Featured
Tags
Share
- Home / Blog / Campus News / DNP Student Wins Funding from the Texas Nurses Association
DNP Student Wins Funding from the Texas Nurses Association

Tonye P. Cox-Miller, DNP, MSN, MBA, RN was recently awarded a research grant from the Texas Nurses Association to support her clinical practicum project in the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree program at Chamberlain.
Dr. Cox-Miller, herself a faculty member at Chamberlain’s Houston campus, had developed a relationship with the nursing leadership at a nearby physician-owned hospital, where her students participated in clinicals. She connected with the chief nursing officer, who became her preceptor for the clinical practicum.
Together, they analyzed patient satisfaction scores and found a significant need in the area of communication. Upon further evaluation, Dr. Cox-Miller focused on hourly rounding as an area for a quality improvement project. Hourly rounding focuses on the Four P’s:
- Pain: Ensure the patient’s pain is managed appropriately.
- Position: Turn the patient if they’re not able to turn themselves, to help them avoid skin breakdowns.
- Potty: Provide restroom assistance.
- Possessions: Confirm that everything is within reach of the patient before leaving the room - like their water, phone, glasses or dentures.
“Most of the falls that occur in the hospital setting are from patients getting up, trying to go to the bathroom or retrieve a possession,” she said. “If you have hourly rounding, someone should be going in the patient’s room every hour and addressing all four P’s.”
The funding she received from the Texas Nurses Association was used to support her project, which revamped the protocol for hourly rounding and included equipment for hanging the new protocol in each patient’s room. The project was deemed to have made a positive impact, as reflected by improved patient satisfaction scores.
“We did see significant increases in the domains that are measured in patient success – especially those that are heavily impacted by nursing,” she said.
Learn more about the Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree program at Chamberlain.
By Molly Mattison
More from Campus News
Request More Information
To receive the Chamberlain University Program Guide, including associated career paths, please select a program of study.