In a private, non-profit university online Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) program, select courses in the curriculum strongly contribute to the preparation for each student’s capstone project. The online DNP student engages in various online learning activities through the university’s Moodle platform. With technological advances in phone devices, improved direct individual communication can augment the student’s success. This presentation focused on the implementation of periodic, structured faculty-student telecommunications during capstone-related DNP courses.
Methods: Over a two-year period, seven different groups of DNP students (n=75) were enrolled in two of the evidence-based practice change project related courses. The courses develop clinical problem identification, literature review, and project design with Institutional Review Board-Quality Improvement approvals. The educational strategy implemented a structured, scheduled faculty:student phone conference during week 4 in each of the 14-week courses. During the 30-minute session, a set of introductory open-ended questions was utilized followed by higher level dialogue to advance the process for the student’s potential project. Summative highlights concluded the educational session.
Results: Qualitative analysis through written feedback in subsequent email correspondence and course evaluations demonstrated students overwhelmingly provided positive responses to the educational strategy. The additional questions posed by faculty developed the student’s ideas about the clinical problem in their practice setting, clarification of course requirements, and direction for the project design. Decreased student frustration and increased confidence were identified through successful achievements in the course and program. Sustainability of the feedback was also often acknowledged in the student’s final written eight-chapter capstone paper at the end of the program.
Conclusion: Direct dialogue can facilitate the learner’s critical and analytic thinking. Higher order skills have been identified as significantly contributing to future workplace skills (National Survey of Student Engagement, 2018). Telecommunication through a scheduled faculty-student phone conference as part of DNP capstone-related courses augmented higher thought processes and effective direction for the student’s evidence-based practice change project. Online DNP students with various learning needs embraced the telecommunication with positive results. Implementing educational telecommunication strategies during DNP capstone-related courses not only engage and enhance the student’s success but may facilitate the graduate’s new advanced nursing practice roles.