Digital Commons Network^™

Basal Body Temperature Assessment: Is It Useful To Couples Seeking Pregnancy?, Mary Lee Barron, Richard J. Fehring

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Advanced practice nurses in primary care settings are often asked to give appropriate advice to couples seeking pregnancy. This article examines the issue of basal body temperature (BBT), a time-honored way to establish the presence of ovulatory cycles, and asks if BBT is an outdated recommendation. The article also reviews the benefits and limitations of recommending BBT to couples seeking pregnancy in light of recent fecundity research.

A Pilot Study: The Effects Of Group Exercise On Fatigue And Quality Of Life During Cancer Treatment, Joanna M. Losito

Master's Projects

Fatigue affects 60-100% of all cancer patients, is difficult to manage, and can have a profound impact on everyday functioning and quality of life. Though seemingly counterintuitive, exercise has emerged as a promising intervention for the management of cancer related fatigue (CRF). Current research predominantly involves individual, home-based exercise programs with few studies exploring other modes of exercise delivery. The purpose of this pilot study was to determine if participation in a structured group exercise program (SGEP) was a feasible intervention for adult oncology patients receiving cancer treatment and to test the impact of a SGEP on reducing CRF and …

Evidence-Based Practice Considerations In Facilitating The Risk Surveillance Of Occupational Exposure To Antineoplastic Agents, Theresa A. Rafique

MSN Research Projects

According to Martin and Larson (2003), healthcare professionals involved with handling antineoplastic drugs may be exposed inadvertently to these agents, placing them at potential risk for acute and long-term adverse effects. For example, cyclophosphamide one of the most frequently used antineoplastic agents in clinical treatment facilities, is a known human carcinogen (Larson, Khazaeli, & Dillon, 2003). While the health risks associated with cytotoxic use have been well established, there is little information available about how people perceive these risks, particularly among those most affected by it-chemotherapy nurses. Therefore, the purpose of this Evidence Based Practice (EBP) project was to develop …

Screening Of Postpartum Depression Among Chinese Immigrants, Beahwa Yeoh

Master's Projects

Postpartum depression among the Chinese population in the United States has been understudied even though the Chinese community continues to rapidly increase in numbers. The purpose of this study is to investigate the prevalence of postpartum depression among Chinese immigrants using the "Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale," a self-report questionnaire. This study also reports demographics obtained from participants and explores the practice of "zuo ye zi" among Chinese immigrants. In the spring of 2005, twenty-eight postpartum Chinese women, all first generation immigrants, were asked to participate in this study during home visits conducted by public health nurses in Alameda County, CA. …

Incidence And Clinical Predictors Of Risk Factors For Inappropriate Shock In Patients With Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillators, Shu-Ling Lo Phd

Dissertations

Sudden cardiac death (SCD) is a major unresolved medical problem worldwide. Although Implantable Cardioverter-Defibrillators (ICD) are highly effective in diagnosing and treating life threatening arrhythmias, inappropriate shock therapy (IST) occurs in approximately 5-20% of ICD recipients. IST results in pain, anxiety, induction of ventricular arrhythmias, decreased battery longevity, and even death. Researchers studying clinical predictors of IST have drawn findings based on single case studies with small samples or with outdated data. This study filled this gap by describing the incidence and co-existing clinical predictors of IST. Methodology This descriptive, retrospective study analyzed the incidence and clinical predictors of IST …

Adult Suicide Attempts In Relationship To Life Experiences And Familial Tendencies, Laura S. Ford

Graduate Research Projects

The purpose of this project was to describe the variables age, gender, child or adult abuse, educational level, family history of suicide, depression, economic level as factors related to adult attempted suicides. The Lazarus framework was used to examine factors contributing to adult attempted suicide. A suicide prevention community education project was developed with Lazarus’s theory of cognition and unconscious processes in mind. Lazarus’s theory focuses on the relationship between development of coping skills learned during childhood and how a person will respond using those skills as an adult. This project explored links between child and adult abuse, education or …

Uab Nurse Scientist - Summer 2005, University Of Alabama At Birmingham

UAB Nursing magazine

No abstract provided.

Workplace Empowerment And Job Satisfaction In Primary Care Nurse Practitioners In Southeast Kansas, Karen Zafuta Johnson

Electronic Theses & Dissertations

The purpose guiding this study was to identify perceptions of workplace empowerment and levels of job satisfaction in a group of primary care nurse practitioners in the southeast Kansas area. A quantitative study was conducted and examined as to what background variables are significant for empowerment to be fully realized. This will add knowledge to other studies that have been done on nurse practitioner's job satisfaction so that more will be known about this vital and growing profession.

