Date of Conferral

2018

Degree

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

School

Nursing

Advisor

Mattie Burton

Abstract

Type 1 diabetes is a long-term diagnosis, the prognosis of which is directly related to the patient's ability to self-manage the disorder. Adolescents are not currently taught how to manage diabetes; instead, parents and educators expect self-management to be more of a learned behavior from their parents. The purpose of this project was to create a quality improvement plan which the regional pediatric diabetes center study site could implement to improve adolescent glycemic control. Orem's self-care theory was used as theoretical framework for the design and evaluation of the project. The practice-focused question for this doctoral project was: Can a quality improvement plan focused on diabetes self-management education support better control of the glycemic ranges of Type 1 diabetes in adolescents during the transition of self-management from parent to child? The design of the project included creation of curriculum for classes as well as streamlining blood glucose reporting within the center. The quality improvement plan outcomes provided an improvement on hemoglobin A1c of 0.3% for those utilizing the reporting systems and an improvement of 0.4% for those who had attended the education classes. Of the 11 patients who routinely sent in blood glucose over the 4-month time period, 10 met the goal of checking glucose as directed. These outcomes indicate the potential need for more concise direction within nursing practice to provide individual ages within the pediatric population with specific education plans to improve health outcomes. Improving the glycemic control of adolescents living with diabetes allows for a better transition into adulthood with a decreased risk of long-term complications, significantly contributing to positive social change.

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