Digital Commons Network^™

The Use Of Unregulated Staff: Time For Regulation?, Christine M. Duffield, Di E. Twigg, Judith D. Pugh, Gemma Evans, S Dimitrelis, Michael A. Roche

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Internationally, shortages in the nursing workforce, escalating patient demands, and financial constraints within the health system have led to the growth of unlicensed nursing support workers. Recently, in relation to the largest publicly funded health system (National Health Service), it was reported that extensive substitution of registered nurses with unskilled nursing support workers resulted in inadequate patient care, increased morbidity and mortality rates, and negative nurse outcomes. We argue that it is timely to consider regulation of nursing support workers with their role and scope of practice clearly defined. Further, the addition of these workers in a complementary model of …

“Keeping It Together, Keeping Their Heads Above Water”: Western Australian Child Health Nurses’ Understanding Of Resilience In Postpartum Mothers, Rachael O. Collins, Julie Ann Pooley, Myra F. Taylor

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

Assessing the well-being of postpartum mothers is an important aspect of postnatal nursing care. For this reason, Child Health Nurses (CHNs) are charged with the responsibility of identifying postpartum mothers who do/not manifest resilient behavioral qualities. However, little is known about CHNs’ conceptualization of resilience or how they assess resilience in postpartum mothers. This exemplar study addressed this knowledge shortfall by conducting semi-structured interviews with eight practicing CHNs. The study’s findings reveal that although CHNs’ conceptual understanding of resilience is congruent with current theoretical thinking, some variance does exist in the ways in which CHNs assess postpartum resilience, particularly, in …

Selection Of An Instrument To Evaluate The Organizational Environment Of Nurses Working In Intensive Care: An Integrative Review, Brett Abbenbroek, Christine M. Duffield, Doug Elliot

Research outputs 2014 to 2021

To determine an appropriate survey instrument to evaluate the impact of organizational structures on the work environment of intensive care nurses.

In Children And Elderly Patients, What Are The Effects Of General Anesthesia On Neurological Health Compared With Procedural Sedation?, Taylor G. Caldwell

Theses and Dissertations

Anesthesia has been a necessity in the field of health care since it was discovered in the early to middle 1800s. Before anesthesia, many procedures and surgeries that are now considered an easy fix were life-threatening and patients often chose the inevitable death over the pain of surgery. The idea was stumbled upon when "laughing gas," nitrous oxide, was inhaled and credited in "produc[ing] a state of intoxication during which people became highly amused and insensitive to pain" (Palo Alto, 2013, para. 2). Anesthesia has come an unbelievably long way since the first surgery under anesthesia was performed by Dr. …

Preventing And Treating Complications Of Sickle Cell Disease In Pediatric Patients, Keandra S. Ferguson

Theses and Dissertations

Preventing and Treating Complications of Sickle Cell Disease in Pediatric Patients Sickle cell anemia, also known as sickle cell disease, affects over 90,000 people in the United States alone with those of African descent being at greater risk (Dobson & Byrne, 2014). Worldwide, it affects over 30 million people (Khoury, Musallam, Mroueh, & Abboud, 2011). It is usually detected during first year of life. After that, it is a lifelong disease (Hollins et al., 2012). Patients with sickle cell disease in the United States are expected to live until they are approximately 48 years old (BMJ Group, 2011). It is …

Instilling Diet And Exercise Confidence: Influence Of Nurse Body Size, Erin Murdock Spaulding

Honors Theses and Capstones

This paper reports a research study focused on perspective of nurse body size and how it affects confidence in a nurses’ ability to provide education on diet and exercise. The study followed a descriptive method design guided by a cross-sectional survey with quantitative variables. Results show that there is increased confidence in a nurse’s ability to provide education and influence habits regarding diet and exercise when the nurse role models such behaviors. Other findings presented include respondents’ perception of their body mass index versus their actual body mass index, percentage of respondents with health care conditions related to obesity, and …

An Analysis Of Interpreter-Mediated Healthcare Interactions, Robin Dawson Estrada

Theses and Dissertations

The content and quality of communication between nurse practitioners and patients in primary care encounters contributes to diagnostic decision making, the provision of culturally appropriate interventions, and ultimately may impact health outcomes. In caring for patients with limited English proficiency, the addition of language discordance increases the complexity of the interaction and communication processes and the potential for disparate health outcomes. Most prior research on interpreter-mediated healthcare interactions has focused on accuracy, cost, satisfaction, and role enactment, but there is a lack of systematic research examining the actual interaction processes within the context of primary care clinic visits.