The population for this study included 30 nurse practitioners that currently work in a primary care setting in the southeast Kansas area …

The Flame, Summer 2005, Mennonite College Of Nursing

The Flame (1985-present)

The Flame is a newsletter of Illinois State University's Mennonite College of Nursing

Adaptation To Cesarean Birth: Implementation Of An International Multisite Study, Jacqueline Fawcett, Cynthia Aber, Marianne E. Weiss, Susan Haussler, Sheila Taylor Myers, Charlette King, Jennifer Newton, Virginia Silva

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

The purpose of this column is to describe the implementation of an international multisite Roy adaptation model-based study of women’s perceptions of and responses to cesarean birth. The need for the study arose from the concern that women’s childbearing needs may not be met to their full satisfaction, especially if the infant is born by cesarean. Serendipity and networking played a part in the selection of four study sites in the United States (Boston, Milwaukee, Norfolk, Oklahoma City) and two in other countries (Finland, Australia). Data were collected by nursing students and staff nurses. Post-hoc consideration of the diversity of …

Loma Linda Nurse - Vol. 14, No. 01, Loma Linda University School Of Nursing

Loma Linda Nurse

Contents

2 | A message from the dean

4 | Loma Linda NURSE news

6 | The First 100 Years: how providence started our first century

12 | LLUSN development report

19 | Letter from the alumni president

20 | Alumni Homecoming

26 | Centennial Research Conference

27 | Near and far

29 | In memory

30 | Special event planned

Patient Safety. From Metaphor To Model: The Clarian Safe Passage Program, Kathryn Rapala, Karlene M. Kerfoot

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

The most important stakeholders in patient safety are alert and mobilized frontline health care staff. At Clarian Health Partners, Indianapolis, IN, clinicians in the Safe Passage Program work jointly with unit staff, physicians, and other departments to continuously improve the level of patient, employee, and visitor safety. Medical error reporting at Clarian has tripled. The enthusiasm and passion of Safe Passage clinicians is both inspiring and energizing.

Aiming For Zero Errors: Clarian’S Safe Passage Program Improves Infusion Safety, Dawn Daniels, Kathryn Rapala

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

Few issues command as much attention in the healthcare industry as patient safety. As healthcare professionals and hospital administrators know, nurses are key players in patient safety programs. Nurses are at the best vantage point to see, report, and fix errors before they occur, and the high-touch nature of their jobs puts nurses in the best seat to advocate for a patient and address looming safety issues.

Hospitals across the country are recognizing nurses’ critical role in patient safety, and as a result, more nurses are being placed in pivotal care roles. Clarian Health Partners, a hospital system based in …

Beyond The Patient: Nursing Presence With Families During The Perioperative Period, Joyce P. Miller

Theses and Graduate Projects

Nurses have used the intervention of caring for many years, but little attention has been given to describing the phenomenon of nursing presence in the perioperative setting. The purpose of this research was to learn more about the experience of the connection of the family to the nurse who kept them informed during the perioperative period. A hermeneutic phenomenological approach was utilized to identify patterns of caring, connecting, and transpersonal nursing presence described by the family of surgical patients. Five women were interviewed for this study. Transcribed interviews became the phenomenological texts for my hermeneutic analysis. Essential themes were uncovered …

Commencement Program 2005, Loma Linda University

Commencement Programs

CONTENTS

2 | 2005 Events of Commencement

3 | President's Welcome

5 | Celebrating Our Centennial of Global Service

7 | Path of History: Loma Linda University Historical Sites

11 | The Academic Procession

12 | Significance of Academic Regalia

13 | The Speakers

20 | The University Honorees

25 | The School Honorees

35 | The Programs

• School of Medicine, 36
• School of Dentistry, 43
• Graduate School, 52
• School of Nursing, 62
• School of Allied Health Professions - Physical Therapy, 67
• School of Allied Health Professions, 73
• School of Public Health, 81

Improved Cancer Care Through Increased Basic Cancer Education, Patricia Rushton, Lillian Nail, Sherry Brown

Faculty Publications

Literature shows that nursing care in rural communities improves when the nurse has increased knowledge through continuing education. Specific oncology studies in areas of stress, pain assessment and documentation, and death and dying.(Hedman-1990,Camp-Sorrell-1991,Foglesong-1987,Webber-1991) demonstrate similar results. It is reasonable that continuing education in areas of the cancer process, standard therapies, and methods of symptom control would improve patient care. This project allowed nurses who had limited access to cancer education in rural areas of Utah to receive basic cancer education. The subjects of this education included: 1) the cancer process, 2) chemotherapy, 3)radiation therapy, 4) the use and care of …

