Innovative Team Approach for Achieving DNP Program Competencies for Distance Learners During the COVID-19 Pandemic.

ABSTRACT: Doctor of nursing practice (DNP)-prepared nurses must be competent in organizational and systems leadership, advanced clinical skills, and initiation of policy and programmatic changes. Students develop competencies in the DNP advanced practice and nurse administrator specialty tracks through online didactic and in-person practicum experiences within various settings. The COVID-19 pandemic created a barrier to in-person practicum experiences and an urgent need for flexible practicum opportunities. In response, faculty developed, implemented, and evaluated an innovative pedagogical strategy utilizing a team-based case study assignment to facilitate achievement of DNP program competencies for distance learners in these specialty tracks.

A longitudinal online interprofessional education experience involving family nurse practitioner students and pharmacy students.

Interprofessional education (IPE) continues to gain traction worldwide. Challenges integrating IPE into health profession programmes include finding convenient times, meeting spaces, and level-appropriate assignments for each profession. This article describes the implementation of a 21-month prospective cohort study pilot programme for the Master of Science in nursing family nurse practitioner (FNP) and doctor of pharmacy (PharmD) students at a private university in the United States. This IPE experience utilised a blended approach for the learning activities; these students had initial and final sessions where they met face-to-face, with asynchronous online activities between these two sessions. The online assignments, discussions, and quizzes during the pilot programme involved topics such as antimicrobial stewardship, hormone replacement therapy, human papilloma virus vaccination, prenatal counselling, emergency contraception, and effects of the Affordable Care Act on practice. The results suggested that the FNP students held more favourable attitudes about online IPE and that the PharmD students reported having a clearer understanding of their own roles and those of the other participating healthcare students. However, the students also reported wanting more face-to-face interaction during their online IPE experience. Implications from this study suggest that effective online IPE can be supported by ensuring educational parity between students regarding the various topics discussed and a consistent approach of the required involvement for all student groups is needed. In addition, given the students desire for more face-to-face interaction, it may be beneficial to offer online IPE activities for a shorter time period. It is anticipated that this study may inform other programmes that are exploring innovative approaches to provide IPE to promote effective collaboration in patient care.

Is faith-based health promotion effective? Results from two programs.

Obesity and related chronic diseases are on the rise in the United States. At the same time, 69% of Americans are religious, while 40% attend church regularly. This study evaluated the health benefits of two different biblically-based health promotion programs offered through rural and metropolitan churches with varying resources. Participants in both programs experienced weight loss and positive health changes, supporting that churches can be an effective way to promote health in America.