Advancing the Rigor of DNP Projects for Practice Excellence

Over a decade has passed since the Institute of Medicine1 first called for a restructuring of how health care professionals are educated. Since then significant changes have occurred, including the creation of the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree focused on scholarly practice rather than research. In the context of an increasingly complex health care system and declining health outcomes in the United States, DNP graduates are prepared to practice at the most advanced level of nursing by synthesizing, translating, and applying the most sophisticated evidence into clinical practice. The attributes of the DNP-prepared nurses could not be more important as executive leaders contend with the demand for value-based health care. There is a critical need for leaders to be grounded in innovation science in order to meet the challenges of sustainable redesign.