Organizational Needs Assessment
Assignment
Purpose
The purpose of this assignment is to identify a practice problem based on an organizational needs assessment, including the identification of the practice gap and formulation of the practice question. This assignment will allow for the assimilation of professional leadership competencies in project management. Assignment content supports professional formation, communication, and dissemination skills relevant to the Master-prepared nurse.
Please note that this is the first part of a 3-part assignment submitted in Weeks 2, 5, and 7. You will receive feedback from your course faculty on the Week 2 and Week 5 assignments, which you will use to prepare the Week 7 assignment.
NOTE: All assignments and their requirements should be discussed in relation to your proposed or hypothetical practicum project (mental illness-depression in healthcare practice problem can be link with medication errors).
Instructions
Complete the Organizational Needs Assessment: Practice Gap Identification on a healthcare organization of your choice. This will be submitted as Table 1.
• Link (Word doc): Organizational Needs Assessment: Practice Gap Identification Template (Links to an external site.)
Include the following in your paper:
1. Introduction
a. Introduce the topic and establish the importance of an organizational needs assessment.
b. Present a clear purpose statement.
c. Create an organizing (outline) statement for the paper that matches the required level 1 headings (except for listing the conclusion).
2. Problem: Using the information that you gathered on the Organizational Needs Assessment: Practice Gap Identification (Table 1), describe the practice problem by explaining these elements:
a. Describe a specific location (hospital unit, community health clinic, surgical suite, primary care practice).
b. Identify the key stakeholders (decision-makers).
c. Explain the practice problem as would be identified by the stakeholders.
3. Practice Gap
a. In 1-2 organized paragraphs, summarize your findings table 1, the Organizational Needs Assessment: Practice Gap Identification, placed after the reference list.
4. Practice Question: Define and briefly explain the project’s intended population, evidence-based intervention, and measurable outcomes (PICOT):
a. Population: Describe the specific characteristics of the population.
b. Intervention: Citing on the evidence in the Johns Hopkins Individual Evidence Summary Tool (Table 2) gathered in previous courses, describe the evidence-based intervention. Add one research study or systematic review to support your intervention unless one already exists on the table from your previous courses.
c. Comparison: State as “compared to current practice” for the purposes of this assignment.
d. Outcome. Create and explain specific outcome measurements based on the current evidence you have collected in the Johns Hopkins Individual Evidence Summary Tool (attached as Table 2). Add one research study or systematic review that supports your proposed outcome measurements. The source added can be the same one used to add evidence to the intervention above as long as it speaks to measurable outcomes unless one already exists on the table from your previous courses.
e. Time: Time frame for the project implementation.
f. State the Practice Question. Example: (P) For critical care patients in X hospital’s ICU, (I) does the implementation of the medical sepsis protocol (C) compared to the current practice (O) reduce the incidence of medical sepsis diagnoses as measured before and after the intervention (T) over a 10-week period?
5. Conclusion
a. Recap the paper’s purpose statement and organizing (outlining) statement criteria that revisits the three level 1 headings (not including the conclusion).
b. Draw major conclusions from the body of your paper.
c. Summarize the importance of effective communication for the DNP-prepared nurse nurse in performing the practice gap and problem identification..
6. References
a. Create the reference page.
b. Ensure each reference has a matching citation.
c. Include three (3) scholarly references at a minimum (two from the Johns Hopkins Table and 1 additional scholarly reference)
7. Tables
a. Add the completed Table 1 & Table 2 after the reference list. For directions on how to copy a table in Microsoft Word go to the following link:
? Link (webpage): Move or Copy a Table (Links to an external site.)
? Table 2, the Johns Hopkins Individual Evidence Summary Tool, is attached (after Table 1) & completely filled out with at least two (2) quantitative research studies at a minimum. (NOTE: a total of three (3) references should be included on the reference list).
Table 1: Organizational Needs Assessment: Practice Gap Identification
What is currently happening in the practicum site that causes the problem? What should be happening in the practicum site based on current evidence*? What do the stakeholders (decision-makers) identify as the gap between what is currently happening and what should be happening (this is your practice gap)? Why is there a gap in practice?
What factors are contributing to the gap in practice? What evidence* do you have to demonstrate there is a practice gap (e.g., NDNQI, AHRQ Quality Indicators, National Hospital Quality Measures, HCAHPS, Joint Commission ORYX®, etc.)?
*Reference & citation required.
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PICOT Problem Statement:
P (Population – example: For critical care patients in X hospital ICU…)
I (Intervention – example: Does the implementation of the medical sepsis protocol…)
C (Comparison – example: Compared to current practice). NOTE: “C” is most commonly used for research projects, not DNP translation science projects. “C,” or Comparison intervention, is implied for DNP projects, although you will see instances where the C does not apply.
O (Outcome, measurable – example: Reduce the incidence of medical sepsis as measured before and after…)
T (Time – Usually 10-12 weeks for a DNP practicum project)
Review the rubric below for the grading criteria.
APA Guidelines
Use the current Publication Manual of the American Psychological Association (APA Manual) and the Chamberlain Guidelines for Writing Professional Papers: Graduate Programs (located in the APA Basics section of the Writing Center) to complete this assignment. Follow these guidelines when completing each component. Contact your course faculty if you have questions.
1. Use the standard APA Paper Template (located in the Canvas Resources: Writing Center) to format this assignment.
2. Turn on Grammarly to check the correctness of the grammar and punctuation as you write. (Note: if you have not already done so, please download the free version at Grammarly.com before constructing the assignment.)
3. Use the title, “Organizational Needs Assessment,” for your project and construct a title page using the APA paper template (Example: Preventing Early Sepsis in Critical Care Patients) based on your identified practice problem.
4. Use the following prescribed Level 1 headings for this paper (do not include the outline letters):
a. Problem
b. Practice Gap
c. Practice Question
d. Conclusion
Writing Requirements (APA format)
• Length: 3-4 pages (not including title page, references page, or attachments)
• 1-inch margins
• Double-spaced pages
• 12-point Times New Roman
• Headings & subheadings
• In-text citations
• Title page
• Reference page
• Standard English usage and mechanics
• CARE Plan paragraph development structure
Course Outcomes
This assignment enables the student to meet the following course outcomes:
1. Compare and contrast theories of organizational behavior and leadership.
2. Investigate the role of advanced nursing practice in innovation and transformation to propose solutions impacting healthcare systems.
3. Differentiate attributes of effective leaders and followers in influencing healthcare.
5. Formulate selected strategies for leadership and influence across healthcare systems.
