Date of Conferral

3-13-2026

Degree

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

School

Nursing

Advisor

Marilyn Losty

Abstract

Depression is a serious public health concern affecting over 280 million people globally and leading to significant morbidity and mortality if left undetected and untreated. At the local organization, leadership identified inconsistent depression screening as a practice problem among nursing staff. Thus, the purpose of this doctor in nursing practice (DNP) project was to determine if an educational intervention focused on depression, the importance of depression screening, and the use of the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) increased knowledge and confidence among nursing staff working in a local organization. Fifteen participants volunteered to participate in the project. The average age was 45.67 years (SD = 10.49) with 80% (n = 12) of the participants identifying as female. The mean pretest score for knowledge was 7.80 (SD = 2.81), and the mean posttest score was 12.53 (SD = 3.04). Using a Wilcoxon signed-rank test to estimate the data, there was a statistically significant difference between pretest and posttest scores (z = -3.43, p < .001), demonstrating an increase in knowledge among the participants. Additionally, participants were asked to rate their confidence in four specific content areas using a Likert scale. Using a Wilcoxon signed-rank test, there was a statistically significant difference between pretest and posttest scores across all four content areas, indicating an increase in confidence among the participants. Given the importance of this content, it is recommended that the project findings be disseminated among leadership and staff with the hope that the increased knowledge and confidence translate into practice, resulting in positive patient, provider, and organizational outcomes and, ultimately, positive social change.

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