Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Reducing Postpartum Maternal Falls: A Quality Improvement Project, Sarah L. Iroz

Master's Projects and Capstones

Falls are an unfortunate, common occurrence in the healthcare system and are often not thought to be a problem in the obstetrics population. Key stakeholders in a Northern California hospital brought the issue of maternal falls to leaders of the quality improvement team on the maternity unit. In the last three years, there have been 23 falls on the maternity floor, making their fall rate above the national average. It is the purpose of this project to aid the quality improvement team in reducing postpartum maternal falls over the next three years. After conducting a unit assessment, performing a literature …

Preventing Maternal Falls, Blair Burkhart

Master's Projects and Capstones

Patient falls are unfortunate events in healthcare that are an essential quality improvement focus during patients’ hospital stays. At Hospital X, a private institution located in the suburbs of a large city, there had been 23 maternal falls within the last three years. This increase in maternal fall rate puts this hospital’s maternity unit above the average of other hospital’s fall rates according to the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators. This quality improvement project aimed to reduce the rate of maternal falls on postpartum units through various forms of staff education. Education included Morse Fall Scale scoring, Sara Stedy …

Hapi Prevention Bundle: An Initiative To Prevent Hospital-Acquired Pressure Injuries, Karla D. Penilla Lozano

Master's Projects and Capstones

Problem: Hospital-Acquired Pressure Injuries (HAPI) are a serious health problem as they increase patient morbidity and mortality. They are detrimental to patients, families, and healthcare systems. Context: Research supports HAPI prevention bundles are a way to standardize care processes and reduce the incidence of pressure injuries. This evidence-based practice intervention was initiated to develop a HAPI prevention bundle in an adult Medical-Surgical Telemetry unit. A literature review was conducted to identify the best HAPI prevention practices. Intervention: The evidence-based pressure injury preventive bundle includes interventions consistent with proper skin assessments and documentation, patient risk identification, development of Wound Care Champions, …

The Role Of Pre-Participation Exams In Identifying Student Athletes At Risk For Sudden Cardiac Arrest, Elizabeth Frey

Honors Projects

Sudden cardiac arrest (SCA) is the leading cause of death in young student athletes (Drezner et al., 2007). With athletes being recognized as some of the healthiest members of society, a catastrophic event like this can stimulate debate over pre-participation screening and appropriate emergency actions. With 55-80% cases of sudden cardiac death (SCD) being asymptomatic before the event (Drezner et al., 2007), looking into how well pre-participation screenings identify at risk individuals becomes much more important. This project investigates to what extent pre-participation physicals (PPE) can be improved to better identify student athletes at risk for sudden cardiac death and …

Incorporation Of An Occupational Therapist In The Prevention Through Active Community Engagement (Pace) Program, Chelsea R. Lincoln

Department of Occupational Therapy Entry-Level Capstone Projects

No abstract provided.

Understanding Colorectal Cancer: Increasing Screening Rates Amongst Young- And Middle-Aged Adults By Enhancing Prevention Potential, Sarah Agudelo

Nursing | Senior Theses

As nurses, working towards the best health outcomes for our patients is critical to our care. A large aspect of this care includes being knowledgeable of risk factors and precautions to take to avoid conditions and illnesses. Colorectal cancer remains to be a highly preventable disease, yet it is one of the top five leading causes of cancer deaths in the nation. Preventing colorectal cancer requires the efficient use of screening and education, while also addressing barriers of inconvenience and affordability. This senior thesis delves deeper into colorectal cancer prevention by asking the research question: For young and middle-aged adults, …

What Treatment And Prevention Options Are The Most Effective For Elbow, Knee, And Plantar Tendinopathies?, Cody Lawson

Theses and Graduate Projects

Objective: Tendinopathies of the upper and lower extremity are one of the most common injuries in athletes and non-athletes in the United States. This literature review aimed to determine the most effective preventions and treatments for patients with tendinopathies.

Methods: A literature search was conducted primarily through Google Scholar and PubMed, for articles related to effective preventions and treatments for tendinopathies.

Discussion: Based on the literature review, there were multiple effective treatments and preventative measures for tendinopathies in the upper and lower extremity. The most effective preventative measures consisted of risk factors, dynamic warmups, and prevention programs. Treatments were broken …

Improving Mammography Rates Among The Hispanic Population: An Evidence-Based Project Utilizing A Promotora Intervention, Dawn Mirowski

Student Scholarly Projects

Practice Problem: Breast cancer is the leading cause of death in Hispanic women in the U.S., with mammography being the most effective means of reducing breast cancer mortality. Promotoras have been shown to improve health promotion, including mammography, among the Hispanic population.

PICOT: The PICOT question that guided this project was: In Hispanic women 40 years or older (P), how does the use of a promotora intervention (I), compared to no promotora intervention (C), affect mammography rates (O) within an 8-week period (T)?

