5 credits
The focus of this course is to integrate and extend the Doctor of Nursing Practice student's skills and knowledge of research methods to read, interpret and evaluate research studies. Essential topics will include overview of research concepts and the research process; quantitative, qualitative, and mixed methods research methods and designs, including data collection, data analysis and interpretation techniques; ethical issues in research; and utilizing research findings to guide practice. Basic statistics will be reviewed, including the appropriate use of various statistics, underlying assumptions of the procedures, and the interpretation of results generated from statistical software. An analysis of how research designs and methods support the research process for the translation of evidence into clinical practice will also be examined.