The aim …

Best Practice For Antipsychotic Medication Management In Community Dwelling Older Adults With Schizophrenia, Estelle Marie Brown

Theses and Dissertations

Schizophrenia, aging, and medication factors combine to present a very complex clinical presentation in caring for the elderly population with schizophrenia. The aging body displays a slowing of physiological processes, which alters the pharmacokinetics and pharmacodynamics of medications prescribed. Multiple comorbid health factors and the medications recommended for treatment may become detrimental to the overall body health, causing more problems for the older individual. This evidence based practice project reviewed literature and evidence to focus on the question, "In community dwelling older adults with schizophrenia, what is best practice for antipsychotic medication management?" The literature search resulted in classifying 16 …

Best Practices In The Management Of Pediatric Obesity In Primary Care Clinics, Lori Moseley

Theses and Dissertations

Obesity prevalence among children and adolescents has nearly tripled since 1980. Children and adolescents are at risk for developing the comorbidities seen in obese and overweight adults such as hypertension, type 2 diabetes, and sleep apnea. Traditional treatment for obese and overweight children involved counseling children and their families. Current recommendations include a comprehensive staged approach to weight management that includes prevention plus structured weight management, comprehensive multidisciplinary intervention and tertiary care intervention. Unfortunately structured weight management programs have not been widely available, leaving the primary provider with limited options.

The purpose of this project was to analyze the literature …

Nonnutritive Sweetener And Weight Management: A Potential Paradox In Modern Dieting, Katharine Mary Wright

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Obesity is a serious health concern in modern society. One way to reduce caloric intake is with nonnutritive sweeteners (NNS). However, recent research suggests they may be compounding the obesity problem. Nonnutritive sweeteners have been linked to increased body mass in a few studies and may be a barrier to effective weight management for some individuals.

Under the framework of the health belief model, the research question was: Does this pattern of NNS-BMI covariance exist in young adults at the University of North Florida and, if so, are there other dietary or activity differences that might partially explain this relationship? …

Increasing Practitioner Knowledge Of Ketamine As An Adjunct Analgesic For Postoperative Pain, Allison Goldfarb

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Postoperative pain is of serious concern to patients and anesthesia providers alike. Management of a patients’ pain is a central component of anesthesia care. Ketamine as an anesthetic agent has been available for 50 years. It has been utilized as a general anesthetic and selectively as an anesthetic agent for high-risk patients. Due to dysphoric side effects associated with the dosage required to render general anesthesia, anesthesia providers may be reluctant to utilize this medication to its full potential. Recently there has been a resurgence of interest in ketamine as an analgesic agent. The researcher for this project performed a …

Anesthesia Safety: Filter Needle Use With Glass Ampules, Debran L. Harmon

UNF Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Glass particle contamination of medication occurs when opening ampules which may cause patient harm. The use of filter needles reduces this risk. Many anesthesia providers use ampules daily, but do not use filter needles when aspirating medications from ampules. In addition, filter needles may not be readily available at the anesthesia medication preparation site. Not using filter needles or having them available for use can increase the risk of patient harm by glass particle contamination. The purpose of this project was to increase anesthesia provider’s knowledge thereby improving compliance with evidence-based standards when preparing medications from ampules. The goal is …

Factors That Relate To Registered Nurses' Readiness For Interprofessional Learning In The Context Of Continuing Professional Development, Collette Williams

Dissertations

Today’s health-care professionals practice in a highly technological, multidisciplinary environment. In order to provide safe, effective, and high-quality patient care, collaboration is required among all professionals. Traditionally each profession has operated independently in regard to continued professional development. The purpose of this study was to assess practicing registered nurses’ readiness toward interprofessional learning in order to align learning with current practice.

Method. An ex post facto study design was used to gather data to examine if there is a relationship between variables of demographics and readiness for interprofessional learning. The Readiness for Interprofessional Learning Scale (RIPLS) assesses the readiness for …

The “Secret” Impact Of Population Statistics On The Metrics Of Diabetes, Lyndal H. Hunter, Sharon Brownie, Walter F. Robb

School of Nursing & Midwifery, East Africa

The accuracy of disease metrics is dependent on the quality of population-based data. Many diseases, including diabetes, are age and sex dependant. Accurate age- and sexspecific population survey data, population estimates and projections are required to assess the scale and trends in the burden of these diseases. No assessment of the quality of population data being used in the UAE diabetes metrics has been published. We provide insight into the availability and quality of published population data, which is currently being used to inform diabetes research and health services planning in the UAE. We show the absence of credible population-based …

Nursing Pain Assessment & Management: A 3d Interactive Simulation, Enilda Romero-Hall, Ginger S. Watson, Yiannis Papelis, Hector Garcia

STEMPS Faculty Publications

In this design case, a team developed a 3D interactive simulation for nursing students and professional nurses to train and practice pain assessment and management procedures. In the simulation environment, the trainees interact with three emotionally expressive animated patients. The three patients vary in their ethnicity, age, and emotion intensity. Successful completion of the scenario requires that the trainee perform of a series of pain assessment and management tasks. The trainee is evaluated on the efficiency and appropriate sequencing of the tasks.

