Course Context and Project Overview
NR702 is the first of four project and practicum courses that form Chamberlain University’s DNP scholarly project sequence. The purpose of this course is to establish the design foundation for your DNP practice change project: identifying the organizational need at your practicum site, formulating your PICOT question, selecting a translational science or theoretical framework and change model, and developing the initial sections of the DNP Scholarly Project Proposal — specifically the introduction, background, problem description, significance, and project aim and objectives.
At Chamberlain, the DNP scholarly project is a quality improvement initiative implemented within a real practicum site, guided by a preceptor approved through the Chamberlain experiential learning services process. The DNP scholar — not “I” — designs, implements, and evaluates a practice change to address a documented gap in care. All written work in this course is submitted through Canvas and processed through Turnitin for academic integrity. No direct quotes are permitted in any written assignment; all content must be synthesized into the DNP scholar’s own scholarly voice.
A letter of support from the practicum site’s key decision maker, on facility letterhead and signed, is required before beginning NR702. Your practicum site must have a current Clinical Affiliation Agreement with Chamberlain University. Contact DNPPracticum@chamberlain.edu for questions related to site approval.
The DNP project topic for this brief focuses on implementing a nurse-led fall risk assessment and prevention program for older adults in an adult day care setting. This topic aligns with Chamberlain’s DNP program outcomes and the 2021 AACN Essentials, particularly the domains of person-centered care, population health, quality and safety, and interprofessional partnerships.
Weekly Assignment Structure — NR702
Introduction, Background, and Problem Description
Post your initial guided worksheet content to the Week 1 discussion board (150–200 words) by Wednesday. Receive peer and faculty feedback by Friday. Submit the completed worksheet via Canvas by Sunday 11:59 PM CT. Worksheets are copied into the CCN DNP Project Template to build the Week 4 proposal.
- State your practice question in PICOT format (do not define each letter separately; write as one fluent sentence).
- Write a powerful 1–2 sentence opening that stimulates interest without using the word “this” as the first word; do not label the first paragraph “Introduction.”
- Identify the purpose of the project and provide a preview of what the proposal will include.
- Indicate clearly that the manuscript concerns an initiative to improve healthcare quality, safety, effectiveness, and/or patient-centeredness in adult day care.
- Describe the background of the problem at your practicum site: what fall-related data or organizational observation confirms a gap in current practice?
- Identify one specific aim and three objectives of the project.
Refer to yourself throughout as “the DNP scholar” — never use first person. All formal Chamberlain DNP project papers are written in third person.
PICOT Question, Significance, and Translational Science/Change Model
- Refine and formally state the PICOT question developed in Week 1 using this standard format: In _____ (P), how does _____ (I) compared to _____ (C) affect _____ (O) within _____ (T)?
- Explain the significance of the problem: address the consequences of falls in adult day care populations — physical injury, functional decline, fear of falling, social withdrawal, hospitalization, healthcare costs, and caregiver burden.
- Connect significance to national prevalence data (cite CDC, AHRQ, MMWR) and to the specific organizational need at the practicum site.
- Identify and justify your selection of a translational science model (e.g., Iowa Model, PDSA, ACE Star Model) or a theoretical framework paired with a change model (e.g., Lewin’s Change Theory, Kotter’s 8-Step Model). Explain why the selected model aligns with your practice change context.
- Reference a minimum of three peer-reviewed sources published within the last five years.
Evidence-Based Intervention and Review of the Literature
- Describe the evidence-based intervention you plan to implement: a nurse-led fall risk assessment and prevention program that incorporates validated screening tools (specify which tool — Morse Fall Scale, Timed Up and Go, STEADI protocol), individualized care planning, staff education sessions, environmental modification, and a monitoring process.
- Explain why this intervention was selected over alternatives by summarizing what the evidence most consistently supports.
- Synthesize findings from at least five peer-reviewed sources current within five years; organize thematically, not article by article. No direct quotes.
- Discuss the strength of the evidence using an appraisal framework such as the Johns Hopkins EBP Model or the Melnyk & Fineout-Overholt levels of evidence hierarchy.
