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Cognitive Competence and Curriculum Development in Nurse Anesthesia Education: A Pilot Study
Barry Swerdlow1, Lisa Osborne-Smith1,2, Douglas Arditti1,2
1Nurse Anesthesia Program, Oregon Health & Science University, Portland, OR, USA.
Advances in Medical Education and Practice
|June 26, 2023
Summary
Doctor of Nursing Practice programs show improved cognitive performance in nurse anesthesia students compared to Master of Nursing programs. Curricular changes in Doctor of Nursing Practice programs correlate with enhanced critical thinking skills.
Area of Science:
- Nursing Education
- Advanced Practice Nursing
- Nurse Anesthesia
Background:
- The field of advanced practice nursing in the U.S. is increasingly moving towards doctoral-level preparation, primarily the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree.
- However, empirical evidence demonstrating that this educational shift enhances clinical competence remains limited.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if curriculum modifications in a nurse anesthesia program, transitioning from a Master of Nursing (MSN) to a Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program, were linked to better cognitive performance.
- The study utilized oral examinations to assess cognitive skills.
Main Methods:
- A prospective, comparative observational study was conducted with students from a single university nurse anesthesia program.
- The study involved a small sample size (n=22) and employed quantitative methods to compare the oral examination performance of consecutive MSN and DNP nurse anesthesia student cohorts.
- Oral examinations were specifically designed to evaluate critical thinking abilities and have demonstrated reliability and internal consistency.
Main Results:
- Doctor of Nursing Practice nurse anesthesia students who completed an enhanced curriculum demonstrated significantly superior performance on oral examinations compared to their Master of Nursing counterparts.
- Improvements were noted in specific cognitive domains that were previously identified as areas of lower performance among Master of Nursing students.
Conclusions:
- The integration of targeted curriculum enhancements within a Doctor of Nursing Practice program was associated with measurable improvements in the cognitive competence of nurse anesthesia students.
- These findings suggest that specific curricular additions in DNP programs can positively impact critical thinking and cognitive skills essential for advanced nursing practice.
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