Digital Commons Network^™

Lncreasing Communication Between Elderly Patients And Their Providers, Andrea Gingerich

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Delayed Pushing In The Second Stage Of Labor: A Study Of Nulliparous Women Under Epidural Anesthesia, Justine Mcarthur

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Early Implementation Of Palliative Care Services In The Elderly Population, Jenifer Wynne

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Standardized Critical Thinking Assessments And Nclex-Rn® Success, Angela Mountain

Theses and Dissertations

Assessing students' ability to think critically before beginning a nursing program and again at the completion of the program helps to determine to what degree students' critical thinking skills are developed throughout the whole of the nursing curricula. This study evaluated the statistically significant improvement in critical thinking scores of nursing students from entry to program completion. The relationship of critical thinking exam scores and NC LEX-RN® success was a lso evaluated but it was found that the scores and the change in scores did not predict NCLEX-RN® success

Cardiovascular Disease And Vitamin D Deficiency, Lori Nelson

Theses and Dissertations

Vitamin D deficiency is a common health condition affecting a significant number of individuals throughout the world. For years vitamin D has generated interest in reducing osteoporosis because of its role in bone and calcium metabolism. Recently low concentrations have been linked to the development of several cardiovascular diseases such as hypertension, heart failure, atherosclerosis and peripheral arterial disease. The purpose of this article is to examine evidence regarding vitamin D deficiency and cardiovascular disease and provide advanced practice nurses with recommendations regarding supplementation in those individuals with vitamin D deficiency and risk for development of cardiovascular disease.

Evidence Related To Tcu Geriatric Patients With Tha Or Tka. Do Narcotics Improve Patient Recovery Time?, Dixie Olson

Theses and Dissertations

Pain in the elderly often goes unrecognized until the pain is critical and difficult to manage. Insufficient pain management increases morbidity, mortality, and it can lead to multiple aggravating circumstances which may impede recovery from total hip arthroplasty (THA) or total knee arthroplasty (TKA). These adverse conditions and circumstances include: poor quality of life, physiological and psychological problems, anxiety, depression, sleep deprivation, nausea, vomiting, delirium, falls, urinary retention, constipation, dysesthetic itching, extended recovery time due to patients guarding affected limb and/or complications from inactivity such as pneumonia, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and pulmonary embolism (PE). Slower recovery may lead to …

Methadone Use, Shantelle Feragen

Theses and Dissertations

Chronic pain affects more than 116 million Americans every year. It results in an overwhelming economic burden on the healthcare system in terms of hospitalization, rehospitalizations and outpatient clinic visits. Chronic pain is also burdensome on patients and families in terms of lost wages, and lower quality of life. It is estimated to cost the healthcare system between $261 and $300 billion per year with a loss of $297- $336 billion due to loss of productivity (American Academy of Pain, 2011).

In the early 1900's, opioid addiction ran rampant in North America. It was viewed by many as a social …

Childhood Obesity: Intervening In Utero, Mary Lee Beck

Theses and Dissertations

The prevalence of childhood obesity has risen to epidemic proportions in this country. American Indian youth are disproportionately affected by this epidemic and its comorbidities, like diabetes, when compared to whites, and even other minorities. There is no single determinant of cause. Currently interventions are focused at the individual, family, community and environmental levels. Perhaps the most important component in this epidemic, however, is being overlooked: the health status of the mother during pregnancy. There is strong evidence that obesity and diabetes are perpetually cycled from mother to baby during pregnancy, and maternal obesity and diabetes play a significant role …

Aeronautical Decision Making In Helicopter Emergency Medical Systems (Hems): The Effect Of Mission Orientation And Local Base Finances On The Go/No Go Decision, Paul Cline

Theses and Dissertations

Helicopter Emergency Medical Services (HEMS) is among the most dangerous type of flying in the United States today. In 2008 it was safer to fly medical evacuation missions in Iraq and Afghanistan than in the Continental United States. This study is designed to test whether the financial performance of the local base and a hyper mission orientation have a negative effect on aeronautical decision making among HEMS crews. A Likert type survey was administered to HEMS pilots and medical crews to ascertain their thoughts and feelings regarding the two questions under investigation. While the data clearly showed that poor financial …

