Personal, Professional, and Leadership Development includes activities and self- reflection that foster personal health, resilience, and well-being, lifelong learning, and support the acquisition of nursing expertise and assertion of leadership.

II. The DNP Project

The Final DNP Project provides an opportunity for the student to integrate their new skills into practice and to demonstrate many of the principles of nursing scholarship and the competencies delineated in the AACN 2021 Essentials for Advanced Nursing Practice and the NONPF 2022 Standards for Quality Nurse Practitioner Education. The integration of these new or refined skills improves outcomes through organizational/systems leadership, quality improvement processes, and the translation of evidence into practice.

All DNP Projects should:

Focus on a change that impacts healthcare outcomes either through direct or indirect care.
Have systems (micro-, meso-, or macro- level) or population/aggregate focus.
Demonstrate implementation in the appropriate arena or area of practice.
Include a plan for sustainability (e.g. financial, systems or political realities, not only theoretical abstractions).
Include an evaluation of processes and/or outcomes (formative or summative). DNP Projects should be designed so that processes and/or outcomes will be evaluated to guide practice and policy. Clinical significance is as important in guiding practice as statistical significance is in evaluating research.
Provide a foundation for future practice scholarship

It’s important to note that integrative and systematic reviews alone do NOT constitute a DNP project. Integrative and systematic reviews form the basis to evaluate the literature, identify gaps in the evidence to guide any proposed practice change. While portfolios are an important tool to document and evaluate the professional development and learning synthesis of students, portfolios are NOT considered a DNP Project either (AACN). The DNP Project should be guided by evidence-based practice, quality improvement processes, and/or clinical program evaluation and reviewed by the faculty at regular intervals. Faculty review should include formative, and summative reviews affording DNP students with feedback and input to incorporate into the final DNP Project. DNP Projects should be designed so that the processes and/or outcomes will be evaluated to guide practice and/or policy (AACN).

III. The DNP Project Team

The DNP Project Team consists of the DNP Project chair who is faculty member from the SUNY Brockport Department of Nursing, a second faculty member from the SUNY Brockport Nursing Faculty with a terminal degree or other faculty with a terminal degree from outside the Department of Nursing and a third member who is a clinical mentor. The clinical mentor should be an expert in the student’s focus area, and willing to assist in student advisement and clinical coaching in collaboration with the faculty advisor and faculty team member. Students are required to convene a DNP Team within two weeks of the start of NUR 898.

Role of the DNP Project Chairperson

The DNP Project Chairperson provides guidance and expertise in the successful design, implementation and presentation of the DNP project. The chairperson must be a doctorally prepared faculty member from the SUNY Brockport Department of Nursing.

The DNP Project Chairperson will guide the student through the DNP Project process including:

Topic and site
Selection of team
Meetings with DNP Project Team
Clinical agency site contracts and
IRB approval and
Project proposal approval, development, implementation, and evaluation.
Assimilation of team members’ feedback on student work and communication to the
Final project scholarly
Final project presentation/defense.

DNP Project Team Members

The DNP Project Team consists of the DNP Project Chair, a second faculty member with a terminal degree, and a third member who is a clinical mentor. The clinical mentor should be an expert in the student’s focus area, and willing to assist in student advisement and clinical coaching in collaboration with the faculty advisor and faculty team member. The clinical mentor has to agree in writing to serve on the team (can be via electronic communication). Students may consult with a statistician but are expected to enter and analyze their own data. Outside consultation may be requested at the discretion of the project Chairperson. Additional team members may be added depending on the purpose of the project. All will provide guidance throughout the process, including:

The clinical mentor should be an expert in the student’s focus area, and willing to assist in student advisement and clinical coaching in collaboration with the faculty
Active participation in all DNP Project Team meetings as indicated by the
Periodic consultation in the area of expertise as
Constructive and timely feedback on drafts of the student’s DNP Project proposal, final project paper, and final project presentation.
Attendance at the DNP Project

Role of the DNP Student

Identify and contact members of the DNP Project Team.
Maintain regular professional communication with the DNP Project Chair and Team members.
Schedule and lead DNP Project Team meetings.
Establish a project plan, including project timeline, goals, and deliverables.
Completes all DNP Project and IRB requirements.
Comply with all pertinent policies of the Department of Nursing graduate program.
Communicate any issues that would delay the completion of the DNP project promptly.
Completes and submits all required forms.

