Date of Conferral

2020

Degree

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

School

Nursing

Advisor

Joanne Minnick

Abstract

Colorectal Cancer (CRC) is the leading cause of cancer-related death, although it is considered preventable with adequate routine screening. Despite the decline in prevalence and mortality of CRC in the United States, the African American population persist in having the highest rates of death and shortest survival for CRC. This doctoral project focused on the gastrointestinal (G.I.) staff knowledge gap about the importance of CRC screening to achieve better patient outcomes. The purpose of this project was to address the knowledge gap among the G.I staff as it relates to CRC screening. The health belief model served as a guide in the educational program in that one of the primary focuses was changing behavior based on self-efficacy, perceived threats, and perceived benefits. The practice-focused question for this project was whether an evidence-based staff education project on CRC screening guidelines would improve G.I. staff knowledge on CRC screening. The project used a quantitative design through an anonymous pre and posttest to assess the staff knowledge and to determine the impact of education on the staff. Data were analyzed using sample proportion statistics. In the pretest, the least score was 20%; however, this score improved significantly to 60% in the posttest. Overall there was a 35.33% average improvement in the score. It showed that the percentage level of knowledge for the least performer increased two-fold. I made the recommendation for biannual staff education on the importance of CRC screening and screening guidelines. This doctoral project contributes to positive social change by educating the G.I staff about the importance of early screening, which will allow them to effectively educate the community on the importance of health promotion and disease prevention, thus leading to improved patient outcomes.

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