Mentoring Staff Members As Patient Safety Leaders: The Clarian Safe Passage Program, Kathryn Rapala

College of Nursing Faculty Research and Publications

We are at a crossroad in patient safety. Patient safety definitions, research, products, and implementation strategies have become as complex as health care itself. Almost every professional and regulatory organization now has a position or strategy to address the estimated 44,000 to 98,000 deaths per year due to health care error[1]. Memorizing and implementing the Joint Commission for Accreditation National Patient Safety Goals is not enough to establish and maintain a culture of safety. Patient safety literature offers few practical solutions on the implementation of an integrated, system wide application of patient safety approaches to clinical practice. It is our …

Improving The Experience Of Hospitalization For Hawaiian Children On The Mainland Through Cultural Sensitivity To Hawaiian Ways Of Healing, Jane H. Lassetter, Joan H. Baldwin

Faculty Publications

The experience of hospitalization for Hawaiian children on the mainland might be improved through the understanding and development of cultural sensitivity to Hawaiian ways of healing. This article contains a selected review of the literature on meeting the cultural health care needs of Hawaiian children and their families, a discussion of some of the challenges of caring for Hawaiian children in Utah, and suggestions for practice that may improve the experience of hospitalization for Hawaiian children in general.

Nurses Perceptions Of Barriers And Facilitators To Research Utilization In Their Nursing Practice, David Ray Renfro

Master's Projects

Today in nursing we are driven in the direction of evidence based practices. The nursing profession must continue to encourage nurses to ask "Why" when providing interventions. We must ensure that the interventions provided are both warranted, and the most efficacious intervention achievable. As a profession, we can no longer stand on our methods of practice simply because it is the way we have always practiced. It is a challenge for nursing leaders to implement a culture of evidence based practice, and to promote research utilization. The purpose of this study was to identify nurse's perceptions of barriers and facilitators …

Self-Efficacy And Sexual Transmitted Disease Prevention Among College Women, Dominique M. Ly

Master's Projects

According to the Center of Disease Control (2002), sexual transmitted diseases (STDs) are on the rise, especially among women. By far, women bear the greatest burden of STDs because they suffer more frequently and develop more serious complications than men. This study explored the relationship between self-efficacy and safe sex behaviors among college women. The data was collected by using questionnaires from the General Perceived Self-Efficacy Scale (GPSE) and the Condom Use Self-Efficacy Scale(CUSES). The sample was composed of 38 unmarried female college students between the ages of 18 and 25 years-of-age who had been sexually active within the last …

A Survey Of California Nurse Practitioners' Health Practices And Counseling Habits, Jessica Malone

Master's Projects

Morbidity and mortality due to obesity continues to rise in the United States despite well known Healthy People 2010 and American College of Sports Medicine guidelines on physical activity. In the U.S. today, more than 60 percent of Americans aged 20 years and older are overweight (Hedley et al., 2004). This study investigated the exercise practices of California nurse practitioners (NPs }, how their practices compare to recommended guidelines, and to what extent California NPs prescribe aerobic exercise and strength training to their clients. The California Nurse Practitioners Physical Activity Questionnaire was self-administered at the annual2005 California Association for Nurse …

Neurobehavioral Functioning And Breastfeeding Behavior In The Newborn, Sharon Radzyminski

Nursing Faculty Publications

Objective: To determine whether central nervous system functioning has an effect on the normal, term infant's ability to breastfeed in the first day following birth. Design: Breastfeeding behaviors and neurobehaviors were evaluated at birth and at 24 hrs of age in two groups of neonates. One group of neonates was born to mothers who received epidural analgesia during labor, and one group was born to mothers who received no pain medication. Breastfeeding behavior was evaluated using the Preterm Infant Breastfeeding Behavior Scale, and the infant's neurobehaviors were evaluated using the Neurologic and Adaptive Capacity Score. Participants: Fifty-six breastfeeding mother-newborn dyads. …

Analysis Of Contraceptive Self-Efficacy In Clients Requesting Emergency Contraception, Jennifer L. Nordeen

Master's Projects

No abstract provided.