Convening a DNP Project Team

After a project chairperson and members have been selected and have agreed to serve, the student must complete the DNP Project Chairperson and Team Members form (See appendix A). The form is then submitted, along with the curriculum vitae from the project mentor, to the Project Chairperson for approval. All DNP project teams must be approved by the Graduate program director.

IV. Steps in Completing a DNP Project

The steps for completing a DNP Project are aligned with DNP course work to:

Assure that students complete all important steps leading up the DNP Project implementation.
Keep students focused on their DNP Projects throughout their course work.
Provide objective checkpoints for both students and DNP advisors throughout the student’s curricular progression.
Facilitate the student’s successful completion of the DNP

DNP Coursework

Students may be taking DNP core courses in a variety of sequences. However, the courses most closely aligned with the DNP Project (NUR 800, NUR850, NUR898, NUR899, NUR860 and NUR900) have clear expectations that will help doctoral students streamline and complete their DNP Project requirements. All written projects should be in the most recent edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) writing guidelines.

The APA provides many resources online here APA Style and sample papers, handouts and guides for the 2020 7th edition here Instructional aids .
The APA publication manual is an excellent guide for scholarly writing style as well as formatting. We recommend reviewing chapters 1-6.
Note: If a Team Project and student wish to submit the work for publication– there is only one first author for each Therefore, topics of manuscripts and authorship should be discussed early in the Project.

See The DNP Project Progression is in Appendix B.

The DNP Project Proposal Defense Presentation Format

Once the DNP project proposal has been approved for presentation by the committee Chairperson, it is the student’s responsibility to schedule the DNP project proposal presentation with the DNP committee chairperson and the Director of the Graduate Nursing Program. Students must adhere to the college’s deadlines for the semester or delay completion until the next semester.

The DNP Project advisor will introduce the student. The student will include an introduction of the student’s DNP Project Chairperson and committee members. The student should provide paper handouts of the DNP Project PowerPoint slides to all DNP Team Members. The student must also ensure that each committee member has the final written proposal paper and a copy of the presentation slides at least two weeks before the presentation.

Your presentation should be on the SUNY Brockport Power Point Template of your choice and include:

Title Page
Acknowledgements:
List in order: chair of your committee, committee members, representative(s) from the Clinical Project site/agency, and others as indicated
Problem statement – purpose of the presentation
Background and significance of problem, including consequences of not addressing the issue
Describe the theoretical/conceptual framework or process model used to guide the project
Project Methods
Literature review: summarize key findings from synthesis of the literature that support the need for the project, including gap identification and proposed practice change
Describe the site/setting where the project will be conducted
IRB approval: include plan for IRB submission.
Informed consent: Type (waiver of informed consent, waiver of documentation of informed consent etc.) and how it will obtained.
Implementation- describe the process that will be used and the site
Aspects of Sample: Anticipated number of participants and demographic variables.
Description of Sample: table with each variable.
Measures: describe each

A total of 1 hour will be allotted for the presentation and subsequent meeting with the DNP Project Team members. The student’s presentation should be no more than 20 minutes in length with an additional 10 minutes for questions from members of the audience. The audience will be dismissed, and there will be additional time for questions from the DNP Project Team members. The student will be asked to step out of the room or log out of the session while the Team Members discuss whether or not the student has met the guidelines for approval of the proposal. Upon finalization of this discussion the student will be invited to reenter or log back into the room and will be informed of the decision of Project Team on his/her success.

The DNP Project Team members will evaluate the proposal using a rubric and will either recommend:

Accept with no revisions- student may proceed to obtain IRB approval (student and Project team members must have current CITI training).
Conditional acceptance with revisions- student will revise per recommendations and resubmit to chair and team within four weeks.
Reject – student will make substantive revisions per recommendation or submit a new proposal.

