Date of Award

Summer 2026

Document Type

Project – Full Written

Degree Name

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Committee Chair

Abby Garlock

Abstract

African Americans continue to experience high rates of opioid mortality, emphasizing the need for culturally relevant community education and overdose prevention strategies. The purpose of this Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) quality improvement project was to implement and evaluate community-based opioid overdose prevention education designed for individuals with substance use disorder, family and friends, and community members. Guided by Betty Neuman’s Model, the education focuses on recognizing opioid overdoses, administering naloxone when indicated, and identifying community treatment and recovery resources. A pre- and post-test design was used to evaluate changes in participants' knowledge and confidence following a structured educational session. It was anticipated that participants would demonstrate improved knowledge across all measured outcomes following the education intervention. The results were both increased knowledge and confidence in overdose prevention strategies.

This project supported the role of community-based education as an evidence-based strategy to enhance overdose preparedness, increase access to life-saving intervention, and reduce health disparities among African American communities. The findings may support future public health programs and nursing practices aimed at improving opioid overdose prevention through education and community engagement.

Creative Commons License

Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-Noncommercial 4.0 License

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