Airline Pilot Non-Flight Related Activities During Cruise Flight And Perceptions On Their Safety Effects, Spencer Conklin

Theses and Dissertations

Automation complacency, boredom, and fatigue pose significant risk to aviation. There have been many incidents and accidents as a result of these challenges to human performance. In previous studies pilots have admitted to performing non- flight related activities in order to deal with these challenges. However, no research has been done on the frequency and perceived safety effects of non-flight related activities. If pilots are engaging in activities intended to counter these challenges, it is important to know the frequency and how pilots feel these non-flight activities affect safety. This study used a survey tool to gather information regarding non-flight …

Pre-Hospital Induced Therapeutic Hypothermia Improves Neurological Outcomes, Mark S. Kosten

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Pain Assessment And Management In Clients With Alzheimer's, Kristen Jaster

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Use Of Evidence To Assess Decreased Agitation In Alzheimer's Patients With Music Therapy, Rebecca Kreis

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this paper is to provide evidence-based research of the literature on music therapy as an intervention for agitation in Alzheimer's dementia patients. An agitated behavior state continues to be one of the most challenging behavior states in caring for individuals with Alzheimer's disease. An extensive review of the literature showed that music therapy is a successful, easy to apply, low cost intervention for agitated behavior in Alzheimer's disease patients

Visual Supports In The Classroom, Karen C. Prakelt

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Moving From Professional Learning Communities To Communities Of Practice In North Dakota Education, Travis J. Smith

Theses and Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Rural Care For Diabetes, Jody L. Ward

Theses and Dissertations

Individuals in rural areas with diabetes and cardiovascular disease do not receive adequate care for their chronic disease and this can lead to poor diabetes outcomes compared to their counterparts in urban areas. Individuals in rural areas with diabetes do not receive adequate care for their chronic disease. Rural areas often face more serious health problems and challenges than seen in many urban and suburban areas. Literature was reviewed to find best practices for diabetes and cardiovascular disease in rural populations. A conceptual framework can be used in all healthcare settings for guiding decision-making purposes that include the problem, person …

Using Bundles To Prevent Ventilator-Associated Pneumonia In Intubated Adult Icu Patients, Jessica Bleth Buchholz

Theses and Dissertations

VAP is a pneumonia which occurs within 48 hours of intubation. The nature of intubation itself, comorbidities and aspiration all contribute to development of VAP. VAP increases health care costs as well as patient morbidity and mortality. Prevention is necessary to protect patients and decrease incidence of VAP in intubated adult intensive care patients. Implementation of VAP bundles can help reduce risk and improve patient outcomes.

A bundle is a grouping of interventions aimed at a common cause. Ventilator bundles were originally implemented as a way to decrease complications occurring in intubated patients. Interventions such as sequential devices for deep …

Volume 49, Number 36: April 25, 2012, University Of North Dakota

University Letter Archive

No abstract provided.

Volume 49, Number 35: April 18, 2012, University Of North Dakota

University Letter Archive

No abstract provided.

Volume 49, Number 34: April 11, 2012, University Of North Dakota

University Letter Archive

No abstract provided.

April 5, 2012, University Of North Dakota

University Senate Meeting Minutes

Minutes from the April 5, 2012, meeting of the University Senate. 51 pages

Volume 49, Number 33: April 04, 2012, University Of North Dakota

University Letter Archive

No abstract provided.

The Effect Of The Boys Town Education Model On One Elementary School In North Dakota, Jeffry Scott Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Keeping schools safe and productive is an increasing concern for educators everywhere. This research focused on how one elementary school in West Fargo, North Dakota, implemented a school wide discipline approach to help decrease negative student behaviors. The researcher compared and contrasted three different discipline models. The researcher looked at six years of data collected by Eastwood Elementary School. The data included perceptions of teachers, students, and parents, school demographics, classroom observations by qualified Boys Town personnel, and school documentation on detentions, attendance, office referrals, and transportation referral data beginning with Spring 2001 through the 2008 school year.One data collection …

The Relationship Between Physical Fitness And Executive Control Functioning In Young Adults, Margaret L. Cowles

