Public Health Commons^™

Improving Post-Discharge Engagement Of Mental Health Patients In The Veterans Affairs South Texas Healthcare System, Nneoma Lewis

Doctor of Nursing Practice

Discharge from a hospital is a high-risk period for mental health patients, as 20% experience an adverse event within 30 days of discharge. Poor discharge engagement can lead to complications for recovery, which include an increased risk for readmissions, longer length of stay, increased risk for suicide, and death. Hospital stays cost the United States $377.5 billion dollars per year; there is pressure for hospitals, health plans, and providers to examine the admission and discharge processes to improve healthcare delivery, transition of care, and patient health outcomes. At a South Texas VA, 67.66% of mental health patients attended all their …

Inspire Yourself: Volunteer!, Judith Sullivan

Journal of Transformative Touch

Doing volunteer short Zero Balancing sessions once a month for 13 years for staff, volunteers and sometimes "guests" at The Haven, a a multi-resource day shelter in downtown Charlottesville, Virginia supports the community in many ways.

Prevalence And Impacts Of Musculoskeletal Pain Among The Elderly Living In The East Coast Region Of Peninsular Malaysia, Muhammad Kamil Che Hasan, Nur Nabila Izzati Asmera, Suliza Sulaiman, Mohd Said Nurumal, Nik Noor Kaussar Nik Mohd Hatta

Makara Journal of Health Research

Background: Musculoskeletal pain commonly affects the elderly, but the extent of this problem within the Malaysian community remains unknown. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and impact of musculoskeletal pain among the elderly living in the community.

Methods: Elderly individuals aged 60 years and above with musculoskeletal pain and intact cognition were recruited for this study. Musculoskeletal pain was scored using the Nordic Musculoskeletal Questionnaire, and functional ability was assessed via the Lawton Instrumental Activities of Daily Living scale. Mental wellbeing was evaluated using the Short Warwick–Edinburgh Mental Wellbeing scale, and risk of falling was determined via …

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 …

Community Cooking Course To Combat Nutritional Knowledge Deficit, Heather R. Bohman

MSN Capstone Projects

More than two-thirds of American adults and almost one-third of American children are overweight or obese. Not only are the statistics alarming, the cost of obesity is staggering. Obesity robs an individual of their quality of life and costs the U.S. healthcare system an estimated $147 billion a year in obesity-related illness (Finkelstein, Trogdon, Cohen, & Dietz, 2009). The need to find solutions to improve the health of Americans is clear and communities are called to respond. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2018) recommends partnership with local agencies to promote obesity prevention initiatives and create a healthier …

Abstracts From The 26th Annual Health Care Systems Research Network Conference, April 8–10, 2020

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

The Health Care Systems Research Network (HCSRN) is made up of community-based care delivery systems with a shared mission to improve health and health care through research. The network’s annual conference serves as a forum for attendees to disseminate study findings, stimulate collaborations, and share insights about conducting research in real-world care settings. Although this year’s live conference was cancelled to help slow the spread of COVID-19, the oral and poster abstracts accepted for presentation at HCSRN 2020 are published in this open access supplement to Volume 7, Issue 1 of the Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews, the …

Effectiveness Of A Standardized Fall Assessment Tool In Reducing Falls Among Elder Home Health Clients, Terica M. Woods

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Because of the physiological changes that occur with the normal aging process, falls tend to have more serious consequences in individuals age 65 and older. The purpose of this systematic review of literature was to analyze studies that addressed the impact of a multifactorial fall risk assessment tool on decreasing falls in the elderly home health patient population following hospitalization. The conceptual model for this project was Roper, Logan, and Tierney’s activity of daily living model. A narrative analysis was used to analyze 16 selected articles from the CINAHL, ProQuest and MEDLINE databases. Results indicated that implementing fall assessment tools …

Food Safety And Risk Of Foodborne Illness At A Food Center Extension: Toolkit For Front-Line Volunteers, Sara Anderson

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Background: Foodborne illness is a serious public health issue. One in six Americans has an episode of foodborne illness each year and over 50,000 are hospitalized. Food distribution centers are instrumental in decreasing food insecurity, however, some of the food donated is expired or may be damaged leading to increased risk of foodborne illness.

Purpose: The purpose of this project was to educate front-line volunteers at a local food center regarding food safety.

Methods: A toolkit was developed to teach food safety to the front-line volunteers. Seven classes were given to front-line volunteers including a pre and post intervention …

Understanding Self-Management Decision Making In Heart Failure, Constance Louise Schumacher

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Heart failure patients are responsible for managing fluctuations in symptoms between exacerbations by employing treatment adherence, active monitoring, and management strategies based on expert guidelines. Despite education, delayed help seeking persists among those in the need of acute medical intervention, as evidenced by high hospital admission and readmission rates. The purpose of this qualitative grounded theory study was to explore the decision making processes undertaken by heart failure, community-dwelling individuals as they experience symptom changes. Eighteen face-to-face interviews were conducted with participants who had heart failure and received self-management education from a home care agency in Southern Ontario, Canada. Data …

Using An Online Learning Module In A Nursing Program To Improve Knowledge And Skills To Prevent Falls In The Community Dwelling Older Adult Population, Susan Kane Patton

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Nationally, 28.4% of older adults fall each year. Falls and resulting injury result in decreased mobility, functional impairment, loss of independence, and increased mortality. Utilization of evidence based protocols by providers to identify older adults at risk of falling is limited and rates of participation by older adults in prevention activities is low. Because of nursing’s increasing role in caring for older adults, development of fall prevention education for nursing students would result in increased awareness of the need for fall prevention in community dwelling older adults and increased access of older adults to falls risk assessment. There is a …

Wecan Implementation For Parents Of At-Risk Hispanic Adolescents In Middle School, Shannon Leigh Devita

Doctor of Nursing Practice Final Manuscripts

Abstract

CDC-reported childhood obesity rates have tripled in the past three years. Among children in grades five, seven and nine, 30% are overweight or obese, with Hispanic students more likely to be overweight than White students. This evidence-based project examined the effectiveness of NHLBI’s WeCan! for at-risk middle-school-age Hispanic children and parents. The program was implemented at school in two weekly sessions, and its effectiveness was evaluated using the WeCan! survey. The program resulted in improved knowledge, behaviors, and attitudes related energy balance, portion size, healthy foods, physical activity, and screen time and may be useful in other school settings.

"Nursing Contamination: Wearing Scrubs In Public", Kemble Green

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Nurses are frequently seen in public in their “scrubs,” which could mean that contaminated clothing is being brought into the community, thereby posing an infection risk. The purpose of this study is to investigate if and which contaminants are present on the fabrics and the actions nurses are taking to eliminate contamination risks.

Eleven scrub tops were worn on hospital units over one twelve-hour shift. The contaminated scrubs and three control tops were then swabbed and used to inoculate agar plates. After incubation, colonies were counted, streaked onto nutrient and Mannitol-salt agar for isolation, and incubated. Using API Staph strips …