Digital Commons Network^™

Delayed Umbilical Cord Clamping: A State Of The Science, Landynn E. Ouellette

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

The purpose of this paper is to explore the state of the science related to delayed versus early umbilical cord clamping. This interprofessional change in practice and protocol needs to take place within obstetric practice, which can be made up of obstetricians, midwives, nurse practitioners, and nurses. Patients must be educated by their providers so that they can better understand the care being performed. A search of the literature published through PubMed was conducted using the key phrases delayed umbilical cord clamping (DUCC), benefits of delayed cord clamping, and umbilical cord protocols. The search yielded 133 titles, which was limited …

Using Community Health Workers In Collaboration With Nurse Case Managers In Effecting Change In Quality Of Life For Heart Failure Patients, Patra Hull Reed

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Final Clinical Projects, 2016-2019

This project was designed to evaluate the effectiveness in improving the quality of life among heart failure patients with the addition of the role of Community Health Worker (CHW) to a current continuum case management model. The study also addressed the increased need for more appropriate and cost-effective chronic care management for heart failure patients. Hospitals and healthcare systems are being challenged to find innovative ways to decrease readmissions, decrease unnecessary emergency room visits, increase patient adherence, and manage chronic disease, all improving the patient’s overall quality of life. Studies show that approximately 76% of heart failure patients have a …

Procedural Sedation: Policy, Practice & Knowledge, Jennifer A. Martin

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Final Clinical Projects, 2016-2019

Diagnostic and invasive procedures performed outside of the operating room with nurse- administered procedural sedation are increasing. As procedural sedation practice national guidelines are evolving, there are inconsistent state regulations and a great deal of variability in staff training. These challenges lead to potential knowledge gaps and practice variation that create unsafe patient environments. A local hospital has continued to experience near miss events when procedural sedation is administered. In an attempt to investigate this issue and create improved practice, an organizational policy analysis was conducted. The aims of this project were to: 1) analyze current hospital policy content compared …

Shared Decision Making For The Appropriate Use Of Antibiotics For Respiratory Tract Infections, Kristina Blyer

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Final Clinical Projects, 2016-2019

Objective- Determine the effectiveness of shared decision making to 1) increase decisional comfort with the appropriate use of antibiotics for respiratory tract infections and 2) maintain antibiotic prescribing rates at current levels.

Participants- English speaking college students age 18 and over diagnosed with a respiratory tract infection in the general medical clinic of a university health center from August 31, 2015-May 6, 2016.

Methods- Pre- and post-intervention surveys used to measure decisional conflict of students. Intervention included staff training in shared decision making and the use of a decision aid in clinical practice.

Results- Students who received routine care …

Implementing Post-Hospital Interprofessional Care Team Visits To Improve Transitions Of Care And Decrease Hospital Readmission Rates, Stacy M. Baldwin

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Final Clinical Projects, 2016-2019

Background: Today’s healthcare climate is comprised of a population of patients who are more complex, presenting with multiple comorbidities, and requiring frequent hospitalizations. It is imperative for acute care and primary care landscapes to bridge silos and form collaborative relationships to ensure safe and effective transitions of care from hospital to home. An interprofessional, post hospital follow-up clinic is one approach that can be utilized to improve transitions of care and decrease preventable hospital readmissions.

Purpose: The purpose of the project's discharge clinic was to improve transitions of care and decrease thirty day hospital readmission rates. The primary objective of …

Segregation Or Integration: Exploring The Interprofessional Collaboration Of The Sexual Assault Response Team-A Pilot Study, Phyllis E. Adams

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Final Clinical Projects, 2016-2019

The Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) has been functioning since the early 1970’s with little research on the dynamics of the members’ interprofessional collaboration practice. A current gap in the literature is research specific to the assimilation of the disciplines within the SART and the collaborative practice of the SART. The purpose of this project study is to clarify the 12 subscales of Interprofessional Collaborative Practice (motivation, role expectations, personality style, professional power, group leadership, communication, coping, social support, organizational culture, organizational aims, organizational domain, and organizational environment) and explore how each profession perceives these subscales. The sample participants were …

A Systematic Review Of Complimentary Therapies To Treat Symptoms Of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder In The Aftermath Of Domestic Abuse, Jordan A. Meeks, Saida Byrami

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Objectives: Explore the impact of intimate partner violence (IPV) on the health of female survivors. Identify complementary therapies that alleviate symptoms of psychological health impacts of IPV on women’s health.

