Digital Commons Network^™

Evaluating The Efficacy Of An Acuity Stratification Tool In Community Based Palliative Care, Madison K. Niederer

Doctoral Dissertations & Projects

Background: Community-based palliative (CBPC) care teams strive to optimize the quality of life of patients living with serious illness while also providing value-based care. An acuity tool was previously implemented at a CBPC site to promote resource allocation and improve follow-up care. Initial implementation failed, and re-implementation was undertaken.

Objective: Address barriers to acuity tool uptake and provide education on correct acuity tool documentation to improve the number of patients that receive prescribed follow-up care.

Setting/Subjects: An urban CBPC service in the Midwestern United States with a patient panel of 443 patients. Subjects include nurses, social workers, providers, and patients. …

Lanthorn, Vol. 57, No. 19, January 23, 2023, Grand Valley State University

Volume 57, August 1, 2022 - April 10, 2023

Lanthorn is Grand Valley State's student newspaper, published from 1968 to the present.

Grand Valley Magazine, Vol. 22, No 2, Winter 2023, Grand Valley State University

Grand Valley Magazine

Grand Valley Magazine is a quarterly publication about Grand Valley State University produced by University Communications since 2001.

Gvsu Undergraduate And Graduate Catalog, 2023-2024, Grand Valley State University

Course Catalogs, 1963 - Current

Grand Valley State University 2023-2024 undergraduate and graduate course catalog. Course catalogs are published annually to provide students with information and guidance for enrollment.

Addressing The Problem Of Student Engagement In The Classroom, Levi R. Urias

Masters Projects

The problem of student engagement is one that is faced by teachers everywhere. While multiple strategies exist for combating this issue, project-based learning and inquiry-based learning are two that stand out in the multitude of research. Additionally, these strategies are ideal in the science classroom as they align very well with the Next Generation Science Standards that are used in Michigan, including rural Southwest Michigan school, Eau Claire High School. This project explores these instructional strategies and their various benefits which include improved critical thinking, improved social skills, and improved questioning skills.

Inclusive Job Descriptions Toolkit, Emily Frigo, Annie Bélanger, Kristin Meyer, Jason Durham, Brian Merry

Library Reports and Communication

The goal of the toolkit is to directly reflect our IDEA values and apply them to how we write job descriptions from start to finish for all positions in the Libraries. Supervisors, employees, and any key decision maker involved in the job description writing process should use this toolkit. The first part of the toolkit outlines best practices in developing job descriptions from both process and equity perspectives. The second part offers an equity lens to use to review the job descriptions. The Appendices include additional language, an implementation guide, and job description templates with instructions.

Chapter 7: Social Health: Beyond Absence Of Social Isolation And Loneliness, Lihua Huang, Lisa Peterson

Books and Contributions to Books

This chapter examines social health beyond absence of social isolation and loneliness in aging. It employs critical gerontology and social determinants of health in analyzing social exclusion through age segregation and digital exclusion. It draws attention to personal social connectedness and institutional social inclusion among older adults experiencing multiple exclusion.

Theorizing Autistic Sexualities As Collective Poetic Experiences, Anna Nygren, Hanna Bertilsdotter Rosqvist

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

This article is a palimpsest emerging as part of a project of collective autoethnographic writing on the theme of sexuality. It draws on the intensification of friendly writing, friendly as in friends with benefits. We write as autistic and neuroqueer subjects, writing until our textualities becomes sexualities. We write until the text becomes a room – call it Earth or call it Body, call it Brain or call it Heart – in which one could crack meanings―but these are not the most important ones. Instead of meanings and positions, we want to write about movements in time. The time it …

Lanthorn, Vol. 57, No. 12, November 7, 2022, Grand Valley State University

Volume 57, August 1, 2022 - April 10, 2023

Lanthorn is Grand Valley State's student newspaper, published from 1968 to the present.

