22: ADVISING DOCTOR OF NURSING PRACTICE “CLINICIANS” ■ 491are needed to our intradisciplinary and interdisciplinary colleagues in academia and
practice who may be confused about the new practice doctorate in nursing? One way
is to differentiate the DNP from the PhD is by the types of “gold- standard” federally
funded grants that PhDs and DNPs could strive to achieve as principal investigators.
A quick differentiation that seems to resonate with many is that PhDs should strive
for writing research grants that hopefully could be funded, one day, by the National
Institutes of Health (NIH). In contrast, DNPs should strive for writing program grants
that could be funded, one day, by the Health Resources and Service Administration
(HRSA). This distinction seems to resonate well when used.
Writing program grants to implement evidence- based programs, which are aimed
to improve health outcomes is logical for practice- based DNP scholars. Writing a pro-
gram grant such as a HRSA grant is different from writing a research grant. DNP stu-
dents should seek insight into developing this skill during their doctoral journey. Seek
faculty who understand this, for few PhD and DNP nursing faculty have been schooled
in such. But, some have been extremely successful, such as those who write program
grants for nurse- managed centers and other specialized funded health service programs.
An example can be found in the article that describes a funded breast health services
program in two nurse- managed centers (Tsai, Peterman, Baisch, Ji, & Zwiers, 2014).
Dissemination and Implementation Science
Roles exist for DNP and PhD scholars in the evolving transdisciplinary field of dissem-
ination and implementation science. The discipline of nursing has much to contrib-
ute to advance broader and deeper understandings of this science (Bloch, Clark, &
Faust, 2016). This is a ripe frontier for innovative nursing opportunities. The NIH and
Academy Health jointly sponsor an annual conference on dissemination and imple-
mentation science. The focus of the conference is relevant to nursing science, prac-
tice, and policy. This is evident by reviewing the topics that were listed in the call
for abstracts for the Eighth Annual Conference on the Science of Dissemination and
Implementation in Health (see Table 22.1 ; http://diconference.academyhealth.org/
callforabstracts/ aof ). From this list, it is evident that there is much overlap with nurs-
ing science and practice. Dissemination and implementation science incorporates key
principles of methods related to quality improvement, community- based participatory
research, evidence- based practice, and health program planning and evaluation. More
about all these practice- based scholarly methods, not traditionally taught in nursing
research courses, can be found in Bloch, Courtland, and Clark’s (2016) textbook. More
focus on these nontraditional research methods are needed. For example, APRNs who
focus their practice in community settings versus hospitals, need to learn more about
conducting community needs assessments, which are often required for submitting
program planning grants. Also, logic models are also often required. Many DNP docu-
ments mention quality improvement methods (AACN, 2015), but additional methods
are also critically needed in DNP education.
■ SUMMARY: EMBARKING ON PRACTICE DOCTORAL STUDIES—
ADVICE FOR YOUR FUTURE ROLES
As a 35- year veteran NP who embarked on returning to academia for advanced nurs-
ing degrees in 1981 (MSN) and 1997 (PhD), I offer some advice. Keep an open mind
and take the educational opportunity to learn about ways in which your contribution