The purpose of this paper is to describe the decisions made regarding the type of virtual patients used, …

Relationships Between Health Literacy And Heart Failure Knowledge, Self-Efficacy, And Self-Care Adherence., Aleda M.H. Chen, Karen Yehle, Nancy M. Albert, Kenneth F. Ferraro, Holly L. Mason, Matthew M. Murawski, Kimberly S. Plake

School of Nursing Faculty Publications

Background

It has been argued that only 12% of adults have the necessary health literacy to manage their health care effectively, which can lead to difficulties in self-care activities, such as medication adherence. Prior research suggests that health literacy may influence knowledge, self-efficacy and self-care, but this has not been fully examined.

Objective

To test a model to explain the relationships between health literacy, heart failure knowledge, self-efficacy, and self-care.

Methods

Prior to receiving clinic-based education, newly referred patients to 3 heart failure clinics completed assessments of health literacy, heart failure knowledge, self-efficacy, self-care, and demographics. Structural equation modeling was …

A Mother's Paradox: Choosing A Birthing Method In The 21st Century, Jenae Franklin

Pitzer Senior Theses

Investigating childbirth, one of the biggest moments of a woman’s life, this thesis examines the reasons behind women’s preferred birthing methods. This research explores the fundamental decisions women make during the birthing process: the amount of prenatal care mothers will receive, the type of health care provider they will use, picking the place of delivery, views on technological and medical interventions, and outlooks on natural childbirth. In addition to an extensive literature review, in-depth interviews with mothers, midwives, and obstetricians are used to examine the various controversies of childbirth. This thesis begins with a review of the transition from midwives …

Betsy: A Case Study Of A Client With Down's Syndrome And Dementia, Cheryl D. Schlamb, Christine D. Moriconi

Nursing Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Homeless For One Winter Night: A Nursing Student's Perspective, Hannah Alewett

A with Honors Projects

For an A with Honors project for Parkland College, the student reflects on her overnight volunteer experience with CU@Home's One Winter Night, an event to raise funds for the cause of homelessness. As a nursing student, the author also reflects on homelessness from a health care perspective.

Paramedic Students' Perceived Self-Efficacy At Airway Management, Holly Herron

Doctor of Nursing Practice Scholarly Projects

The out of hospital (OOH) environment is chaotic, unpredictable and unforgiving. Paramedics are the primary providers of life-saving, OOH airway management, which includes respiratory assessment, bag-valve-mask ventilation (BVM), and endotracheal intubation (ETI). OOH ETI is the most difficult skill for which to obtain and retain clinical competence. Preventable patient care errors and deaths related to OOH ETI are a healthcare concern. Clinical experience remains limited for paramedic students in the acquisition of adequate ETI experience.

The purpose of this study was to assess the perceived self-efficacy (PSE) of paramedic students in ETI. Bandura's self-efficacy theory was the theoretical framework for …

Prevention, Recognition, And Treatment Of Pediatric Obesity In The Ambulatory Care Setting, Susan Farrus-Brown

Doctor of Nursing Practice Scholarly Projects

The World Health Organization (WHO) in 1995 described obesity as a chronic disease and one of the most important public health threats and in 2000 reported obesity as a “global epidemic.” The numbers of obese children are increasing in society; moreover, the onset of obesity is occurring at even a younger age than in the past. The prevalence of pediatric obesity is staggering and interventions need to be developed to decrease the risk for chronic and related psychological diseases.

The objective of this project was to provide education on utilization of a tool kit to increase the nurse practitioner (NP) …

Post-Laminectomy Back Pain: Understanding The Progress From Acute To Chronic Pain State, James Derek Calhoun

DNP Projects

In the United States, 74.6% of patients who have lumbar laminectomy surgery have residual low back pain (Hussain & Erdek, 2014) and overall costs of low back pain may reach up to $200 billion per year (Carey & Frebuger 2013). To further address this problem, a study was conducted to determine if treatment in a chronic pain clinic could result in a reduction in the development of a chronic pain state for adult patients who have had lumbar laminectomy surgeries. A convenience sample of 50 patients was selected from the Interventional Pain Associates clinic at the University of Kentucky. Records …

Serum Procalcitonin Levels On Antibiotic Duration & Patient Outcomes In Copd Exacerbations, Monee Carter

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Scholarly Projects - Archive

Refer to the document.