Final approval occurs when all revisions requested by committee members have been incorporated and the Faculty Chair has determined that all requirements for graduation have been fulfilled. The DNP Chair and team members will then sign the DNP Proposal Approval Form. The form will then be sent to the Graduate Program Director for final approval. After approval of DNP proposal, students are eligible to use the title DNP candidate. DNP proposal presentations are open to faculty and students. In the event that the student presents but does not successfully defend their proposal, a remediation plan will be implemented.

DNP Project Proposal Written Format

The format of the written project proposal scholarly paper will be either using the format below or Revised Standards for Quality Improvement Reporting Excellence SQUIRE 2.0. Your advisor will instruct you on the format to be used with your project. Please adhere to the most recent edition of the Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA) writing guidelines as directed by your DNP Project advisor.

Title page
Abstract
Table of Contents
Body of the paper
1. Background and significance of proposed project/intervention
  1. Problem identification (Introductory statement):
  2. Context of the problem
  3. Scope of problem
  4. Consequences of the problem
  5. Proposed project/evidence-based intervention
  6. Objectives/purpose of the proposed project
2. Theoretical/conceptual framework/process improvement model (Discussion of the framework and how it will guide your project)
3. Review and Synthesis of the Evidence in the Literature
4. Agency Description
  1. Setting
  2. Sample
  3. Target population
  4. Congruence of DNP Project to selected organization’s mission, goals, and strategic plan
  5. Description of stakeholders
  6. Site-specific facilitators and barriers to implementation
5. Project design
6. Project methods
  1. Description of project/evidence-based intervention
  2. Procedures
    - IRB submission process
    - Sample
    - Measures and instruments
    - Implementation plan
    - Data collection plan
    - Protection and storage of data/subject information
    - Data analysis plan
7. Timeline of project phases (submission of IRB to DNP presentation)
8. Resources (personnel, technology, budget, etc.)
9. Feasibility and plan for sustainability
10. References
Appendices (instruments, informed consent form, copyright etc.)

Implementation

After approval of the DNP proposal, students will obtain SUNY Brockport IRB approval and IRB approval from research sites as required. Students will also obtain any required permissions from research sites as required. Students will then implement/conduct their projects independently with the guidance of their Chair and committee members.

DNP Project Final Paper Format

The format of the written project proposal will be either using the format below, following the manuscript option for the DNP project or the Revised Standards for Quality Improvement Reporting Excellence SQUIRE 2.0. You will work with your advisor to determine the format used with your project. Please adhere to the most recent edition of the APA writing guidelines as directed by your DNP Project advisor.

The DNP Final Project Paper should include:

Required DNP Project Title Page
Abstract
Acknowledgements
Dedication (this is optional)
Table of Contents
Body of the Paper
1. Background and significance of proposed project/intervention
  1. Problem identification (Introductory statement)
  2. Context of the problem
  3. Scope of the problem
  4. Consequences of the problem
  5. Evidence-based intervention
  6. Purpose of the project
2. Theoretical/conceptual framework/process improvement model (Discussion of the framework and how it guided your project)
3. Review of Literature
4. Project Design
5. Project Methods
  1. Agency Description
  2. Setting
  3. Target Sample
  4. Congruence of DNP project to selected organization’s mission, goals, and strategic plan
  5. Description of stakeholders
  6. Site-specific facilitators and barriers to implementation
  7. Description of Project/Evidence-based Intervention
  8. Procedure
    - IRB Approval
    - Sample
    - Measures and Instruments
    - Implementation
6. Results
7. Discussion
8. Implications for practice, education, policy, and future research
9. Limitations
10. Summary/Conclusion
11. References
12. Appendices

DNP Final Project Paper Manuscript Option

DNP students have the option, with the approval of the Project Team, of preparing a manuscript for the final written product of their project. The following are general guidelines for this process:

Writing the Manuscript: the project should follow the guidelines of the journal to which the manuscript will be
It can be difficult for the novice (and experienced) writer to synthesize all relevant content to fit within the requirements of the It is suggested that the student work with the Faculty Team Leader to start this process while collecting data. There are basically two approaches.
1. Edit down the proposal, keeping the key elements.
2. Start writing from scratch, highlighting key aspects of the background, significance, and literature
3. Once the student collects and analyzes the data, the results and discussion sections of the Manuscript can be written following journal guidelines.
The student is required to have one manuscript at the time of the final presentation. However, it may be possible to identify additional manuscripts with different foci.
The expectation is that the manuscript submitted to the project team is “ready for submission” with the assumption that the Project Team will likely request additional editing. The order of authorship should be determined by the Project Team, with the student as the first author.

