DNP Project Ideas...

One of the requirements of my DNP program is to complete a project related to a specific area of need within the clinical realm of nurse anesthesia. In prior posts, I have talked about how the DNP is a clinical doctorate, and how this is a bit different from a research-based doctorate (PhD). While a PhD candidate might conduct an extensive amount of research and complete a study that can take several months (or even years), a clinical doctorate candidate looks at a specific area of improvement within his clinical practice area.

As of right now, I am still very uncertain about what I would like to focus on for my project. We are only in our second semester of a total of nine. To date, we have not even met with our faculty advisors or had any kind of class/brainstorming sessions to solidify a project idea. For our NUR 715 course, we were asked to just think about some of our potential interests and include them in our ePortfolio.

So far, I have come up with two possible project areas. They are as follows:

1.) Ulnar nerve neuropathy is the most commonly occurring post-surgical neuropathy observed in patients. From an anesthesia perspective, risks associated with anesthesia techniques or positioning have been inconclusive. CRNAs take stringent measures to offset the occurrence of this neuropathy; however, there are not any studies concerning the potential influence that risk factors such as diabetes, cancer, or smoking might have on its prevalence and incidence. This is a potential project idea, and below are some references I found associated with ulnar nerve neuropathy:

Miller, R.D. & Pardo, Jr., M.C. (2011). Basics of Anesthesia (6th ed.). Philadelphia, PA: Elsevier Saunders.

Warner, M. A., Warner, D. O., Matsumoto, J. Y., Harper, C. M., Schroeder, D. R., & Maxson, P. M. (1999). Ulnar neuropathy in surgical patients. Anesthesiology, 90(1), 54-59. Retrieved from http://uu.worldcat.org/title/ulnar-neuropathy-in-surgical-patients/oclc/118533011&referer=brief_results

Zhang, J., Moore, A. E., & Stringer, M. D. (2011). Iatrogenic upper limb nerve injuries: a systematic review. ANZ Journal Of Surgery, 81(4), 227-236. doi:10.1111/j.1445-2197.2010.05597.x

2.) The second idea I had relates to patients who undergo anesthesia and, upon awakening, speak a different language other than their native one (non-native language). This is extremely rare, but I think it is fascinating and am curious how it relates to anesthesia. Due to the rarity of its occurrence, it being heavily research-based and therefore, possibly outside of my scope as a DNP student, this potential idea might not be practical. Here is the one reference I found on this topic:

Sharwood-Smith, G. H., Sharwood, S. M., Perry, R. H., Friselle, H. P., & Webster, C. S. (2005). Transient fixation on a non-native language associated with anaesthesia. Anaesthesia, 60(7), 712-714. Retrieved from http://uu.worldcat.org/title/transient-fixation-on-a-non-native-language-associated-with-anaesthesia/oclc/5154976634&referer=brief_results

I will keep brainstorming for other possible DNP project ideas, and will include updates here on my blog as well as on my ePortfolio. So, stay tuned!