Reduction Of Unplanned Extubations In The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Sharon Fassino

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Scholarly Projects - Archive

Unplanned extubations (UE) are a preventable adverse event which occurs when intubated patients have their endotracheal tubes (ETT) accidentally dislodged from their airway. The method of securing the ETT has been identified as the most common reason for unplanned extubations (Veldman et al. , 2006). The purpose of this project was to decrease the rate of UEs in the neonatal intensive care unit from 4.9 UEs per 100 ventilator days to less than two UEs per 100 ventilator days by implementing a standard method of securing the endotracheal tube with a securement device. Methods This was a prospective, controlled research …

Hpv Vaccine Decision-Making In Hispanic And African American Parents: A Secondary Data Analysis, Lavonda Mclennan

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Scholarly Projects - Archive

The human papillomavirus (HPV) is the most common sexually transmitted infection (STI) and a highly preventable cause of morbidity and mortality in the United States (U.S.). There are more than 79 million Americans infected with HPV and approximately 14 million newly diagnosed cases ofHPV annually (United States Department of Health & Human Services [DHHS], n.d.). More than 40 strains of HPV can lead to genital warts and various types of cancers, mostly cervical cancer (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2013a). Although the HPV vaccine can prevent approximately 21,000 HPV related cancers, uptake of the HPV vaccine remains suboptimal. …

What Are The Therapeutic Strategies Used By Mental Health Providers To Create A Therapeutic Alliance And Effective Patient- Provider Relationship For Psychotropic Medication Adherence?, Agnes Okoro

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Scholarly Projects - Archive

The annual cost of medication non - adherence problems in United States (U.S.) is approximately $100 billion dollars (Heesch, 2013; Julius, Novitsky, & Dublin, 2009). Mental health providers often encounter psychotropic medication non adherence among incarcerated persons with schizophrenia despite their alliance- enhancing efforts, resulting in increased violence, hospitalization, and an impact on economy. Therapeutic alliance, an effective and collaborative relationship between the health care provider and the patient has a positive association with treatment adherence as supported by the result of many studies (Julius et al., 2009; Kvrgic, Cavelli, Beck, Rusch, & Vaulth, 2013 ; McCabe et al., 2012). …

Policy Analysis: Impact Of Legislative Policy On Infant Mortality, Aimee T. Dunnam

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Scholarly Projects - Archive

This study examined the impact of health policy on infant mortality. Public Use Data Files were used to assess differences in groups before and after the initiation of health policy as law. House Bill 1983 restricted the delivery of infants before 39 weeks gestation when born by elective induction or elective cesarean section. Infants born prematurely are at higher risk for adverse outcomes. A total of 3,078 identified infants were included in the sample. Infants were categorized according to their gestational age of 33-34 weeks, 35-36 weeks, and greater than 37 weeks. Data analyzed showed no statistical significance in the …

Pilot Trial Of An Electronic Family Medical History In Us Faith-Based Communities, Patricia Newcomb, Sharon Canclini, Denise Cauble, Barbara M. Raudonis, Paulette Golden

Nursing Faculty Publications & Presentations - Archive

In spite of the acknowledged importance of collecting family health information, methods of collecting, organizing, and storage of pedigree data are not uniformly utilized in practice, though several electronic tools have been developed for the purpose. Using electronic tools to gather health information may empower individuals to take responsibility in managing their family health history. The purpose of this study was to describe the feasibility and outcomes of introducing small groups to the My Family Health Portrait tool in faith-based communities using faith community nurses (FCNs). This pilot project adopted a mixed methods approach to assess the potential of an …

Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors Among Emerging Adults In College, Demetrius A. Abshire

Theses and Dissertations--Nursing

The purpose of this dissertation was to examine factors associated with cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk among emerging adults in college aged 18-25 years. CVD risks that develop during this period often persist into adulthood making it an ideal time to target CVD prevention. The specific aims of this dissertation were to 1) explore perceptions of cardiovascular risk among emerging adult men in college; 2) compare differences in unhealthy behaviors and obesity between emerging adults in college living in rural, Appalachian Kentucky and urban Fayette County, Kentucky; and 3) compare measures of general and abdominal obesity in predicting blood pressure among …

The Utility Of The U.S. Diabetes Conversation Map As An Intervention To Promote Diabetes Self-Management Adherence, Lisa Gale Jones

Theses and Dissertations--Nursing

Diabetes has reached epidemic levels, to the currently estimated 29 million individuals who are living with diabetes. Those with diabetes must manage their disease through a combination of medication, physical activity recommendations, and nutritional guidelines. The consequences of non-adherence to recommendations include cardiovascular disease, kidney failure, vision loss, or ultimately, death. Despite the risks of non-adherence, individuals often do not adhere to recommended treatment. Researchers have attempted to identify strategies to promote diabetes self-management adherence, thereby decreasing complications related to the disease.

Specific Aims:

1. describe the factors that prohibit individuals from adhering from diabetes self-management behaviors as well as the …