V. Final DNP Project Presentation Format

After approval for presentation by the Chairperson, it is the student’s responsibility to schedule the final DNP project presentation with the DNP chairperson and the Director of the Graduate Nursing Program. Students must adhere to the college’s deadlines for the semester or delay completion until the next semester.

The DNP Project chairperson will introduce the student. The student will include an introduction of the student’s DNP Project chairperson and team members. The student should provide paper handouts of the DNP Project PowerPoint slides to all DNP Team Members. The student must also ensure that each committee member has the final written report or manuscript and a copy of the presentation slides at least two weeks before the presentation.

Your presentation should be on the SUNY Brockport Power Point Template of your choice and include:

Title Page
Acknowledgements:
List in order: chair of your committee, committee members, representative(s) from the Clinical Project site/agency, and others as indicated
Problem statement – purpose of the presentation
Background and significance of problem, including consequences of not addressing the issue
Describe the theoretical/conceptual framework or process model used to guide the project
Project Methods
Literature review: summarize key findings from synthesis of the literature that support the need for the project, including gap identification and proposed practice change
Describe the site/setting where the project was conducted
IRB approval: include the IRB of record and IRB Authorization Agreements if indicated
Informed consent: Type (waiver of informed consent, waiver of documentation of informed consent etc.) and how it was obtained
Implementation- describe the process used and the site
Aspects of Sample: # of participants and demographic variables collected
Description of Sample: table with each variable, frequency, and percent
Measures: describe each used
Present results for each measure used in either table and/or narrative form
Describe how your project impacted the DNP Project site/agency
Discussion of DNP Project outcomes as related to the literature
Implications for practice, education, policy and future research
Limitations
Conclusion

A total of 1 hour will be allotted for the presentation and subsequent meeting with the DNP Committee Members. The student’s presentation should be no more than 20 minutes in length with an additional 10 minutes for questions from members of the audience. The audience will be dismissed, and there will be additional time for questions from the DNP Project Committee members. The student will be asked to step out of the room or log out of the session while the Committee Members discuss whether or not the student has met the guidelines for completion. Upon finalization of this discussion, the student will be invited to reenter or log back into the room and will be informed of the decision of the committee on his/her success. Final approval occurs when all revisions requested by committee members have been incorporated and the Faculty Chair has determined that all requirements for graduation have been fulfilled. Students will have a total of 5 years after admission to complete the DNP program.

Clinical Practice Hours

The DNP Essentials specifies that practice hours must be part of an academic program. All DNP students, including those in post-masters programs, are expected to complete a minimum of 1,000 post-baccalaureate practice hours.

Practice immersion experiences afford the opportunity to apply, integrate, and synthesize the DNP Essentials necessary to demonstrate achievement of desired outcomes in an area of advanced nursing practice. Immersion experiences enhance synthesis of the DNP Essentials into a focused area of practice. Practice experiences for the DNP student are NOT intended to be solely direct patient care focused but should include indirect care practices in healthcare settings or related environments that broaden the experiences of the student.

Practice experiences should be designed to help students achieve specific learning objectives related to all of the DNP Essentials role outcomes, and application of theory and evidence to practice. Faculty should evaluate students’ learning needs based on past education and practice experiences. Based on this assessment, faculty, in conjunction with the student, should develop learning objectives for the practice experience(s), provide preceptor/mentor orientation, and assume accountability for the evaluation of student learning and achievement of outcomes. (see Appendix B- Individual Professional Learning Plan).

DNP program practice experiences are designed to provide:

Systematic opportunities for feedback and
In-depth work/mentorship with experts in nursing, as well as other
Opportunities for meaningful student engagement within practice
Opportunities for building and assimilating knowledge for advanced nursing practice at a high level of
Opportunities for further application, synthesis, and expansion of
Experience in the context of advanced nursing practice within which the final DNP Project is
Opportunities for integrating and synthesizing all of the DNP Essentials and role requirements necessary to demonstrate achievement of defined outcomes in an area of advanced nursing practice.