Adjustment Of Refugees In Greece As A Social Identity Process: A Longitudinal Study, Angelos Panagiotopoulos, Irene Giovanetti, Vassilis Pavlopoulos

Papers from the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology Conferences

Many refugees moving into Greece and other European countries often struggle to adjust to their new life. Over and above other factors, social isolation seems to be a major contributor in their poor adjustment outcomes, yet the underlying psychological mechanisms of their links are not well understood. Based on the Social Identity Model of Identity Change, we conceptualized refugees’ adjustment as a major life transition that depends on (i) the maintenance of existing pre-migratory group memberships (social identity continuity pathway), (ii) the development of new post-migratory social identities (social identity gain pathway), and (iii) the perceived compatibility between pre- and …

Leadership Behavior, Stress, And Presenteeism: A Cross-Cultural Comparison, Jan Philipp Czakert, Julia A. M. Reif, Rita Berger

Papers from the International Association for Cross-Cultural Psychology Conferences

Presenteeism is the behavior of working with ill-health. Due to associated productivity losses and substantial transmission risks during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, presenteeism is gaining increased attention in occupational psychological research. To understand the complexity of this phenomenon, research on contextual influences is needed. Our study investigated positive leadership behavior (transformational leadership, TFL) and negative leadership behavior (passive-avoidant leadership, PAL) as social-contextual predictors, next to stress. We hypothesized that in countries with high masculine values, presenteeism is more likely to occur. Our study involved 979 employees from the different cultural contexts of Germany, Ireland, Latvia and Spain that answered an …

Lanthorn, Vol. 57, No. 11, October 31, 2022, Grand Valley State University

Volume 57, August 1, 2022 - April 10, 2023

Lanthorn is Grand Valley State's student newspaper, published from 1968 to the present.

Frances Perkins And The Women Reformers Behind The New Deal, Judy D. Whipps

Other Faculty Publications

Frances Perkins, the first female Cabinet member, was the creative force behind most New Deal legislation. She was responsible for Social Security and the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. These bills instituted federal policies that had been the focus of women social reformers starting in the 1890s. The forty-year struggle for the abolition of child labor, labor safety standards, minimum wage, and eight-hour workdays had been led by current and former Hull House residents, such as Jane Addams and Florence Kelley. Perkins was a former Hull House resident and was mentored and supported by Kelley and a network of …

Orthographic Mapping: A Tool For Success In Reading, Vocabulary Word Knowledge, Meaning, And Self Teaching In The Primary Grades, Lauren Eisnor

Masters Projects

High frequency words are words that appear often within text. These words often contain unfamiliar letter/sound patterns. In the past, educators have encouraged students to learn high frequency words beyond their level of decoding skill by techniques such as memorization, chants and mnemonics. Research is showing that students are capable of decoding words with unfamiliar letter/sound patterns; when they use phonic skills to do this work the words are stored in their memories. Orthographic mapping provides a structure by which students are able to practice listening for sounds, and determining corresponding letter patterns. Students are capable of decoding challenging letter/sound …

Boosting Attendance Through Relationships, Mia Ferguson

Masters Projects

Research has shown that students who feel a sense of belonging or personal connectedness in school have higher academic achievement. This project is to help my school Westfield Preparatory High School with its attendance issues. Since COVID, we have struggled to make daily attendance, so I chose this research project to give me better insight based on the issues staff and students gave for chronic absenteeism. I created an in-service for teachers to let them know how important teacher-student relationships are. During this in-service, I will present my research to teachers and present an academic coaching program where teachers will …

An Examination Of Interventions For Decreasing Academic Failure In Low-Income Students, Amy Elizabeth Mroczek

Masters Projects

Students from lower income brackets have a higher risk of not completing school. School misbehavior, school mobility, grade retention, homework completion, school safety, attendance, academic self-efficacy, academic engagement, and academic expectations were all uniquely related to grade point average and experiencing two of the risk factors was predictive of academic failure. The developed sessions were based on self-determination theory and motivational interviewing skills. The sessions include strategies to help with organization, time-management, and self-advocacy. These sessions are also designed to create a support system with peers and a trusted adult. Over the course of six small groups students will be …