- Identify any gaps in the literature that your project addresses — particularly studies specific to adult day care rather than inpatient or long-term care settings.
Full Proposal Submission — 8 to 10 Pages
Compile the content developed in Weeks 1–3 into a cohesive, APA-formatted DNP Scholarly Project Proposal using the CCN DNP Project Template. This is a major graded assignment worth 200 points. The proposal must include all sections listed below, each clearly labeled with APA Level 1 headings.
- Introduction: Purpose statement, background, and preview of the paper. No heading; this section follows directly beneath the title.
- Problem Description and Significance: Description of the practice problem at the site; local and national data supporting the need; consequences of the gap; connection to the practicum site’s organizational priorities.
- PICOT Question: Formally state the refined PICOT question and examine how each element addresses the identified practice problem and aligns with the proposed intervention.
- Review of the Evidence: Thematic synthesis of current literature supporting the nurse-led fall prevention intervention; evidence appraisal; identification of literature gaps.
- Translational Science Model or Theoretical Framework and Change Model: Description of the selected model(s), rationale for selection, and explanation of how the model guides each phase of the project.
- Project Aim, Objectives, and Expected Outcomes: One specific aim; three measurable, time-bound objectives; description of how outcomes will be measured at baseline and post-implementation.
- Project Design and Evaluation Plan: Description of the proposed program components; staff education plan; screening tool selection and administration; timeline; data collection methods; evaluation criteria for success.
- Budget: Balanced budget table identifying all project expenses and revenue/cost offsets, even if materials are provided in-kind by the facility. All cost sources must be attributed.
- Conclusion: Synthesis of the proposal’s key elements; restatement of the practice need and proposed solution; statement of the project’s potential to advance nursing practice and improve patient outcomes at the site and system levels.
PICOT Question Development — Fall Prevention in Adult Day Care
Use the following framework to construct your PICOT question for this project. Each element should be addressed in one to two sentences in Week 2 before writing the full question as a single formatted sentence in the proposal.
Full PICOT sentence for the proposal: In older adults aged 65 and older enrolled in an adult day care program (P), how does the implementation of a nurse-led, multifactorial fall risk assessment and prevention program (I) compared to the current observation-based, incident-driven standard of practice (C) affect fall incidence rates, staff fall risk knowledge scores, and the proportion of at-risk participants with active care plans (O) within a 10-week implementation period (T)?
Formatting and Submission Requirements
- Length: Weeks 1–3 worksheets are 200–400 words per section; the Week 4 proposal is 8–10 pages of body content, excluding the title page and reference list.
- Template: All proposal content must be written into the CCN DNP Project Template, available in Canvas under Project and Practicum Resources. Failure to use the required template may result in a grade deduction.
- Title page: APA 7th edition format — student name, course number and name, session, instructor name, institution (Chamberlain University), and submission date. No running head is required under APA 7th edition.
- Font and spacing: 12-point Times New Roman, double-spaced, 1-inch margins throughout.
- Voice: Third person throughout. The writer is referred to as “the DNP scholar.” No first-person (I, me, we) unless a discussion post explicitly permits it.
- No direct quotes: At the graduate level, content must be synthesized in the DNP scholar’s own words. Direct quotations are not permitted in the proposal. Paraphrase and cite all borrowed ideas using APA 7th edition in-text format.
- Sources: Minimum of eight (8) peer-reviewed scholarly sources current within five years for the Week 4 proposal. Sources from CDC, AHRQ, WHO, and AACN may supplement but do not count toward the peer-reviewed minimum.
- Turnitin: All formal written assignments in NR702 are submitted through Turnitin via Canvas. Review the originality report before final submission and revise accordingly.
- Due dates: Worksheet initial posts due Wednesday 11:59 PM CT; completed worksheets due Sunday 11:59 PM CT of each respective week. Week 4 proposal due Sunday of Week 4 by 11:59 PM CT.