Sexuality And The Aging Adult: The Attitude And Practice Of Physicians And Nurse Practitioners, Susan Runsvold

Master's Projects

Background: As the population ages, many quality of life issues will generate discussion. One such issue is sexuality of the aging adult. While there is substantial documentation related to the physiology and desires of the aging adult, little is known about medical practitioners' beliefs and practices regarding sexuality. Method: A 14 question survey with a comment section was developed and mailed to 269 physicians and nurse practitioners in Santa Clara County, California. The responses were evaluated using descriptive statistics. The comments received were grouped related to intent or topic. Results: There was no discernible difference between the beliefs and practices …

Perceived Social Support Among Chinese American Hemodialysis Patients, Kaklam Wong

Master's Projects

Social support is linked to improved health outcomes both in Western and Asian societies and is a vital factor in a patient's adjustment to end-stage renal disease and its treatment regimen. This study explored perceived social support among 46 Chinese American hemodialysis patients in San Francisco's Chinatown using the Norbeck Social Support Questionnaire plus open-ended questions. Findings unexpectedly revealed low levels of perceived social support and lack of tangible support especially in elder patients. We can no longer assume that traditional family cultural values are providing adequate social support for this population.

Exposure To Secondhand Smoke And Nicotine Dependence, Chizimuzo T.C. Okoli, Ellen J. Hahn, Steven R. Browning, Mary Kay Rayens

Nursing Presentations

Background

• Nicotine dependence (ND) : “the smoking behavior accompanied by a reluctance to quit (Khurana, Batra, Patkar, & Leone, 2003).

• The US Public Health Service Clinical Practice Guideline ‘Treating Tobacco Use and Dependence’: A chronic condition that often requires repeated interventions (Office of the Surgeon General, 2000).

• Secondhand Smoke (SHS) is a potential source of exposure to high levels of nicotine. (Dimich-Ward, Gee, Brauer, Leung,1997)

• No current studies addressing the contribution of SHS to Nicotine Dependence (ND) or smoking behaviors

Practice Patterns Contributing To Positive Patient Outcomes By Nurse Practitioners, Kandice Bandy

Master's Projects

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to identify NP practice patterns most important for positive patient outcomes. Data Sources: A convenience sample (n = 93) of Nurse Practitioners attending the 2005 California Association for Nurse Practitioners Conference (N = 535) completed the survey. Conclusions: The most important practice patterns identified were associated with patient-centered care. When analyzed with years in practice, patient-centered practice patterns continued to be the most important. This study suggests that patient-centered practice patterns are most important to positive patient outcomes for NPs. Implications for practice: Identifying the practice patterns that are most important to positive …

Quality Of Life And Medical Compliance In The Adolescent Kidney Transplant Population ---A Pilot Study, Catherine Costaglio

Master's Projects

Introduction: Post renal transplant medical non-compliance is a leading cause of renal graft loss, in the adolescent population. The pwpose of this study was to determine if there was a relationship between quality of life and medical compliance. Method: A pilot study was conducted using a convenience sample of 10 post renal transplant adolescents during their routine transplant clinic appointment. Demographic data was collected and the KIND L Quality of Life questionnaire was completed by study participants. Medical compliance was measured by evaluating transplant clinic appointment attendance, laboratory appointment attendance, and immunosuppressant drug levels. Results: Despite positive correlations reported in …

From Presence To “E-Presence” In Online Nursing Education, Lisa M. Kaiser Phd, Msn, Bsn, Rn

Dissertations

Online web-based course offerings are now common in many institutions of higher education In response to the current and severe nursing shortage, estimated to represent a 20% vacancy rate by the year 2015, (Tarkin, 2003) many more universities have created online nursing courses for registered nurses wishing to continue their education in nursing. The National League for Nursing (NLN) set research priorities that urged exploration of the impact that technology has on the content and nature of teaching and learning in nursing education (1999). Using a series of separate synchronous, online focus groups and 1:1 interviews with nurse educator experts …

The Relationship Between Student Perceptions Of Faculty Support And Student Perceptions Of Clinical Competency, Linda Clark

Master's Projects

This study explored the relationship between student perceptions of faculty support and student perceptions of clinical competency in beginning and senior level nursing students. A total of 91 ethnically diverse, generic baccalaureate nursing students from a state funded university participated in the study. The participants completed Mozingo, Thomas, and Brooks' (1995) Perceived Competency Scale (PCS), Shelton's (2003) Perceived Faculty Support Scales (PFSS), and a demographic questionnaire. An independent t test determined that the observed mean difference between perceived competency scores in 46 beginning students (M=32.02) and 45 senior students (M=27.36) was statistically significant (t (89) =3.25,p<.05). The students demonstrated high scores of perceived faculty support and demonstrated no difference between the beginning (M=94.82) and the senior (M=95.61) nursing students (t (87) =-.25,p>.05). No statistically significant …