Staff Education to Clinical Staff within an Outpatient Psychiatric Practice

This Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) project was a quality improvement staff educational project designed to address inconsistent knowledge and use of the Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 (GAD-7) screening tool among clinical staff in an outpatient psychiatric practice.The practice problem involved a lack of a structured, standardized training of the GAD-7, resulting in variability in administration, scoring, interpretation, and documentation.The purpose of the project was to evaluate whether standardized staff education on the correct use of the GAD-7 screening tool would improve staff knowledge and confidence.The practice-focused question was as follows: Will staff education on the correct use of the GAD-7 screening tool increase the knowledge of clinical staff in its use within an outpatient psychiatric practice?Microsoft Excel and SPSS analyzed descriptive statistics and paired pre-and postintervention scores.Knowledge was measured using a nine-item multiple-choice test, and confidence was assessed using a Likert-scale survey.Results demonstrated improved staff knowledge, with mean scores increasing from 5.75 preintervention to 9.0 postintervention, and all participants achieved posttest scores of 9.0 or higher.Confidence improved with all participants reporting strongly agree confidence levels following the intervention.Major project products included standardized educational materials, a structured training session, and validated evaluation tools.The project concluded a brief, structured staff education intervention improved knowledge, improved confidence and supported standardized use of the GAD-7.Implications for nursing practice include enhanced accuracy of anxiety screening, improved documentation, reduced variability in care delivery, and strengthened nursing leadership in quality improvement.Structured, standardized training of staff on the GAD-7 will provide a positive social change in patients with GAD.