Defining Regenerative Business Through The Context Of Place: A Case Study West Michigan Businesses, Aislinn Teachout, Aislinn Teachout

Masters Theses

This study builds upon existing scholarly literature on regenerative design and regenerative sustainability by relating the framework to existing West Michigan businesses and their place-specific practices. Applying concepts from those more developed fields to business sustainability, this paper contributes to the still emerging field of regenerative business by proposing a comprehensive definition of regenerative business. The definition is then applied to three businesses in a case study format to highlight regenerative business practices. While none of the businesses highlighted claim to be regenerative, all have examples of practices that demonstrate regenerative action and enhance the West Michigan community.

By defining …

“¿Y Que?”: Diverse Literacy Experiences Within A Pre-College High School Program, Sandra M. Gonzales, Jonelle N. López, Laura Torres, Ana Calandrino

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

Using Read Alouds To Target Social-Emotional Learning, Ashley Schultz, Alicia Baczek

Michigan Reading Journal

No abstract provided.

Interest In Co-Located Reproductive And Sexual Health Services Among Women And Men Receiving Medication For Opioid Use Disorder In An Outpatient Treatment Clinic, Jonathan Stoltman, Laura R. Lander, Julie H. Patrick, Mishka Terplan, Hendrée E. Jones

Open Access Publishing Support Funded Articles

Introduction: Reproductive and sexual health (RSH) are core components of comprehensive care, yet often omitted in addiction treatment. We characterize knowledge of and interest in RSH services and contraceptive method awareness and use in a rural, Appalachian outpatient clinic.

Materials and Methods: Between September 2016 and April 2018, a convenience sample of 225 patients receiving treatment for opioid use disorder at an outpatient buprenorphine/naloxone clinic was collected. Participants completed a cross-sectional RSH survey that included demographics, interest in RSH service integration, contraceptive use, and contraceptive knowledge.

Results: A total of 212 people (126 non-pregnant women, 29 pregnant women, and 57 …

The Use Of Occupational Therapy Services In Outpatient Mental Health, Kelsey A. Wasik, Matt T. Valois, Kaylee M. Essenberg, Kelcie P. Beck

Masters Theses

The purpose of this study is aimed to explore the structure and utilization details of occupational therapy in outpatient behavioral health settings. Two occupational therapists participated in qualitative phenomenological interviews which were transcribed and analyzed using the thematic approach. A total of two themes emerged: billing and coverage, and education and advocacy. Participants identified there are necessary factors for reimbursement of services, in addition to the need for education and advocacy for occupational therapists to practice in outpatient behavioral health settings. Future research should be aimed at recruiting more participants, occupational therapists, and from other roles in these clinics such …

My Autistic Childhood And Adult Life: Four Stories Of Abuse And Survival, Dafne Zuleima Morgado Ramirez

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

No abstract provided.

It’S Not Autism. It’S Your Parenting. An Autoethnographic Exploration Of The Relationships Between Professionals And Parents Of An Autistic Child In The Uk, Barbara Mitra Dr

Ought: The Journal of Autistic Culture

This paper is based on my own child who was diagnosed with Autism (aged 7 years and Autism and PDA aged 11). Using autoethnography, drawing on my own diaries, records and journals that I kept throughout this process, I document how our parenting was continually questioned and considered to be ineffective. This was the case even when our child had received his first diagnosis of autism. The extra stress and trauma that such continual questioning had impacted not only on us as parents, but also on our child with worsening behaviour. It seems that professionals continually questioned parenting styles, rather …

Burned Out And Unappreciated: Exploring Emotional Support For Certified Nursing Assistants In Skilled Nursing Facilities, Andrea H. Miller

Masters Theses

This qualitative exploratory study involved individual interviews with three certified nursing assistants (CNAs) working for skilled nursing facilities within the West Michigan area. Using semi-structured questions, the researcher asked the CNAs about the different critical incidents (CIs) and job demands they experience. CNAs were also asked about the support resources they currently have through their SNF employer, if those resources are meeting their needs, and if CISM could be a beneficial resource option. Thematic analysis was used to code and interpret the data from the interview to find four main themes: Burnout, Communication, Inconsistency, and Teamwork. Participants identified physical and …