Evidence: Twenty-one studies that met the inclusion criteria supported the use of promotoras to improve mammography …

The Problem Of Operational Stress Injuries In An Ontario Fire & Rescue Organization, Megan Edgelow

The Dissertation in Practice at Western University

The purpose of this Organizational Improvement Plan (OIP) is to assist public safety leaders in understanding the human and financial costs of operational stress injuries (OSIs) and possible solutions to this issue. OSIs, including posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), are a growing problem for public safety organizations, requiring new and innovative solutions. This OIP is applied to a fire and rescue organization in a small urban centre in Ontario that faces similar OSI challenges to many other public safety organizations. The Problem of Practice (PoP) is a lack of implementation of effective practices to mitigate the impact of OSIs. The foundation …

The Impact Of An Evidence-Based Multi-Component Intervention On Colorectal Cancer Screening In Primary Care At A Healthcare System, Ahnnya Slaughter

Student Scholarly Projects

Practice Problem: Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death in the United States; many of the deaths are preventable with early detection. Adherence rates for colorectal cancer screening with fecal immunochemical test kits (FIT) was below the national benchmark at this facility.

PICOT: The PICOT question that guided this project was: Among veterans 50 – 75 years old requiring average risk colorectal cancer screening (CRCS) seen in primary care at a veterans affairs healthcare system facility (P), how does the use of a multi-component intervention (I), compared to the usual care (C), affect the number of …

Increasing Colorectal Cancer Screening Rates Through Education, Kayla Metz

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer deaths in the United States. Adenomatous polyps cause 90% of colorectal cancer. These polyps can be identified before they become cancerous through numerous colorectal cancer screenings. There are many ways to help cover the cost of screenings or to make them no cost to patients, but the number of individuals who have ever been screened or who are current with screening recommendations remains low. This DNP project aims to provide education to providers and individuals regarding the various type of colorectal cancer screening options. A reduction in fears and improved knowledge …

Increasing Referrals To School Counselors By Integrating An Evidence-Based Program For Educators Identifying Adolescents At Risk For Suicide In A Rural High School, Wendy Holloway

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Background: Addressing suicide in America's youth is imperative. Teachers play an essential role in identifying and intervening with adolescents experiencing psychological distress leading to suicide. Teachers and staff lack professional development addressing the identification of students in psychological distress.

Purpose: This project aimed to increase referrals to school counselors by integrating an evidence-based program for educators identifying adolescents at risk for suicide in a rural high school.

Design Method: This was a quantitative quality improvement project with a pre-/post-test design. Additionally, referrals to the school guidance counselors before implementing the program and after the completion of the program were …

Preventing Complications Of Undiagnosed Diabetic Peripheral Neuropathy In Rural Healthcare Settings, Kendra Ward Harris

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Background: Diabetic peripheral neuropathy (DPN) affects the lives of approximately 50% of all persons diagnosed with diabetes. Patients who are minorities, residents of rural communities, low income, or non-compliant with treatment, have a higher risk of developing DPN. The long-term effects interfere with the patient’s abilities to carry out activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs).

Patients incur debt from medical expenses, depression from the inability to perform self- care, and became withdrawn because of their distorted body image.

Purpose: The purpose of this project was to use the Michigan Neuropathy Screening Instrument (MNSI) …

Development Of An Ehealth Harm Reduction Resource To Address Opioid Use Among Youth In Rural Northern California, Carolyn Perrotti Lake

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Problem: Opioid use and misuse is a leading cause of injury and death among adolescents and young adults in the United States, with a three-fold increase in opioid overdoses since 2000 (Carney et al., 2018; Hudgins et al., 2019). Opioid misuse correlates with misuse of other substances, which exponentially increases health risks over time. The most effective treatment for opioid use disorder (OUD) among adolescence is through effective prevention interventions that either prevent the development of the OUD or enable timely diagnosis and treatment in order to prevent poor health outcomes.

Context: The use of eHealth technology, which has …

Preventing Central Line Associated Bloodstream Infections In An Adult Intensive Care Unit, Monica Shaw

Master's Projects and Capstones

Central line associated blood stream infections (CLABSI) are considered preventable healthcare acquired infections, and are associated with significantly increased morbidity, mortality, and length of hospital stay. The CLABSI rate in an inpatient unit is a meaningful metric in relation to the safety and quality of care in that microsystem. This quality improvement project examines the efficacy of a CLABSI prevention bundle in reducing CLABSI events and improving adherence to central line care policy within a medical surgical adult intensive care unit. The target areas the bundle aimed to improve were unit processes, awareness of CLABSI and central line policies, and …

It’S Their Lifeline: Preventing Central Line Associated Blood Stream Infection In An Adult Intensive Care Unit, Jacenda Lee Rangel

Master's Projects and Capstones

Problem description: Central line associated blood stream infection (CLABSI) is one of the deadliest types of hospital acquired infection and blood stream infection, raising patient mortality by 12-25% and accounting for 28,000 deaths annually in the United States. CLABSI also increases morbidity, length of stay, and costs hospitals an average of $48,000 per case. Effective measures for CLABSI prevention are needed for an adult intensive care unit (ICU) of an urban hospital to decrease the financial burden of CLABSI, improve quality of care, and prevent patient harm.

