Date of Conferral

8-2-2025

Degree

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

School

Nursing

Advisor

Jill Walsh

Abstract

The aim of this doctor of nursing practice staff education project was to provide a staff education program to the same day surgery staff at the practicum site on the Enhanced Recovery After Surgery (ERAS) evidence-based approach to surgical care to improve patient outcomes. ERAS includes multiple modalities designed to optimize a patient’s condition before, during, and after surgery. When implemented correctly, ERAS can reduce the need for narcotics, shorten recovery time, and improve surgical outcomes. The practice gap identified was that the only ERAS modality being actively implemented and tracked was nutrition in colorectal surgical patients and that the practicum site was not fully utilizing the potential of ERAS protocols to adequately prepare patients for major surgeries. I conducted this project to improve the nursing staff’s knowledge of the ERAS protocols. The practice-focused question was: What is the impact of the implementation of a staff education program on staff knowledge to effectively implement additional components of the ERAS care pathway for colorectal patients? A pretest/posttest design was used to evaluate the effectiveness of the education program. Results showed a slight improvement in knowledge gain with a cohort knowledge normalized gain of 0.25. The Wilcoxon signed-rank test showed a statistically significant difference between the paired test scores (p < .05). The project’s findings suggest that similar educational initiatives could be offered to enhance recovery for additional surgical patient populations. ERAS supports social change by reducing disparities in surgical outcomes; promoting equitable access to evidence-based care; empowering all patients; and fostering inclusive, multidisciplinary teamwork.

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