As stated above, all DNP students are expected to complete a minimum of 1,000 post- baccalaureate practice hours as part of an academic program. Variability in the ways practice hours are defined, awarded, and designed by DNP programs currently exists, particularly for post-master’s DNP programs. A variety of mechanisms or processes are currently being employed to award post-master’s DNP students practice hour credits.

Programs must demonstrate/validate that graduates have attained all of the DNP Essentials outcomes. All students must complete sufficient time in supervised practice hours to integrate and demonstrate the new skills and knowledge needed to achieve the DNP Essential outcomes. Hours spent in the practice environment related to the final project may be counted. DNP students may be employed in settings or positions that appear to overlap with some of the outcomes delineated in the DNP Essentials. Other DNP students may have the opportunity to engage in learning experiences in an area or setting where they are employed. Practice experiences should have well-defined learning objectives and provide experiences over and above the individual’s job responsibilities or activities. Also, the DNP student must have the opportunity to gain knowledge and skills beyond employment expectations and incorporate these into his/her advanced nursing practice.

Practice as a nurse educator should NOT be included in the DNP practice hours. The focus of a DNP program, including practicum and DNP Project, should NOT be on the educational process, the academic curriculum, or on educating nursing students. Clinical hours include time spent developing or working on the DNP project, in advanced nursing practice clinical placements, in quality or clinical practice improvement activities that inform the DNP project, etc. If the project is to be completed in the student’s place of employment the precepted hours may NOT include those hours in which the student performs his or her usual work unless the usual work includes the hours for which the student is engaged in activities that inform or directly relate to the project. All clinical experiences require preapproval by the project coordinator.

Clinical hours must be documented in order to meet the DNP requirement. Clinical logs must be submitted monthly or as agreed upon by the project coordinator. Clinical logs should reflect the following:

Activities involved in advanced practice, leadership or the DNP project preparation (literature search with APA references), planning, implementation, and evaluation.
Dates/hours spent in the above activities
Reflection on the achievement of the DNP essentials.
The clinical mentor’s signature to verify the completion of the hours.

VII. Preparations for Graduation:

Make sure you have discussed your course progression with your graduate advisor and have reviewed your Degree Works report to ensure you have met the requirements for graduation.
Once you have registered for your final semester, go to the registrar webpage (Brockport.edu/registrar) and file an intent to graduate form.
Discuss plans with your DNP Project Chairperson for dissemination of your work.
All DNP projects must be registered with and submitted to the SUNY DNP project repository before graduation occurs.

Appendix

Message eheavey@brockport.edu for access to Appendix A, B, and C in a word document format.

Appendix A

Message eheavey@brockport.edu for access to Appendix A.

Appendix B

The DNP Project Progression Checklist

Deliverables - NUR 898/800: DNP project I

Develop a problem statement
Identify agency and clinical mentor and DNP project team
Develop background and significance of project
Literature review and literature matrix
Theoretical or change model
Project Timeline
Data analysis and evaluation plan
Obtain Agency approvals
Plan for project sustainability and financial impact
Successful Proposal presentation defense
Obtain IRB approval
Dissemination plan
Approval to initiate project

Deliverables - NUR 899/850: DNP project II

Project implementation
Data collection following proposal and IRB approved process
Evaluate Data
Evaluate project outcomes and significance for agency and advanced practice
Revise dissemination plan
Write final DNP project scholarly paper
Write abstract
Close out project through IRB-store or discard data per proposal/IRB
Final evaluation submitted by clinical mentor
Successful DNP project presentation and defense

Deliverables - NUR 860/NUR 900

Poster/podium presentation or submission of manuscript
Presentation of project implementation and assessment plan to site
Professional Thank-you letter
Submit to DNP project repository

Appendix C

DNP Project Charter

Data from Stanford University Information Technology Services. (2008). IT services project charter. Retrieved from Stanford University IT Services: Project Management Toolkit

Message eheavey@brockport.edu for access to Appendix C.