05-06 Graduate Student Handbook.pdf - University of Kentucky

Capstone Project - UK College of Nursing
http://www.mc.uky.edu/nursing/StuResources/grads/handbook2005-06/capstone.htm
Page 1 of 3
2/24/2011
Final Capstone Project (D.N.P. Program)
The capstone clinical project in NUR 910, the Clinical Residency course, represents an
opportunity for the student to investigate a health care issue in a clinical situation. The clinical
focus of these projects is broad and includes not only direct care issues but interventions and
programs that indirectly influence clinical outcomes for a defined population. Direct clinical
care, interventions designed to improve clinical outcomes for an aggregate or population,
administrative interventions to improve clinical outcomes, and policy interventions to improve
health conditions and outcomes for populations would all fall under this definition of
“clinical”. The capstone project should focus on the scholarship of practice, with an emphasis
on internal validity rather than external generalizability.
Projects should include facilitation of the use of research in the clinical setting resulting in the
potential for change in practice or an outcome analysis. Students are expected to describe the
projects’ processes and outcomes in a systematic and publishable manner.
Elements
• Identification of a target population of patients/clients
• Implementation and assessment of a clinical practice model or system that has the
potential to change clinical practice OR a rigorous outcomes oriented evaluation of an
approach that has the potential to change a health care system
• Involvement of clinical staff that would be influenced by the anticipated change
• Examination of the impact of the model, approach, process or technology on other
systems or on the clinical area. Students should evaluate the types of analyses previously
conducted, the depth of analyses completed and the anticipated outcomes of the
proposed model
• An in-depth evaluation of the financial impact and the technologic or administrative
impact of the project
Process
• Approval and evaluation of the project will be done by a team of two individuals, both
of whom should be doctorally prepared. These should be the student’s faculty advisor
and clinical mentor.
• Students should work with faculty advisors prior to the end of the first year of study to
select a clinical mentor.
• Another faculty member in the College of Nursing or a clinical/administrative person
who is an expert in the area under study may be chosen to work with the team to guide
the project or may evaluate the project as a reader of the final product (e.g., clinician,
administrator, policy maker).
• The latter individual should be selected jointly by the student and faculty advisor.
• This committee should meet early in the process to provide advice and consultation to
the student during proposal development.
• The proposal must be approved by the committee.