| Course | NU298 Capstone |
|---|---|
| Unit | Unit 1 |
| Paper type | Capstone topic proposal |
| Length | About 540 words, 4 pages double-spaced |
| Format | APA 7 student paper |
| School | Purdue University Global |
| Program | BSN (prelicensure) |
| Updated | October 2026 |
Free sample paper for NU298 Unit 1
Fourteen Hours Without Water for a Test at Two in the Afternoon: A Capstone Topic Proposal Putting Forward Unnecessary Fasting Orders on a Composite Medical Unit as the Practice Problem, With Three Reasons It Is Worth Solving
[Student Name]
Purdue University Global
NU298: Capstone
Unit 1 Topic Proposal
[Instructor Name]
[Date]
The unit, patients and counts are composite and bracketed; the proposal is a student capstone plan, and any change to fasting orders requires the provider, anesthesia and unit leadership.
What I Saw
During a [Tuesday] day shift on the composite medical unit where I am placed, [five] of my unit's patients had "NPO after midnight" orders for procedures: two endoscopies, an ultrasound, a cardiac stress test and a CT scan with contrast. None of the procedures was scheduled before [1100]. One, an older woman's endoscopy, was canceled at [1500] after she had gone without food or water for about fourteen hours; she had a headache and her blood pressure was low when she stood. The nurses I asked said "NPO after midnight" is simply how orders come.
The Problem in One Sentence
Hospitalized patients on our medical unit are routinely kept nothing by mouth from midnight for procedures scheduled much later, or not performed at all, causing fasting far longer than evidence requires.
Three Reasons It Is Worth Solving
Safety and comfort. Long fasting causes thirst, hunger, headache, low blood pressure and distress, and older and diabetic patients are at particular risk. A scoping review found that being nil by mouth causes psychological distress for patients and their families (Hepper et al., 2024). Feasibility. The evidence on fasting is mature: national anesthesia guidance allows clear liquids until about two hours before most procedures with sedation, and older review evidence found no increase in aspiration with shorter fluid fasts (Brady et al., 2003). A change does not need new equipment, only new order habits and timing. Nursing ownership. Nurses see the trays held, the water jugs removed and the procedure times change. They are the ones who could call to confirm times and offer clear liquids when the order allows. A study of medical inpatients found that about one in four fasting orders could have been avoided and nearly half of missed meals were unnecessary (Sorita et al., 2015).
A rule written for operating rooms at 0700 had become the rule for a medical unit whose tests happen at 1400.
Why a Capstone and Not a Complaint
It would be easy to treat this as an annoyance and move on. Turning it into a capstone means measuring it, reading what is known, proposing a change that fits the unit and naming how the change would be judged. The problem has the right shape for that: it is common, it can be counted from records and its solution sits partly within nursing practice.
What Stays Out
This proposal does not cover surgical patients going to the operating room, children, patients with swallowing problems or patients fasting for medical reasons such as bowel rest. Those groups have different rules and risks.
Four Sources to Begin
I will begin with the hospital fasting studies, the national guideline, the review of shorter fluid fasts and the nil-by-mouth scoping review, then search for implementation studies.
References
Brady, M. C., Kinn, S., Stuart, P., & Ness, V. (2003). Preoperative fasting for adults to prevent perioperative complications. Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, 2003(4), Article CD004423. https://doi.org/10.1002/14651858.CD004423
Hepper, E. C., Wilson, J., Drinnan, M., & Patterson, J. M. (2024). Psychosocial impacts of being nil-by-mouth as an adult: A scoping review. Journal of Advanced Nursing, 80(9), 3499-3515. https://doi.org/10.1111/jan.16100
Sorita, A., Thongprayoon, C., Ahmed, A., Bates, R. E., Ratelle, J. T., Rieck, K. M., Devalapalli, A. P., Issa, M., Shah, R. M., Lalama, M. A., Wang, Z., Murad, M. H., & Kashiwagi, D. T. (2015). Frequency and appropriateness of fasting orders in the hospital. Mayo Clinic Proceedings, 90(9), 1225-1232. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.mayocp.2015.07.013
What the NU298 Unit 1 assignment asks for
Unit 1 of the capstone usually asks students to propose a practice problem from their clinical experience for the project that runs through the course. Prompts commonly want the problem described, a one-sentence statement, reasons the problem matters, evidence that it is worth solving and feasible for a student project, and a statement of scope. Instructors look for a problem grounded in something the student observed, reasons supported by sources, a topic narrow enough to measure and clear boundaries. Many ask students to name a few starting sources. Proposals are typically one to two pages, with three or four sources cited in APA 7. The topic should sit at least partly within nursing practice.
How this NU298 Unit 1 example is built
The proposal opens with what the writer saw on a clinical day, including the canceled endoscopy. The problem is then stated in a single sentence. Three reasons follow, each with a source: a scoping review on the distress of being nil by mouth, a systematic review finding no added aspiration with shorter fluid fasts and a hospital study judging a quarter of fasting orders avoidable, with a margin note on sourcing. The highlighted sentence describes a rule written for operating rooms applied to afternoon tests. A section explains why the problem suits a capstone, with a margin note. Scope exclusions and four starting sources close the proposal.
NU298 Unit 1 rubric: what earns full points
Topic proposal rubrics in NU 298 tend to award points for a clearly defined problem, relevance to nursing practice, supporting evidence, feasibility, scope and writing. Definition points depend on a single, specific statement. Relevance points go to showing that nurses can act on the problem. Evidence points are earned by citing sources for each reason rather than asserting importance. Feasibility points reward a problem that can be measured from records within a semester. Scope points require naming what is excluded and why. Writing points cover clarity and APA format. Proposals grounded in something the student counted on a real shift, rather than a topic chosen from a list, tend to impress capstone faculty.
NU298 Unit 1 help: mistakes that cost points
Topic proposals often lose points by choosing problems too broad to measure, such as patient safety or nursing burnout. Another frequent weakness is listing reasons without evidence or picking a topic nurses cannot influence. Some students skip scope, which leaves the later project trying to cover everything. Others choose topics already heavily studied on their unit without a new angle. Start from something you observed and counted, state the problem in one sentence, give each reason a source, check that nurses can act on it, state what you will exclude and list the first sources you will read. Talk with your preceptor before committing to the topic.
Get an NU298 Unit 1 example written to your instructions
Pressure injuries, handoffs, alarm safety, pain reassessment, early mobility: capstone problems come from everywhere, and the strongest come from something seen firsthand. Describe that problem in general terms, include the Unit 1 prompt, the rubric, and a topic list if the instructor provides one, and the proposal argues its worth and sets its scope. First custom sample free, 24-48h. The paper above is an original model document written by our desk, not a submitted student paper and not an official Purdue University Global document.
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NU298 Unit 1 questions, answered
Where can I find a free NU298 Unit 1 sample paper?
The complete NU298 Unit 1 topic proposal is on this page, putting forward unnecessary fasting orders on a composite medical unit with a problem statement, three sourced reasons, scope and three sources. If your topic is different, we can help you shape the proposal around it.
How do I choose a capstone topic in NU298 Unit 1?
Start from a problem you observed on a clinical unit, check that it can be measured and that nurses can influence it, and confirm there is evidence to build on.
Why are fasting orders a nursing problem?
Nurses hold trays and water, see procedure times change and can confirm times and offer clear liquids when the order allows.
What does NPO after midnight mean?
An order to take nothing by mouth from midnight, often written by habit even when a procedure is scheduled much later in the day.
How long should a topic proposal be?
Usually one to two pages, with the problem in one sentence, reasons with sources, scope and a few starting references.