Date of Conferral

5-22-2025

Date of Award

May 2025

Degree

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

School

Nursing

Advisor

Jill Walsh

Abstract

This doctor of nursing practice project evaluation of an organizational quality improvement initiative focused on evaluating the effectiveness of implementing a prearrival phone call process for interventional radiology patients scheduled for procedures requiring moderate sedation or anesthesia. Adherence to NPO guidelines is crucial for patient safety before moderate sedation and anesthesia. The practice problem identified was the number of procedures that were canceled or delayed because of patient nonadherence with NPO guidelines. The practice-focused question that guided this project was, Can the implementation of prearrival phone calls in the preprocedural radiology surgical services help improve patient adherence with NPO protocol instructions, thus positively decreasing cancellations or delays of procedures? A retrospective chart review was performed to analyze the effectiveness of the prearrival phone call intervention. Results demonstrated a significant improvement. The average cancellation or delayed procedure with moderate sedation or anesthesia rate for the six months before the intervention was 2.16% and decreased to 1.05% for the six months following the implementation of the intervention, demonstrating a percentage change of −51.39%. This decrease in the rate shows that implementing the prearrival phone call intervention positively impacted the procedure cancellation or delayed rate. It is recommended that prearrival phone calls be made within seven days before the appointment using a standardized script and confirming the patient’s understanding of the NPO guidelines. This quality improvement initiative has implications for positive social change by improving patient, provider, and organizational outcomes.

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