Setting: The microsystem of focus is a 36-bed high acuity ICU. Patients of …

Prevention Of Abusive Head Trauma Using An Educational Program For Parents/Caregivers, Camile Williams

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Abstract

Problem: The National Center on Shaken Baby Syndrome reports that 1,300 abusive head trauma (AHT) cases occur in the USA each year, a quarter of which are fatal. Injuries are caused by impact, shaking, or both and result in intracranial and spinal damage, retinal hemorrhages, fractures of the ribs and other bones. AHT case rates in the community involved in this project had a 22% increase of AHT from 2018 to 2019.

Context: A practice improvement project involved the implementation of an AHT educational program targeted at parents/caregiversreceiving care services at a children’s hospital pediatric well-child clinic located in …

Enhancing Public Health And School Nurse Knowledge Around Bullying And Mental Health Issues In The Pediatric Population, Holly Bartels

Nursing Capstones

Childhood bullying within schools and the community can leave lasting short- and long-term consequences that can extend into adulthood if not identified early on. Both the bullies and victims of bullies can be impacted both mentally and physically because of bullying. With the increase of technology and social media in schools, cyberbullying has also become a concern. A comprehensive electronic literature search was completed to understand if enhancing public health and school nurse knowledge around bullying and mental health issues would reduce the prevalence of adverse outcomes associated with childhood bullying. Results of the literary search found school and public …

Community Health Nursing In Ghana: Dental Hygiene, Alexis Llewellyn

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Dental hygiene is an important contributor to our overall health. Poor dental hygiene practices can lead to plaque buildup, cavities formation, tooth decay, and infection. Infection that began as a result of poor oral hygiene can spread to other parts of the body and cause more serious conditions to develop. Dental health is not a priority among Ghanaian residents and there is a need for updated, evidence based research about this topic. This literature review focuses on community health nursing in Ghana, Africa regarding dental hygiene of the pediatric population in this country. The primary focus is to compare the …

Effectiveness Of Diet/Exercise In Prevention Of Gestational Diabetes Mellitus And Associated Cesarean Section Delivery, Jonathyn Andrew Marx

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Papers

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) is becoming a more common diagnosis during pregnancy. GDM is defined as glucose intolerance diagnosed during pregnancy. Women diagnosed with GDM during pregnancy are at an increased risk for emergent or planned cesarean section delivery and the development of overt diabetes mellitus post pregnancy. Complications related to GDM include eclampsia, macrosomia, shoulder dystocia, stillbirth, and cesarean section delivery. Initial treatment consists of diet and exercise and if glucose can not be controlled then pharmacotherapy is introduced. A literature review was performed utilizing scientific databases, mesh terms, and keywords to gather statistically relevant research to analyze the …

Final Culminating Project: Program Development, Erin Helms

Department of Occupational Therapy Entry-Level Capstone Projects

This 16-week capstone project was completed at Parker Place, a children’s health, and wellness center, with a focus on program development and advocacy with additional work related to leadership and administration. The overall goal of the capstone project was to determine the benefit of using an occupation-based approach to enhance health outcomes for the patients at Parker Place. The capstone student provided education about the role of occupational therapy in a non-traditional setting, created a program to help patients acquire sustainable healthy habits, developed a workshop for families struggling to maintain a healthy lifestyle, and provided resources about picky eating …

Animated Videos: The Covid-19 Pandemic, Bailey Alspach

Honors Projects

This project is a resource created to provide information about the Covid-19 pandemic. This pandemic was caused by the SARS-CoV-2 virus (AJMC Staff, 2021). The first reported cases began to appear in December 2019, and the World Health Organization (WHO) declared COVID-19 a pandemic on March 11th, 2020. This pandemic is still active with new cases reported everyday as of April 2021 (AJMC Staff, 2021). This resource consists of four videos ranging from around two and a half to eight minutes long. All videos were created in an animated fashion and were uploaded to YouTube. The first video focuses on …

Integrating Community Into Middle School Sexual Education, Sierra Miller, Margaret Aitken

College of Nursing and Health Sciences Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Project Publications

Problem Statement: Most middle school sexual education does not include parents or community members. Evidence shows family and community attitudes towards sex and sexuality are significant factors in adolescent risky sexual and health practices.

