Digital Commons Network^™

Recovery From Mental Illness – The Experiential Perspective, Jean Laforge

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to explore what recovery means to people who have had personal experiences with mental illness. A qualitative design using exploratory and descriptive approaches was used. Two focus groups consisting of seventeen participants were asked questions about their recovery process. The data were categorized and themes emerged from the analysis. This thesis will discuss the four themes that emerged: recovery means stability and growth in a meaningful way; recovery includes a process of self-actualization supported by both natural and professional supports; barriers to recovery; and, facing barriers using steps towards recovery. The findings elaborate on …

Experiences Of Treatment And Sexuality For Women With Cervical Cancer, Maureen Reynolds

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

What is the experience of cancer treatment and sexuality after treatment for women with cervical cancer? Although the number of women with cervical cancer is low in North America, the potential for sexually devastating treatment side effects is high.

Eleven women, aged 33 to 71, were interviewed from April to August 2008 using a qualitative research design intended to capture their subjective experience. All women had received treatment from 2003 to 2008 at a small cancer centre in Ontario.

Most women felt an ongoing loss of sexual pleasure and desire, and several experienced continuing pain and discomfort during intercourse. Although …

Verbal Estimation Of Peak Dynamic Hand Forces In Experienced And Novice Manual Material Handlers, Amber Phillips

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study examined participants' verbally estimated peak dynamic hand forces compared to actual hand forces during various pushing and pulling tasks. Effects of manual material handling (MMH) experience and feedback training on hand force self-reporting were studied. Verbally estimated hand forces were similar across all four groups, despite different amounts of feedback training received and MMH experience. Participants were more accurate verbally estimating pushes than pulls for two-handed tasks, and at low force level for one and two-handed tasks (mean errors =10.2 % MVC and 9.4 % MVC). Verbal estimation differences existed between high and medium forces for two-handed tasks, …

The Great Bear Media Battle: How The Forest Was Finally Won, Gemma Richardson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis explores the struggle for environmental protection in the Great Bear Rainforest in British Columbia and how this decade-long battle was covered in the media. It also seeks to add to the discussion on how social movements can utilize the power of the mass media. First, literature on social movements and the media is reviewed within the contextual framework of political economy, as well as literature on Greenpeace and its media tactics, a key actor in the forest battle. A critical discourse analysis was then carried out on a sample of articles from the 'Globe and Mail' and the …

Impact Of Mentoring On Job Satisfaction And Retention, Kristy Bialkowski

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: To evaluate a mentoring program by examining the impact of length of orientation on job satisfaction, organizational commitment, and propensity to leave.

Significance: For the first time in Canada, the Vermont Nurse Internship Project was being implemented in an acute care hospital. A mentoring program with the ability to increase retention and decrease cost was worth examining.

Methods: A survey methodology was utilized to collect data from 27 newly hired nurses after being employed for 9 months.

Results: Significant correlations were found between the following variables; organizational commitment and propensity to leave, organizational commitment and …

Experiences Of Mennonite Immigrant Women Accessing And Receiving Services In The Mental Health Care System In Essex County, Diane Quadros

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Although the success rate for treating mental illness is high, relatively few people, especially immigrants, seek help. Therefore, the purpose of this study was to gain an understanding of the experiences of six Mennonite immigrant women who have received services in the mental health care system in order better understand and improve upon this populations' access to services.

A qualitative methodological approach was used to study this topic in depth. Findings offer insight about how internal and external barriers such as lack of knowledge about mental illness; experiences of judgement and lack of support from the Mennonite community; language barriers; …

Chemical Exposure Dynamics Of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (Pcbs) And Organochlorine Pesticides (Ocs) In Green Frog (Rana Clamitans ) And Bullfrog (Rana Catesbeiana) Tadpoles, Kimberley Mccormack

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Studies were conducted to determine the effects of different environments and temperatures on chemical exposure dynamics in tadpoles. In the first study, green frog tadpoles (Rana clamitans) were dosed with Performance Reference Compound polychlorinated biphenyls (PRC PCBs) and placed into agricultural, municipal and reference watersheds near Windsor, Ontario, Canada. PRC PCBs were eliminated significantly faster than in previous laboratory studies, with elimination rate coefficients between 0.200 and 1.295 day-1. Tadpoles reached steady state within 23 days and tracked differences in chemical bioavailability among sites.

The elimination of PRC PCBs and DDT were evaluated in green frog and bullfrog …

Analysis Of Scheduling In A Diagnostic Imaging Department: A Simulation Study, Brendan Eagen

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

In this thesis we present an Agent-Based Modelling Tool (ABMT) for use in the investigation of the impact that operational level changes have on diagnostic imaging scheduling and patient wait times. This tool represents a novel application of agent-based modelling in the outpatient scheduling/simulation fields. The ABMT is a decision support tool with a user friendly graphical user interface that is capable of modelling a wide array of outpatient scheduling scenarios. The tool was verified and validated using data and expertise from Hotel Dieu Grace Hospital, Windsor, Ontario, Canada. The ABMT represents a technological advancement in the modelling of multi-server, …

A Model Of Sporadic Parkinson's Disease: Herbicide Induced Parkinson's Disease In Rat And Neuroprotection By Water Soluble Coq10, Mallika Somayajulu

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Parkinson's disease is caused due to the progressive loss of dopaminergic neurons in the brain. Less than 10% of cases have a strict familial etiology while more than 90% are sporadic. The mechanisms underlying neuronal cell death in Parkinson's disease have not been fully elucidated. Furthermore, there is currently no therapy available to prevent the progressive loss of neurons in Parkinson's disease. The objective of my research was to establish a sporadic model of Parkinson's disease and evaluate the neuroprotective effects of water soluble Coenzyme Q10. In this study, a model of paraquat-induced neurodegeneration in rats was used to evaluate …