Date of Award

Spring 5-14-2022

Document Type

Scholarly Project

Degree Name

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Department

Nursing

First Advisor

Trina Larery tlarery@pittstate.edu

Second Advisor

Ashleigh Heter aheter@pittstate.edu

Third Advisor

Laura Covert Miller lcovert@pittstate.edu

Abstract

PROVIDER EDUCATION ON PHYSICAL ACTIVITY FOR OLDER ADULTS

An Abstract of the Scholarly Project by

Joseph Morris

The purpose of this study was to educate nursing staff and providers on the importance of physical activity for older adults to prevent functional decline and maintain quality of life. The project was conducted online using Qualtrics survey software. Data was collected from October 25, 2021 to November 25, 2021. Nursing staff and healthcare providers (physicians, nurse practitioners and physician assistants) that are actively practicing medicine and have experience interacting with older adults participated by completing a two-part survey. The survey consisted of a pretest, an educational resource, and finished with a posttest identical to the pretest. The data collected from completed surveys were used to measure participant knowledge. The findings indicated that many health care providers and registered nurses already discuss physical activity with older adults. Having participants rate their knowledge level regarding physical activity for older adults varied. Comparison of both the pretest and posttest showed education did in fact increase participant knowledge related to the benefits of physical activity for older adults. Overall, the project findings support education as a means of increasing knowledge. Future replication of this study should be considered with a larger sample size to further support the effectiveness of healthcare provider and registered nurse education as a means of increasing knowledge regarding the importance of physical activity for older adults.

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