Formalized Diabetes Education In A Safety-Net Clinic, Haley N. Wanic

Doctoral Dissertations & Projects

Uncontrolled diabetes mellitus in a Hispanic population can be helped through a quality improvement project focused on progressive verbal and written diabetes self-management education (DSME) Purpose of this article is to review the background, an organizational assessment, a literature review, results of the quality improvement project that took place at a safety-net clinic in the Midwest. This project included four patients and data was analyzed through descriptive statistics. Results include improved hemoglobin (Hg) A1c, minimal workflow adjustments for providers, completed microalbumins, and written education given to patients. In conclusion, the quality improvement project showed positive trends in outcome measures over …

The Case For Oer As The Advancement Of Knowledge/Creative Expression, Amber Dierking, Matt Ruen, Steven Schlicker

Library Reports and Communication

The nature of scholarly and creative activity, at Grand Valley State University and across the higher education sector, is rapidly evolving. Amidst this ongoing transformation, the characteristics of OER – free access plus permission for adaptation – empower Grand Valley’s teacher-scholars to share their expertise with a global audience and simultaneously remove barriers to education for Lakers.

This memo, submitted for consideration by the University Academic Senate at GVSU, argues that the creation of OER can demonstrate several of the forms of scholarly activity described by Boyer (1990) as well as the criteria established for the Advancement of Knowledge or …

Mental Health Focus As A Deterrent For Justice Involved Youth, Miyah Seckinger

Honors Projects

Tough-on-crime policies regarding youthful offending have resulted in a pendulum swing in which the juvenile justice system has shifted from a rehabilitative focus to one of punishment. The current paper evaluates different mental health program alternatives, as an option to return to a rehabilitative focus for juveniles, with a major focus on the Juvenile Treatment and Support Court in Kent County, Michigan. Through a qualitative analysis, there were findings of initial success with the youthful offenders presented in the court. Recommendations and limitations from the study are presented to aid further policy change and research.

Food Insecurity Of Community College Students: Addressing Barriers To Improve Persistence And Retention, Erin M. Van Egmond

Masters Projects

Food insecurity is a non-academic barrier that must be considered when determining factors affecting students’ persistence and retention in college. Through the literature reviewed, food insecurity of community college students and the impact and barriers they face is explored in detail. The proposed solution addresses the stigma and lack of awareness regarding food insecurity resources available on campuses. Targeted communication with all students at the start of each semester will allow individuals to assess their level of food security. Depending on the level of food security, a targeted communication plan will follow providing information on resources available. Faculty and staff …

Cultural Competence In The Care Of Muslim Women Patients, Ayah Ayesh

Honors Projects

Delivering high-quality care to female patients of the Muslim faith requires knowledge of the differences in cultural and spiritual values. Important differences include diet, ideas of modesty, privacy, and touch restrictio. Globally, Muslims represent substantial portions of society and remain the fastest-growing religion in the world. The Muslim faith encompasses several ethnicities with diverse views regarding illness and healthcare. As a result, the care of Muslim patients provides challenges for many non-Muslim healthcare providers. The Islamic faith can influence decision-making, family dynamics, health practices, risks, and the use of healthcare. This paper describes the care of Muslim patients taking into …

The Direct Care Workforce Crisis: Factors Affecting Employee Retention And Turnover Amidst A Pandemic, Rebecca Green

SPNHA Review

The purpose of this research paper is to explore the crisis currently affecting the stability of the direct care workforce within the healthcare industry of the United States. Direct care workers provide personal care assistance to individuals in nursing facilities, home health settings, community-based programs, and to persons with intellectual or developmental disabilities. The purpose of this role and the demographics of these types of employees will be explored. The history of this profession, as well as its growing demand, as they contribute to the workforce crisis will be examined. Factors contributing to employee retention and turnover will also be …