Practice Projects Exemplified

At the conclusion of this module, participants will be able to:

• • Identify settings where practice improvement occurs.
  • Relate discovery to original research and practice improvement.
  • Differentiate program evaluation from practice improvement.
  • List the characteristics of program evaluation.
  • Recognize the role of interventions in original research and practice projects.

Types of practice projects- Since practice projects are focused on end-results in a practice setting, there are a multitude of examples across the industries. Practice improvement is needed in primary and secondary education, health care, justice and corrections, technological fields, and more. The details may change depending on the scenario, but the overall essence of practice improvement remains the same. 

Discovery- Practice improvement is not about discovery; it is about application. Nevertheless, discovery may result as a byproduct of the project, which can be explained along with any other unexpected finding. Many investigators misidentify their work as practice improvement when it is really research if they are generating new and generalizable information, especially in the absence of a true practice intervention. Thoughtful reflection and strategic planning may support clarity of design toward practice improvement. Here are a couple points of reflection to begin with:

• Am I seeking to discover something new that is unknown, or am I seeking to learn how effective an intervention will be? In practice improvement, evidence should guide the intervention. Thus, the unknown is less useful for the improvement of practice and is more useful for original research. 
• Am I gathering information before or after an intervention? Am I doing both? Collection of information prior to intervening without designing the intervention and post-data into the design may indicate that research is being conducted rather than practice improvement.
• Is my work completely retrospective? If yes, then the scholarly activity may be program evaluation.
• Practice projects must have an intervention, but the presence of an intervention does not exclude original research as a possibility as many research studies are interventional as well. 

Settings for Practice Improvement- Practice improvement can occur anywhere practice occurs. One might easily identify these settings as anywhere a licensed or certified individual practices. Examples:

• Physicians
• Veterinarians
• Teachers
• Nurses
• Lawyers
• Engineers

Examples:

• Original Research
• Quality Improvement
• Program Evaluation
• Suggested readings for this module include examples of each of these.
  • Consider what makes them similar. 
  • Consider what makes these examples different.

Suggested readings

Whalen, M., Maliszewski, B., Sheinfeld, R., Gardner, H., & Baptiste, D. (2018). Outcomes of an Innovative Evidence-Based Practice Project: Building a Difficult-Access Team in the Emergency Department. JEN: Journal of Emergency Nursing, 44(5), 478–482. https://doi-org.lopes.idm.oclc.org/10.1016/j.jen.2018.03.011

Klingbeil, C., & Gibson, C. (2018). The Teach Back Project: A System-wide Evidence Based Practice Implementation. Journal of Pediatric Nursing. https://doi-org.lopes.idm.oclc.org/10.1016/j.pedn.2018.06.002