Date of Conferral

11-7-2025

Date of Award

November 2025

Degree

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

School

Nursing

Advisor

Julibeth Lauren

Abstract

Summary This Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) staff education project addressed a gap in guideline-based antibiotic prescribing among advanced practice registered nurses (APRNs) in an urgent care setting. The practice problem identified at the local project site was inconsistent adherence to Centers of Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) outpatient stewardship expectations, resulting in unnecessary antibiotic use for viral conditions and contributing to antimicrobial resistance. The practice-focused question for this project was as follows: In urgent care APRNs, does implementing a staff education program on guideline-based antibiotic prescribing improve provider-reported knowledge on antibiotic prescribing use? The purpose of this doctoral project was to design, implement, and evaluate an educational intervention to improve APRN knowledge and adherence to evidence-based antibiotic prescribing guidelines. The results of this project demonstrated significant improvement in provider knowledge, with maximum assessment scores increasing from 33% pre-intervention to 83% post-intervention. Implications include improved provider confidence, documentation accuracy, and consistency in antibiotic prescribing practices. Targeted education supported by decision-support tools will improve APRN stewardship performance in urgent care. Recommendations for future practice include embedding stewardship education into provider onboarding, annual competencies, and ongoing audit-feedback cycles to sustain improvement and advance APRN leadership in antibiotic stewardship and strengthening patient safety outcomes. This project supports positive social change by reducing inappropriate antibiotic use, mitigating antimicrobial resistance, and promoting equitable, high-quality care for all populations.

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