Document Type
Dissertation
Degree
Doctor of Nursing Practice
Major
Nursing
Date of Defense
7-9-2024
Graduate Advisor
Elizabeth Segura, DNP
Committee
Elizabeth Segura, DNP
Charity Galgani, DNP
Julie Brooks, MSN
Abstract
Problem: Approximately 2.5 million people within the United States receiving inpatient medical care will develop a pressure injury each year (Padula & Demarmente, 2018). Pressure injuries (PI) are a multifactorial complication that can often be avoided with general prophylactic measures. Despite this, inpatient settings around the United States continue to see a rise in PIs.
Method: The quality improvement initiative utilized a descriptive, observational design. The turn team toolkit was implemented and monitored over a two-month period. Patient descriptors and quantitative data were collected through a retrospective chart review. The primary data collected was on pressure injury rates and staff compliance to turning frequency.
Results: Following implementation of this quality improvement effort, a total of 122 patients were included in the study. The pre-implementation phase had a total of three PIs and the post-implementation had zero acquired PIs. A Fishers exact test was utilized and found a p-value of 0.066 indicating no statistical significance. Staff compliance with patient turning increased from 37.20% to 50.7%. A two-tailed Mann-Whitney test was run proving statistical significance between the compliance and implementation phase.
Implications: Further research should be conducted to expand the sample size and occurrence of pressure injury to determine if the toolkit provides a statistical significance between variables. Pressure injury prophylaxis continues to be crucial to patient comfort and avoidance of unnecessary hospital complications.
Recommended Citation
Bearden, Christina, "Implementation of the Process Improvement Toolkit for Hospital Acquired Pressure Injuries" (2024). Dissertations. 1433.
https://irl.umsl.edu/dissertation/1433