Grading Rubric — Week 4 DNP Scholarly Project Proposal (200 Points)
| Criterion | Excellent (90–100%) | Good (80–89%) | Fair (70–79%) | Poor (<70%) | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Introduction, Background, and Problem Description | Compelling opening without first-person; purpose statement is clear; problem is thoroughly described using site-level observation and national data with correctly cited statistics; current practice inadequacy is specifically identified. | Introduction and problem description are adequate; minor omissions in site-level grounding; purpose is stated; national data cited with minor APA errors. | Introduction is present but generic; problem description relies primarily on national data without site-level specificity; purpose is vague. | Introduction absent or does not address the practice problem; no site-level context; purpose unclear or missing. | 35 |
| PICOT Question and Significance | PICOT question is clearly and correctly formatted in standard sentence structure; all five elements are specifically defined; significance is thoroughly addressed across clinical, functional, social, and economic dimensions with supporting evidence. | PICOT is mostly correct; all five elements are present but one lacks specificity; significance is addressed with adequate supporting evidence. | PICOT is present but missing one or more elements or is not formatted correctly; significance is superficial or lacks scholarly support. | No PICOT question or format is entirely incorrect; significance absent or unsupported. | 35 |
| Review of the Evidence | Literature is synthesized thematically from eight or more peer-reviewed sources current within five years; evidence appraisal framework is applied; gaps specific to the adult day care setting are identified; no direct quotes; no article-by-article summary. | Literature synthesis is mostly thematic; six to seven sources current within five years; appraisal framework referenced; minor gaps in analysis. | Literature is summarized rather than synthesized; fewer than six sources or sources outside the five-year window; no appraisal framework applied. | Literature review is absent, largely non-current, or composed of direct quotes; fewer than four sources. | 40 |
| Translational Model/Framework and Change Model | Selected model is clearly identified and thoroughly justified for fit with the adult day care fall prevention context; description maps each model phase to a specific project activity; rationale is evidence-based. | Model is identified with adequate rationale; connection to project phases is present but could be more detailed; rationale is mostly evidence-based. | Model is named but rationale for selection is weak or generic; mapping to project phases is absent or superficial. | No model identified or model is named without any description or rationale. | 30 |
| Aim, Objectives, Design, Evaluation, and Budget | One specific aim and three measurable, time-bound objectives are stated; project design is complete with screening tool identified, staff education plan described, and timeline specified; evaluation plan includes baseline and post measures; budget is balanced and all costs attributed. | Aim and objectives are present; objectives are mostly measurable; design and evaluation plan are adequate; budget has minor gaps. | Aim is present but objectives lack measurability or time framing; design is incomplete; evaluation plan is vague; budget is imbalanced or missing items. | No aim or objectives; design absent or entirely generic; no evaluation plan; no budget or budget unrelated to the project. | 35 |
| APA Formatting, Scholarly Voice, and Writing Quality | CCN DNP Project Template used; APA 7th edition formatting is flawless; all sources current within five years; no direct quotes; third-person voice maintained throughout; sentences vary in structure; Grammarly-level grammar and spelling. | Template used; minor APA errors; mostly no direct quotes; third-person voice maintained with minor lapses; good grammar overall. | Template may not be used; repeated APA errors; direct quotes present; first-person voice used without authorization; grammar errors affect clarity. | Template not used; APA absent or severely incorrect; direct quotes throughout; first-person pervasive; grammar errors significantly impair readability. | 25 |
Project Writing Help: Sample Student Response — Excerpt
Falls among older adults enrolled in adult day care programs remain a persistent and preventable safety concern, one that adult day care organizations are uniquely positioned to address through structured nurse-led programming yet often lack the standardized protocols to do so effectively. At the project practicum site, an adult day care center in the southeastern United States serving an average of 75 older adults per session, no validated fall risk screening tool is currently in use; staff assess fall risk informally based on observation and reported incidents, a method that systematically underestimates the risk burden of participants presenting with polypharmacy, orthostatic hypotension, or mild cognitive impairment. Nationally, data published by Kakara et al. (2023) in the MMWR indicate that nonfatal falls among adults aged 65 and older resulted in approximately 3 million emergency department visits in the United States in 2020 and 2021 alone, a figure that underscores how consequential the failure to detect modifiable risk factors at the community care level can be. In response to this gap, the DNP scholar proposes to implement a nurse-led, multifactorial fall risk assessment and prevention program incorporating the Morse Fall Scale for systematic screening, individualized fall prevention care planning, a structured two-session staff education curriculum, and a quarterly environmental hazard audit process guided by the World Guidelines for Falls Prevention and Management for Older Adults (Montero-Odasso et al., 2022). The Iowa Model of Evidence-Based Practice was selected as the translational science framework for this project, as it provides a sequential, decision-oriented process for translating research into practice change that aligns with the incremental nature of a 10-week quality improvement initiative in a small community organization.
