Content, Context, and Collaboration: An Actionable Strategy for Structured Success in DNP Practice Scholarship

Abstract

Even if everything is done right in justifying the clinical benefit of a healthcare initiative, it cannot be sustainable if, first and foremost, the temperament of the practice environment, including the wider institutional hierarchy, is not accurately gauged. The purpose of this article is to provide the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) researcher with a systematic structure enabling a review of the larger context of the proposed clinical innovation. This review supports a DNP-led healthcare initiative through self-analysis of the researcher’s role; forging a relationship with a mentor; the analysis and mitigation of institutional, collaborative, and organizational barriers; and negotiating strategic partnerships with colleagues and departments and sharing their work and expertise. The blueprint that can change the interface of these elements is the creation of a specific research advisory committee (RADCOMM). The RADCOMM can be the impetus for transforming the institution into a place for learning, personal and professional growth and development, and patient safety, as well as one that results in new common resources and improved practice scholarship. The next generation of scholars and their capacity to understand their position in healthcare is inherently inhibited by not integrating the role and value of practice scholarship. The success of a DNP-led healthcare initiative, however, can positively affect the researcher’s mental health, productivity, and career satisfaction.