Background: Comprehensive sex education (CSE) reduces risky sexual practices and negative health outcomes. National and local organizations have identified CSE as a public health goal. CSE works best when culturally relevant and the community is involved.

Methods: Interviews with the health educator identified community needs. Resources were created in line with the current curriculum focusing on sex education, its importance, and how to talk about …

Improving The Utilization Of Cnas In Pressure Ulcer Prevention, Jaclyn N. Bitterman

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

An estimated 2.5 million Americans are affected by pressure ulcers annually with the largest majority impacted the geriatric population. In order to achieve prevention of facility acquired pressure ulcers, the nursing team must properly identify patients at risk to prevent the injury associated with pressure. CNAs play a key role in this effort. The purpose of this project was used to develop, implement, and evaluate a training program for CNA students to improve knowledge and promote engaged attitudes in the prevention of pressure ulcers. Results of the project showed improvement after the training, but overall was not statistically significant. Overall …

Barriers For Individuals With Prediabetes From Enrolling In The Ymca’S Diabetes Prevention Program, Shokouh Pardakhtim, Negin Kourehpazan, Randal C. Claussen

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Introduction: This qualitative research study examined barriers to enrollment in YMCA of Greater Seattle’s Diabetes Prevention Program (DPP) and how to improve the enrollment and referral process. Methodology: This was a quality improvement project that used qualitative methods in the research design. Semi-structured interviews and open-ended questionnaires were used to explore barriers in enrollment and to improve the referral and enrollment process from the perspective of participants with prediabetes referred to the DPP, YMCA staff who facilitate the DPP, and primary care providers who referred participant to the DPP. Results: A total of 10 interviews were conducted with the participants …

Increasing Fall Awareness Through Nursing Staff Education, Evelyn Ahiante Dennis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Patient falls are a significant healthcare concern, with the highest risk being among older adults aged 65 and older. A lack of nursing knowledge can contribute to patient falls. This DNP project was conducted in the medical-surgical trauma unit of a 137-bed local rehabilitation center in Northern Georgia. The intention of the project was to understand if a nursing staff education program would increase knowledge regarding falls prevention. Kurt Lewin’s change theory provided the framework for the project. The project participants were nine medical surgical nurses. Using the analysis, design, development, implementation (ADDIE) model, a falls prevention education program was …

A Behavioral Healthcare Approach To At-Risk Youth Substance Prevention Program Development, Debra Mcintyre

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Providing quality services that meet the needs of clients is key to organizational sustainability for behavioral health organizations. Strategic development of substance prevention programs for at-risk youth will play an important role in capacity building. The focus of this study was to identify the need for developing a targeted and effective substance abuse prevention program to support at-risk youth who have trauma experiences before they begin misusing substances to cope with their challenges. The Baldrige excellence framework was used to guide this descriptive case study of a behavioral health organization in the Northeastern region of the United States. The data …

The Primary Care Provider’S Role In Screening And Intervening In The Human Trafficking Of Adolescents: A Systematic Literature Review, Brittany Schmid

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Human trafficking (HT) is a growing concern within the United States (U.S.) and internationally. With the alarming number of HT victims presenting for medical care, primary care providers (PCPs) are in a unique and privileged position to encounter HT victims within the healthcare system. Adolescents, in particular, are vulnerable to HT because of minimal life experiences, inadequate social support, and limited coping mechanisms (Ertl et al., 2020). Failure to recognize and intervene in cases involving HT victims who are minors is detrimental to the individual’s health, wellbeing, and safety. With the assistance of education and training, community resources, guideline adoption, …

The Critical Need For A Culturally Sensitive Suicide Risk Assessment Instrument For American Indian And Alaska Native Youth, Courtney E. Shaw

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Objective: This systematic literature review was conducted to better understand why there has been a significant increase in America Indian/Alaska Native (AI/AN) youth suicides in tribes across the United States today. The intent of this review is to understand key issues surrounding the increasing numbers of AI/AN youth with suicide ideation, plans, and attempt in order to be able to answer the following clinical question: Is there a valid and reliable culturally sensitive assessment tool designed to recognize at-risk AI/AN youth presenting for primary care? If not, what are key aspects to consider for developing an instrument that could …

The Impact Of A Plant-Based Diet On The Prevention And Management Of Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, Megan E. Ziola

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Background: In the United States, type 2 diabetes is on the rise. Through lifestyle modifications, adults can prevent, delay, or help manage diabetes. Consuming a plant-based diet means limiting or eliminating animal products while focusing on fruits, vegetables, and whole grains. This dietary habit may be beneficial when it comes to diabetes prevention and treatment.

Objectives: A literature review was conducted to determine the effects of a plant-based diet on the prevention and treatment of type 2 diabetes in adults.

Methods: The search process was limited to 2010-2020. The databases including Academic Search Premier, CINAHL, Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews, …