Method: An exhaustive search of published, peer reviewed literature on complementary therapies and IPV was conducted. Databases included PubMed and CINAHL. Each article reviewed was published between the years of 2002 and 2016. The initial search produced 112 articles, abstracts of all studies were reviewed and studies were included if they addressed; a) complementary and alternative therapies, b) post-traumatic stress disorder, anxiety, and depression and, c) the impact of IPV …

Improving Provider Compliance Of The Naepp 2007 Asthma Guidelines Through The Electronic Health Record (Ehr) In A Pediatric Primary Care Practice, Tiffany L. Kidd

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Final Clinical Projects, 2016-2019

The Expert Panel Report -3 (EPR3) NAEPP 2007 evidence-based clinical asthma guidelines were developed to provide evidence-based high-quality patient care that leads to improved outcomes. A literature review showed that healthcare providers do not routinely follow the asthma guidelines. The purpose of this project was to develop and implement an evidence-based asthma electronic health record (EHR) template in a pediatric office to improve provider compliance to the guidelines resulting in improved outcomes for children with asthma. The study was conducted over a period of four months from January - April 2016. An EHR asthma protocol template and training for providers …

Examining The Implementation Of The Patient-Centered Recovery Model In Psychiatric Nursing, Nicole K. Rossi

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

The Recovery Care Model is the recommended evidence-based model for delivering holistic, patient-centered care for mental health clients. The model is a more therapeutic approach than the traditional medical model and upholds the ideas that psychiatric clients are more than just their illness, should be respected as unique individuals, and provided with hope and empowerment in their care while being given the opportunity for informed and autonomous decision-making. Although research has shown support for the Recovery Care Model, its implementation has not been fully accomplished in all psychiatric facilities. Of all of the members of the health care team, nurses …

The Effect Of Simulations On Nursing Students’ Ethical Reasoning Confidence In Disasters: A Pilot Study, Sara E. Greco

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

This study measured the effect of a disaster nursing simulation and debriefing session on senior BSN students’ perceived ethical reasoning confidence and their belief in the importance of ethical reasoning. Using a quasi-experimental design, this study compared participants’ responses before and after the interventional activities using the Survey of Ethical Reasoning. Post-test results demonstrated an increase in students’ perceived ethical reasoning confidence, perceived importance of ethical reasoning, and utilization of James Madison University’s Eight Key Questions Ethical Reasoning Framework.

Adolescent Grief: The Nurse's Role In Promoting Healthy Coping Mechanisms And Preventing Future Hospitalizations, Erica C. Reighard

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Age and developmental stage directly influence the grieving individual's ability to understand and process death. Adolescents are especially vulnerable to developing negative coping skills such as substance abuse, self-destructive behaviors, and eating disorders. After a loss occurs, nurses can use their role as a caregiver who is neither a parent nor a peer to provide adolescents with an opportunity to express their grief. Nurses can educate grieving adolescents on the differences between positive and negative coping skills and can therefore reduce the number of future hospitalizations related to ineffective coping mechanisms.

Investigating The Use Of Chloroquine As Antineoplastic Therapy, Catherine E. Herron, Alexandra E. Mason

Senior Honors Projects, 2010-2019

Chloroquine (CQ) is an oral lysosomotropic agent routinely used as an anti-malarial drug (Espina & Liotta, 2013). In recent years, it has been discovered that CQ also possesses anticancer effects, potentially due to the drug’s inhibition of autophagy (Kimura, Takabatake, Takahashi, & Isaka, 2012). Autophagy is a normal cellular pathway that allows for the degradation of cytoplasmic contents. In cancer cells autophagy can also serve as a pro-survival pathway under stressful metabolic conditions, ultimately promoting the survival of malignant cells (Sui et al., 2013). Therefore, in recent years CQ has been speculated as a potential antineoplastic therapy. When administered in …