Date of Conferral
8-4-2026
Date of Award
August 2026
Degree
Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)
School
Nursing
Advisor
Jill Sanko
Abstract
This staff education project addressed inconsistent Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9) administration and documentation at mental health watch initiation and discharge in a correctional setting. A baseline audit showed 42.1% PHQ-9 documentation compliance (8 of 19 charts), below the 90% organizational benchmark, limiting objective depression severity data needed for clinical decision-making and safe transitions. The practice-focused question was: Among nurses working with incarcerated individuals at mental health watch initiation and discharge, what is the impact of staff education on nurses’ knowledge of PHQ-9 screening protocols? The purpose was to implement structured staff education to improve nurses’ knowledge of PHQ-9 trigger points, scoring, and electronic health record (EHR) documentation. Analytical strategies included descriptive statistics. Fifteen nurses completed the education and an anonymous pretest/posttest. Knowledge results were analyzed at the participant level: each nurse’s pretest and posttest score was calculated first, and group statistics were then generated from those individual scores. The mean individual knowledge score increased from 68.5% to 93.3%. Using the same compliance criterion and percentage calculation for both audit periods, post-education PHQ-9 documentation compliance increased to 70.0% (14 of 20 charts), a 27.9-percentage-point improvement. Limitations included voluntary participation, single-site implementation, correctional scheduling constraints, and short-term evaluation. Recommendations include new-hire education, refresher training, EHR reminders, and ongoing audits to support nursing practice, and promote positive social change, diversity, equity, and inclusion by increasing consistency of depression screening for an underserved population.
Recommended Citation
Bouraima, Gouni Aicha, "Consistent PHQ-9 Administration at Mental Health Watch Initiation and Discharge in a Correctional Setting" (2026). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 20532.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/20532
