Health and Medical Administration Commons^™

Mindfulness-Based Educational Module For Nurses Caring For Pediatric Mental Health Patients, Brianna Mai Desjardins, Katherine Marie Newnam

Graduate Publications and Other Selected Works - Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

BACKGROUND: Emergency pediatric nurses have the added stress of not only caring for medical patients but must also care for patients experiencing mental health issues. Many nurses feel unprepared to care for this specialized patient population. To bridge this gap, mindfulness-based interventions (MBIs) have been shown to provide nurses with the skills needed to care for mental health patients. This same concept can be applied to pediatric patients. Pediatric-focused mindfulness-based techniques can be used to help pediatric patients manage their symptoms.

LOCAL PROBLEM: The setting for this project was an urban pediatric emergency department in East Tennessee. At the state …

Acute Stress Disorder And Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder Screening In Pediatric Trauma Patients, Samantha Irizarry, Marian Malone, Megan Waddell

Graduate Publications and Other Selected Works - Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

BACKGROUND: Two-thirds of U.S. children and adolescents report experiencing one or more potentially traumatic events by age seventeen. 13.4% of the North Carolina pediatric population ages 0-17 have undergone two or more traumatic adverse childhood experiences, compared to 14% of the U.S. population. Early identification reduces the by-products of underdiagnosis of ASD and PTSD, such as mental illness, developmental delays, poor academic performance, and challenges with social interactions.

LOCAL PROBLEM: The project site is a level-one pediatric trauma hospital in Charlotte, North Carolina, seeing more than 130,000 patients annually. Before project implementation, there was an absence of ASD …

Effectiveness Of An Evidenced-Based Cognitive Behavioral Therapy Intervention For Adolescents In A School Setting, Sarah Ellen Gray, Kimberly Michaela Carter, Amanda Harper

Graduate Publications and Other Selected Works - Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Abstract

The adolescent years are a formative time when rapid hormonal and physical changes stimulate the developing mind. Exposure to poverty, abuse, violence, and lack of peer and social support causes an increase in vulnerability to the development of mental health problems. The COVID-19 pandemic has also exacerbated symptoms of depression and anxiety. Regardless of the risk factors, anxiety and depression continue to be significant health problems, affecting thousands of adolescents yearly in the United States. The first-line treatment recommendation for managing anxiety and depression symptoms is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT). However, access to a provider for CBT treatment is …

Educational Intervention To Increase Confidence And Knowledge Of Pediatric Nurses Caring For Pediatric Mental Health Patients, Alexa M. Wroblewski, Allyson Neal, Janie R. Holmes

Graduate Publications and Other Selected Works - Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Background: Given the rise in the mental health crisis, there is an increase of non-psychiatric nurses caring for pediatric mental health patients. This crisis leads nurses to experience feelings of doubt, hopelessness, stress, and insecurities in caring for this population. These feelings, combined with a lack of support and training, create a powerlessness loop of care. Local problem: In a Pediatric ICU, there is a lack of training and resources available to the nurses caring for pediatric mental health patients. Despite the lack of training, 35% of total admissions in 2020 were pediatric patients experiencing an acute mental health crisis. …

A School-Based Cognitive Behavioral Progrm To Improve Adolescent Mental Health, Amanda Harper, Tracy L. Brewer

Graduate Publications and Other Selected Works - Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Problem. While anxiety and depression are prevalent in the adolescent population and can have significant long-term consequences, treatment rates remain low. The gold standard for treatment is cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT), but this is often unavailable.

Methods. This project aimed to increase access to CBT through a school-based program. Students from a local homeschool cooperative participated in the Creating Opportunities for Personal Empowerment (COPE). Measures of anxiety and depressive symptoms were collected at baseline, after the program, and one month after the program. A Friedman test was used to evaluate medians’ differences on the screening tools at all three time …