Module 5 Assignment

This chapter describes how you accomplished your project. Begin by describing the approach to the project you chose and why this approach was the most appropriate.

Next, detail every step of the process.

Although this section varies depending on approach , many of the following areas typically are addressed:

• Description of the reviewers or participants
• Description of the project design
• Development of instrument, tool or method for obtaining feedback (surveys, interviews, observation, content analysis)
• Identification of themes/categories

This section should be about 3 pages and content should be separated with APA first and second level headings as appropriate.

Expert Answer and Explanation

Capstone Methodology

Nurses should think of the method they will use to implement their project when developing a project to improve the health outcomes of patients. Project methodology explains the frameworks and processes that will be applied to ensure the successful implementation of the project. The section describes the approach that will be used to conduct the project and how data will be analyzed. A project methodology should be created so that other researchers or reviewers can replace the project and arrive at the same findings. This project focuses on pressure ulcers among patients in the geriatric unit. This capstone project will determine if educating nurses about pressure ulcer prevention strategies can reduce incidences of pressure ulcers in geriatric care. This section aims to discuss the method and design that will be used to conduct the project, the data collection tool, and how data will be analyzed.

Capstone Project Methodology

The method used to perform this project is the quantitative method. A qualitative method is an approach used to quantify attitudes, opinions, and many other variables in research or quality improvement projects. This method can allow a project manager to collect statistical data and perform computational, mathematical, or statistical analyses. This approach has been selected because it allows data collection to be conducted using a questionnaire. The questionnaire will allow the project manager to gather detailed and actionable data from the project participants. The method has also been selected because it is more scientific. The study aims to know whether nurse education can reduce incidences of pressure ulcers in geriatric care or not. Data to answer the clinical question for this capstone should be in the form of numbers which will be achieved if the project is conducted using the quantitative method. Lastly, the method has been used because it is faster and much quicker.

The qualitative method has been avoided in this project because it does not provide scientific data, yet scientific information is needed to answer clinical questions in projects. The second quantitative method has been chosen over the qualitative approach because the latter can be time-consuming. It takes more time to collect data through qualitative methods such as observations, interviews, and focus groups, yet this project has limited time. Qualitative data has been avoided in this project because it is somehow less accurate. Data collected using numbers and scientific approaches are more accurate and reliable. Lastly, the quantitative method has been selected over the qualitative approach because arranging data in the latter is complex and the former. The quantitative method allows data arrangement in tables and graphs for easier interpretation.

Capstone Project Design

The project design that will be used is quasi-experimental. This design can allow the project manager to mimic the experimental design. The difference between quasi-experimental and experimental designs is that the former lacks the element of the random assignment while the latter allows for randomization during participant selection. The quasi-experimental design has been selected for this project because it is used to find the cause of effect between project variables. In this case, it will be used to identify the effect of educating nurses about pressure ulcer prevention strategies on incidences of pressure ulcers. Quasi-experiments often come in handy when a true experiment cannot be done for one reason. In this project, the true experiment has been avoided because of the huge budget and time associated with it. An example of a true experimental design is a randomized control trial (RCT). An RCT is a project design where the participants to be part of the project as randomly selected and assigned to control and intervention groups.

The quasi-experimental design has been selected over the randomized control design due to the following reason. One of the reasons is the time taken to conduct the study. Unlike RCT, quasi-experiments can be conducted in the shortest time possible, event four weeks. Second, quasi-experimental designs can be conducted using a few numbers of participants. A large sample population should be included for an RCT to be conducted properly. However, since quasi-experiments are mini-experiments, they can be conducted using a small group of participants. Lastly, quasi-experiment has been selected because it does not need a huge budget compared to experimental design.

Capstone Population Selection and Sample

The target population for this study are nurses in geriatric care. These nurses are the target because they often meet patients at risk of pressure ulcers or those with the disease. The sample population are nurses working with geriatric patients who are at high risk of developing pressure ulcers. The project will also include nurses handling patients with pressure ulcers. The population for this project will be sampled using the purposive sampling method. This sampling method allows a project manager to include only participants that he or she views as appropriate for the project. Here, the project manager will not randomly select participants for the project. This sampling method will be used because it will allow the project manager to select participants who align with the project’s purpose. The method will also help the project manager use a small sample population to answer the clinical question successfully and solve the problem. The researcher will use her judgment to select data. The project manager will include 15 nurses assigned in the geriatric department of a healthcare facility in the project.

Inclusion and Exclusion Criteria

The following are the inclusion criteria that will be used to select participants to participate in the project. The first criterion is that the participants must be nurses working in the geriatric department. This project targets the geriatric department, and therefore, geriatric nurses alight with the project’s purpose. Second, the participants must be RN nurses. RN nurses will be included because they are certified by the board of nurses to provide full nursing care. Third, the nurses should not be interns. Interns are not part of the sample population because they might leave in the middle of the project to attend to their academic obligations. Lastly, the nurses must know about caring for geriatric patients. The exclusion criteria include the following. First, nurses who are on an internship basis will be excluded. Intern nurses will be excluded because their internship period is not known. Second, nurses who are not working with geriatric patients will also be excluded. Third, nurses with no knowledge of geriatric care will be excluded because knowledge about caring for older adults is needed in this education program. Lastly, nurses who are not registered nurses will be excluded.

Data Collection

Data collection will be done using a questionnaire and content analysis. A questionnaire will be developed to understand how the participants have reacted to the education program. The participants’ perceptions about the program will be used to improve the education to suit their needs in the future. Content analysis will be used to collect data about incidences of pressure ulcers on the project site before and after the project has been implemented. Content to be analyzed will be extracted from the facility’s electronic health records. This system has information about all the patients admitted to the geriatric department. The system has data about patients’ health before admission, when in the facility, and after discharge. Content analysis will allow the researcher to quantify and analyze the relationship between certain words and themes in the document being analyzed. The project manager will invite two reviewers to review the data collected to confirm if it is reliable. The inclusion of reviewers in the project will improve the trustworthiness and objectivity of the project findings.

Identification of themes will follow these five steps. First, the reviewers will familiarize themselves with the project purpose and the data collected. Second, they will assign codes to the data so that they can describe the content. Third, they will search for patterns in the codes across the content. Forth, they will review and define the themes. Lastly, they will produce a report on the themes.

Conclusion

This project will be conducted using a quantitative method. The method will allow data to be collected in numerical form. The design that will be applied is a quasi-experimental design. Participants will be selected using purposive sampling. The project manager will include 15 nurses assigned in the geriatric department of a healthcare facility in the project. Data collection methods are questionnaires and content analysis.

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