¶ … DNP degree was recognized by the American Association of Colleges of Nursing as representing the highest level of preparation for clinical nursing practice in 2004 and the first doctor of nursing practice (DNP) program was offered in 2001 by the University of Kentucky (Moore, 2014). In contrast to doctoral of philosophy (Phd) nursing program which is research-oriented, DNP programs are regarded as terminal degrees for teaching (Moore, 2014). Nevertheless, DNPs are also required to perform basic research for a wide range of applications with a view towards improving clinical practice (Moore, 2014). Researching a topic of interest has become far easier than it was in 1957 when the famous German scientist Wernher von Braun explained that, "Basic research is what I am doing when I don't know what I am doing." Today, doctors of nurse practice (DNP) enjoy a veritable cornucopia of academic, professional and scholarly research resources, but the need for conducting basic research in nursing practice has remained essentially unchanged since the mid-19th century when Florence Nightingale pioneered the use of research in nursing practice (Moore, 2014). The basic research required for any type of writing assignment requires critical analysis skills to identify salient information and the ability to interpret the findings that emerge in a meaningful way (Moore, 2014).

The analysis and writing process that follows basic research can be especially challenging, however, because of the same abundance of research riches and performing research today has been likened to drinking from a fire hose. The basic research process used by DNPs also draws on a professor. This assistance also served to reinforce the need for disseminating the results of research in order to further contribute to the existing body of nursing practice knowledge.
Because many DNPs have a professional responsibility to also serve as nursing leaders and educators, this mentoring role also extends to helping other nurses learn how to perform actual research in an effective and efficient fashion and when to secure institutional review board approval if human subjects are involved. To this end, my participation in the Collaborative IRB Training Initiative (CITI) provided me with the background I need to ensure the adequate protection of human subjects involved in research projects (Fayer & Zalud, 2011). One of the most important issues that I learned through the completion of the CITI was the tendency for researchers, irrespective of the true probability of harm, to overestimate the potential for harm for human subjects when potential harms are severe and underestimate the probability of potential harms (such as embarrassment) when these potential harms are regarded as less severe (Vanvactor, 2007).

In addition, the completion of the CITI training materials also provided me with up-to-date guidance concerning the responsible conduct of research, professional conflicts of interest and good clinical…