Perceptions of the effectiveness of Advanced Practice Nurses on a neurosurgery unit in a Canadian Tertiary Care Centre: A pre-and-post implementation design

OBJECTIVES: A framework for the advanced practice nurse (APN) role was developed in our Canadian Tertiary Care Centre, delineating five domains of advanced nursing practice: clinical practice, consultation, research, education and leadership. The goal of this study was to evaluate perceptions of the effectiveness of the implementation of an innovative APN role on an in-patient Neurosurgery unit. METHODS: A pre-and-post implementation design, incorporating both qualitative and quantitative data, was utilized. An innovative APN role was implemented within the Neurosurgery program focusing on the clinical domain and required the successful candidates to be NP prepared. This APN role was designed to improve patient flow, documentation, communication and patient and staff satisfaction. Three primary outcomes were measured: pre-implementation questionnaire (nurses), post-implementation questionnaire (nurses and residents) and number of pages to the on-call resident. RESULTS: Survey scores by nurses and residents indicated improvement across all aspects studied. Average scores increased from 1.1 to 2.6, reflecting an overall statistically significant increase. The number of pages to the on-call resident also showed a decrease. CONCLUSION: Perceptions of patient care delivery and professional collaboration improved following implementation of the APN role. Responses indicated that APNs significantly impacted patient care and improved nurses and residents' job satisfaction.