Implementation of Medical Surgical Fall Prevention Checklist for High Fall Risk Patients
DNP PROJECT PROPOSAL REQUIRED ELEMENTS OUTLINE/CHECKLIST
Abstract (150-250 words)
Background: why the project is important/why did you do the project?
Brief literature review: what evidence did you find to justify the need for the project and/or approach you will take?
Methods: what specifically will you do?
Objectives
Potential impact
Background and Significance
What is happening?
Condition, problem, issue
Definition or brief description
Population affected
Epidemiology
How many are affected
How often does it happen
Morbidity and mortality
Where (country, hospital, community)
Local problem (for QI project)
Associated concepts necessary to understanding of problem or approach
Why should we care?
Pain and suffering it causes
Economic costs
Individual
Organization/institution implications
Patient safety outcomes
Impact on the nursing profession
Contribution to healthcare cost
Society
Increasing or worsening?
Consequences/impact of local problem
What do we know now?
Recent research- in relation to the specific purpose of your study or project – what is the practice gap your project is trying to fill
Current treatments or interventions
Outcomes
Limitations
What do we need to find out and why or what do we need to address this? Keep this brief – one or two sentences. Use a transitional sentence to move from what is known to what you are proposing to do about the problem and why your project is necessary
Questions that still need to be answered
Interventions to be trialed
Factors or outcomes in a specific population
Benefits to be gained
Better patient outcomes
More effective interventions
Improved services
Workforce issues
Improved systems
The Problem
The PICOt question
Population or problem
Intervention
Comparison/alternative intervention
Outcome
Time frame
The Clinical Question
The problem that led to the development of the PICOt
Describes the phenomenon of interest
Informs the reader about an issue
Review of the Literature
Overview and Definitions
Describe what this section includes and specific areas you will cover
Define all concepts in your project (operational definitions)
Explain your search strategy
Topic you searched for
Databases you searched
Other sources searched, including gray literature (white papers, reports, gov’t documents, evaluations from organizations outside traditional commercial or academic publishing channels)
Keywords were used
Date delimitations set and why
Number of studies found
Inclusion criteria applied and why
Number of studies remaining after inclusion criteria were applied
Hand searching of bibliographies of remaining studies
Number of studies found with hand searching
Exclusion criteria applied and why
Number of studies remaining after exclusion criteria applied
Any of these studies that were not included and why
Total number of studies included in review
Critically appraise the literature
Critically analyze individual studies
Analyze each study against the body of research
Comment on a study if it conflicts with multiple other studies and consider possible explanations
Note whether there are a number of weak studies
Synthesize your review
Synthesis is the big picture; the individual studies must be fit together to create the bigger picture
The synthesis is your analysis and interpretation; use very few, if any, direct quotes. Exceptions are especially engaging original wording or if a rewrite could be misinterpreted
Summary
Pull everything together and highlight important findings.
Note areas where there is little information or if there is conflicting information
Organizational Assessment
Strengths
Weaknesses
Resources (human, material, financial)
Other attributes that can help in planning and implementing the project smoothly and successfully
Purpose Statement
Tell the reader clearly and concisely what you plan to do to address the problem you identified for your project
Conceptual/Theoretical Framework
Describe the framework you are using, including its origin and precepts
Explain how it applies to your project
Include an illustration that shows the framework as it applies to your project
Project Design
What kind of study are you doing?
Quality Improvement?
EBP?
Program Evaluation?
Policy Evaluation?
Why is your chosen design a good fit for your project?
How is the design congruent with the goals of your project?
Methodology
Data Collection
What data will you collect?
What data collection method(s) will you use?
Qualitative?
Quantitative?
Mixed method?
What strategies will you use to collect the data?
Interview?
Survey?
Questionnaire?
Observation?
Record or document review?
Case study?
Data Analysis Plan
Descriptive statistics should be used to describe the population
Qualitative data analysis
Begin with a statement about the approach you will take to analyze the data
Provide expert authored resources to support your choices and process (e.g., Creswell, 2007)
Describe the step-by-step process for data analysis
Describe the coding process
State when you will know when coding is completed
State whether others will be involved in the coding process and how
State if there will be a member check
State if you will use a software program for data analysis
Quantitative data analysis
Type of statistical analysis to be used
Describe the coding scheme (e.g., Likert scale)
State what statistical analyses will be done
State how the results will be interpreted
Ethical Considerations
Be sure all ethical aspects of the project have been addressed
Give credit where credit is due
Get permission to use instruments (measures) that are unpublished or copyrighted
Reference any instruments (measures) that are available in the public domain
Identify any conflict of interest and document mechanisms by which objectivity will be maintained and monitored
Human subjects research
Document status of IRB approval from the University and clinical setting
Describe how you will inform potential participants of:
The research background, purpose, and procedures
Why they will be asked to participate
Their right not to participate without any negative repercussions
Their right to withdraw at any time without negative repercussions
Their right to ask questions about participation
Their right to voluntarily consent to participation without coercion
Their right to know the benefits of participating, as well as any risks or inconveniences
Their right to confidentiality and how you will maintain that
Access to the researcher’s contact information in case they have questions or are injured
Describe how you will protect participants confidentiality and privacy and obtain informed consent
Describe how you will ensure the integrity of the data through ongoing, accurate, confidential, and dependable record keeping
Setting
Describe the local environment where the project will take place (facility, organization)
Apply discretion when considering whether to use the name of the setting
Include the geographic setting
Provide enough information about the setting so the reader understands the context where the problem/population of the project exists
Provide a clear picture of the settings such that others can replicate the project in the future
Participants
Type of sampling procedure you plan to use (convenience, purposive, random, snowballing, etc.)
Establish the sampling frame (general population from which you’ll recruit your participants)
Inclusion and exclusion criteria
Demographics
Professional role, literacy, language, location, previous experience with the intervention, as appropriate for the project
Number of participants you want in the sample (determined by whether you use a quantitative or qualitative data collection method)
If quantitative, tell the reader what the sample size should be and how you came up with that number (explain the formula used to determine the power of the study (power analysis), including power, probability, and effect size calculated at the minimum sample size needed to determine statistical significance of the results
If qualitative, estimate the sample size based on previous studies of the same or similar topic or with similar participants and support this with references
Expected response rate?
How the final sample size will be increased to account for attrition to take into account loss of participants during the project period
Describe how you will recruit participants and how you will ask them
Delivery of recruitment information
Where you will recruit
What recruitment methodology (if any)
Contact information
Compensation
Evidence-Based Intervention
Describe the process in detail step-by-step, from start to finish
Use future tense!
Include rationale for the intervention
Include operational plan
Describe what will be done, including data collection and the purpose
Describe how it will be done – approach or process appropriate for the project design
Describe where it will be done
Include who will be responsible for implementation, including background and credentials
Include how many people will be involved in the process
Include the expected timeline
If using a questionnaire, identify the response rate that will be considered acceptable
Measurement Instruments (Tools)
Describe the measurement strategies and tools that will be used
The conceptual framework will delineate the outcomes to be measured and strategy to be used
Measures should be consistent with the project purpose/clinical question and population of interest
Identify established, valid and reliable tool(s)
Include established reliability and validity of the tool(s)
Include established interrater reliability of the tool(s)
Estimated Budget
Direct costs
Equipment and supplies
Indirect costs
Data transcription
Data analysis
Consultants
If the project involves significant costs to the organization, include a cost-benefit analysis
Breakdown of costs to the organization
Cost of sustaining the program going forward
How the organization will recoup the costs or benefit financially in the long term
Include a table of your estimated budget
