Date of Award

2023

Document Type

Restricted Access Thesis

Degree Name

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Department

Nursing

First Advisor

Joyce P. Miller DNP, RN

Second Advisor

Deborah Schuhmacher, DNP, RN

Third Advisor

Christie Nader, MS in MIT

Abstract

LGBTQ+ persons comprise approximately 5% of the United States population. This number is estimated and most likely under-reported. The LGBTQ+ community faces discrimination and stigmatization in every facet of their lives, which, unfortunately, does not stop at the door to the health care system. The discrimination and stigmatization the LGBTQ+ community faces leads to decreased health equity and poorer social determinants of health. It has been noted that health care allyship is one way to mitigate these issues. This practice improvement project focused on teaching allyship skills to health care employees to create safe and welcoming spaces for LGBTQ+ community members. Using various andragogy teaching methods, five one-hour classes were held in a hybrid format for employees at a large urban teaching hospital in New Jersey. A Likert questionnaire was given before and immediately following the classes, which measured basic knowledge of the LGBTQ+ community, their history, and comfort level with various allyship skills; the last question identified the participant’s self-efficacy in providing allyship to members of the LGBTQ+ community. Utilizing Watson’s Unitary Caring Science theory as the scientific underpinning, various concepts explored within the classes include intersectionality, social justice constructs, the historical significance of discrimination and stigmatization of the LGBTQ+ community, and transpersonal caring. The post-class Likert questionnaire revealed an increase in all areas queried. Future plans for this project include offering this course to more employees and eventually expanding it to the entire health care system.

Identifier

SC 11.DNP.2023.Yue.KD

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