Date of Conferral
8-17-2026
Date of Award
August 2026
Degree
Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)
School
Nursing
Advisor
Tracy Andrews
Abstract
This doctoral project was a staff education quality improvement (QI) initiative designed to reduce implicit bias among healthcare providers toward patients with substance use disorder (SUD) at a community mental health center. Provider implicit bias toward patients with SUD contributes to stigma, inequitable care, reduced treatment engagement, and poorer health outcomes; addressing this bias is essential to advancing patient safety, health equity, and quality nursing care. The practice-focused question guiding this project asked whether a 9-week evidence-based staff education program incorporating didactic instruction and reflective practice would reduce provider implicit bias toward patients with SUD compared with current practice, which lacked structured bias-reduction training. The purpose of the project was to develop, implement, and evaluate such a program at the practicum site. Evidence supporting the project was appraised using the Johns Hopkins nursing evidence-based practice (JHNEBP) model (Bissett et al., 2025), and program development followed the ADDIE instructional design model within an overarching Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) quality improvement framework. Thirteen interdisciplinary providers completed both the pre- and post-intervention adapted Drug and Drug Problems Perceptions Questionnaire (DDPPQ) for a 100% survey completion rate. Provider attitudes improved across four of the five DDPPQ domains, with an overall 26.2% improvement in total DDPPQ scores. Qualitative feedback indicated meaningful shifts in the approach to caring for patients with SUD.
Recommended Citation
Baleng Okuwobi, Jeanne, "Addressing Implicit Bias Toward Patients with Substance Use Disorders Through a Staff Education Quality Improvement Initiative" (2026). Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies. 20697.
https://scholarworks.waldenu.edu/dissertations/20697
