Date of Award

8-2016

Degree Name

Nursing (D.N.P.)

Department

College of Nursing

First Advisor

Cynthia Coviak

Second Advisor

Kimberly Lanning

Third Advisor

Karen Meyerson

Abstract

This project was a quality improvement initiative employing an educational intervention to increase the awareness and stress the importance of utilizing spirometry in the diagnosis, treatment, and management of asthma. Clinical support staff received training on how to perform spirometry and providers received education on the interpretation and utility of spirometry results to drive care to improve outcomes for clients with asthma. Project outcomes examined the self-rated confidence to perform and interpret spirometry before and after the intervention and the subsequent utilization pattern of office-based spirometry at the primary care clinic. For clinical support staff, the self-comfort level at performing spirometry increased by an average of 32.1% after the training session, and the average overall confidence level in ability to perform spirometry on clients in the imminent future was 74.8%. For providers, the self-reported comfort-level in their ability to interpret spirometry reports increased by an average of 30.8%. There was also an average overall 96.3% confidence in the providers’ perceptions of their ability to accurately interpret a spirogram in the imminent future following the educational session. In-office spirometry use from 2015 to 2016 increased by twofold. This primary care office utilized their spirometer as much during the one month following this project’s interventions than it did the entire 2015 fiscal year. Valuable experience was gained implementing this project and recommendations for future initiatives are explored. This document discusses the background information, problem statement, intervention, evaluation methods, outcomes, sustainability, and dissemination methods related to the project.

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