Theses and Dissertations

Physical fitness is associated with overall health and well-being. Increasing evidence, primarily among older adults, supports the link between physical health and cognitive health, particularly with subset of cognitive processes known as executive control functioning. Executive control functioning is needed to complete complex, goal-directed activities and involves the capacity to initiate and discontinue behaviors appropriately, to monitor and modify actions as needed, to plan future behavior when faced with novel tasks and situations, and to anticipate future outcomes. To date, researchers studying the link between physical fitness and executive control functioning have largely focused on older adults and have defined …

Comparative Analysis Of Yersinia Pestis Infection In Resistant And Susceptible Mice, Nathaniel D. Lambert

Theses and Dissertations

This study demonstrates that 2 month old, female B10.T(6R) are highly resistant to systemic infection with the KIM5 strain of Yersinia pestis , and that B10.T(6R) mice become susceptible to Y. pestis infection by 5 months of age. In this study we infected both young (2 month) and middle-aged (5-12 month) B10.T(6R) with equal CFUs of Y. pestis. LD50 of young B10.T(6R) was ∼1.4 X 10 4 CFU, while middle-aged B10. T(6R) mice exhibited an LD50 of ∼60 CFU. An elevated bacterial burden was found in the spleens of middle-aged mice at 24 and 60 h and the livers at …

Binge Eating After Bariatric Surgery: The Role Of Treatment Groups, Christine M. Peat

Theses and Dissertations

As the recent rates of obesity have increased, so too have the rates of individuals electing to undergo bariatric surgery. Extant literature would suggest that surgical treatment is the most effective in terms of overall weight loss, however the problem of binge eating persists even after surgery and can affect the extent to which weight loss is maintained. Thus, the current study examined the potential effect of a cognitive-behavioral (CBT) group treatment aimed at reducing binge eating the post-surgical bariatric population. Self-reports of binge eating, health-related quality of life, and depression were obtained from a total of 68 post-bariatric patients. …

Neuropsychological, Academic Achievement, And Behavioral Differences Between The Child Behavior Checklist Pediatric Bipolar Disorder Profile, Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder, And Emotionally Normal Controls, Troy W. Ertelt

Theses and Dissertations

The diagnosis of bipolar disorders in children and adolescents has increased exponentially over the past 15 years. During this time, a number of important questions have lingered regarding diagnostic accuracy, especially when differentiating from attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), and core features of the bipolar disorders in children and adolescents. Recently, some have suggested a specific profile on the Child Behavior Checklist (the Child Behavior Checklist Pediatric Bipolar Disorder [CBCL-PBD] profile) as being an efficient method of screening children and adolescents for having a bipolar disorder. The present study examined children positive for the CBCL-PBD and positive for a diagnosis of ADHD, …

Stress And Coping Styles: Differences Between Native Americans And White Americans, Joseph L. Corbine

Theses and Dissertations

Almost everyone experiences negative stress in their lives; this study attempts to explore how Native Americans experience and cope with negative stress. The stress filled lives of Native Americans is well documented. Their lives are punctuated with injury, illness, death, dismembered relationships, and encounters with legal authorities. It is hypothesized in this study that there are major differences in the ways that Native Americans and White Americans cope with stress. The study begins with a review of stress and then addresses the more unique stresses faced by Native Americans. After a review of the literature on styles of coping with …

Successful Career Attainment In Women Survivors Of Domestic Abuse: A Qualitative Study, Christine E. Even

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore experiences and perspectives of women survivors of domestic abuse regarding their successful career attainment. The Consensual Qualitative Research (CQR) method was used to analyze the data gathered from interviews with ten women survivors of domestic abuse who self identified as having successful careers. Each participant completed a semi-structured interview conducted via telephone. Specifically, questions were asked regarding participants' definitions of career success, their perceptions of their successfulness and satisfaction with their career, their perceived supports and barriers to their career success, how they felt their experiences of being in domestically abusive …

Spirituality As A Factor Influencing Body Image And Romantic Relationship Satisfaction, Carrie Ann Giebel

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of the present study was to investigate the relationships and interactions between the variables of body image, body-esteem, spirituality/religion factors, romantic relationship satisfaction and locus of control as a moderating factor. This paper examined the literature of each of these variables and explored a non-clinical adult population of both men and women in order to further the understanding of body image dissatisfaction and sex differences. Each participant was contacted via e-mail through attending one of three Midwestern Universities and asked to complete a questionnaire through an internet server. The findings indicated multiple gender differences related to body image …