Describe a potential quality improvement practice gap you might use for your DNP project, and explain why.

Describe a potential quality improvement practice gap you might use for your DNP project, and explain why.

Identification of an appropriate quality improvement practice gap in the Neuro-Interventional Radiology Unit (Neuro-IR) starts by assessing benchmarks generated by data regarding first case start times (Steele et al., 2012).  The goal of this project is to standardize care to minimalize delays in first case start times through use of interdisciplinary developed checklists.  Using delay codes in the documentation record of the Neuro-IR setting will identify trends in first case start delays (Moeslein & Nagy, 2011).  Examination of trends illuminates each stakeholder’s responsibility for case delays and how a quality improvement project will work to their specific discipline’s benefit to improve start times.  Assessment of first case start times in the Neuro-Interventional Radiology (Neuro-IR) provides insight into care and cost efficiency that influence patient outcomes and care costs (Moeslein & Nagy, 2011).  The workflow within the Neuro-IR department effects the unit’s ability to generate revenue as both and inpatient and outpatient setting.  Overtime costs and staffing issues are negatively associated with delays in case start times as well as patient satisfaction which all influence the financial status of the unit and healthcare setting (White, 2018).  Research presented by White (2018) used preprocedural checklists as an intervention that were tested through a series of plan-do-study-act cycles to determine what items were necessary for the quickest yet thorough assessment in the pre-procedure workup.  Retrospective chart analysis pre and post intervention showed that email reminders to the care team, accountability to leadership and unit facilitators helped improve safe patient care transitions that equated to enhanced first case start times.