The Morse Fall Scale was selected as the primary screening instrument for this project in part because of its consistent validation across community-based and outpatient care settings and its ease of administration by nurses without specialized geriatric training, which makes it particularly practical in an adult day care environment where staffing configurations differ considerably from hospital units. Guirguis-Blake et al. (2024), in their updated systematic review for the US Preventive Services Task Force, confirmed that multifactorial interventions combining exercise referrals, medication review, and environmental modification produce the greatest sustained reduction in fall rates among community-dwelling older adults, with evidence strength rated as moderate to high for combined programs. The DNP scholar’s project design reflects this evidence base by incorporating all three intervention components into a unified protocol adapted for adult day care workflows, specifically addressing the mobility transitions, group activity scheduling, and limited private assessment space that characterize this setting.
A common error in Chamberlain NR702 proposals is conflating the problem description with the review of evidence, resulting in a proposal that reads as a literature summary rather than a site-grounded practice change argument. The distinction matters both academically and practically: the problem description documents what is happening at the specific practicum site using observable or reportable data, while the review of evidence synthesizes what the broader scholarly record says about effective solutions. Students writing on fall prevention in adult day care settings should resist the temptation to anchor the entire problem narrative in national statistics alone; instead, one or two pieces of local or site-level evidence — such as a verbal report from the director of nursing about fall incident frequency or a review of the organization’s existing incident log — are essential to establishing that the problem exists in the specific organizational context where the project will be implemented, which is a core requirement of the CCN DNP Project Template and the Week 4 rubric.
References
- Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. (2021). Preventing falls in hospitals: A toolkit for improving quality of care. https://www.ahrq.gov/patient-safety/settings/hospital/fall-prevention/toolkit/index.html
- Albasha, N., Curtin, C., McCullagh, R., Cornally, N., & Timmons, S. (2024). Staff perspectives on fall prevention activities in long-term care facilities for older residents. PLOS ONE, 19(9), e0310139. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0310139
- American Association of Colleges of Nursing. (2021). The essentials: Core competencies for professional nursing education. https://www.aacnnursing.org/Portals/0/PDFs/Publications/Essentials-2021.pdf
- Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2023). Important facts about falls. https://www.cdc.gov/falls
- Guirguis-Blake, J. M., Perdue, L. A., Coppola, E. L., & Bean, S. I. (2024). Interventions to prevent falls in older adults: Updated evidence report and systematic review for the US Preventive Services Task Force. JAMA, 332(1), 58–69. https://doi.org/10.1001/jama.2024.9946
- Kakara, R., Bergen, G., Burns, E., & Stevens, M. (2023). Nonfatal and fatal falls among adults aged 65 years and older — United States, 2020–2021. MMWR Morbidity and Mortality Weekly Report, 72(35), 938–944. https://doi.org/10.15585/mmwr.mm7235a1
- Montero-Odasso, M., van der Velde, N., Martin, F. C., Petrovic, M., Tan, M. P., Ryg, J., & Masud, T. (2022). World guidelines for falls prevention and management for older adults. Age and Ageing, 51(9), afac205. https://doi.org/10.1093/ageing/afac205
- Moran, K. J., Burson, R., & Conrad, D. (Eds.). (2024). The doctor of nursing practice project: A framework for success (4th ed.). Jones & Bartlett Learning.