Digital Commons Network^™

Transitions From Military Duty To College For United States Military Veterans, Velma Layne

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Some veterans transitioning from military duty to the classroom are not obtaining college degrees. The purpose of this study was to investigate student veterans’ perceptions of the transition services and support systems at their college that might impact the challenges they face while pursuing a college degree. The theoretical framework for this study was Schlossberg’s Theory of Transition. The guiding research question asked how military veterans perceived the transition services and support systems at their university in the context of their decision to obtain their degrees. A purposeful sampling approach was used for selecting student veteran participants who had returned …

Reducing Length Of Hospital Stay For Intellectually Disabled Psychiatric Patients With Chronic Medical Problems, Joseph Wigwe

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Length of hospital stay (LOS) is a major indicator for measuring efficient care. Intellectually disabled psychiatric patients (IDPP) with chronic medical problems have longer LOS due to challenges faced by providers in jointly managing both psychiatric and medical problems. The purposes of this study were to understand the significance of LOS for IDPP, create an intervention toolkit to reduce LOS, establish the content validity of the toolkit, and recommend its implementation. The items of the toolkit are pharmacology, somatic, rehabilitation, psychosocial, and monitoring patients' psychiatric and medical symptoms across care domains. The toolkit was created from the constructs of the …

Through Their Eyes: Young African American Men's Perceptions Of Fatherhood, Irena J. Glover

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of this study was to explore current African American fathers' experiences with being fathered, and to understand how those definitions, perceptions, and experiences of fatherhood impacted their involvement in the lives of their own children. In-depth individual interviews were conducted in Detroit, Michigan with 10 African American fathers ranging in age from 22 to 25. Ecological systems theory and identity theory served as the theoretical framework for the study. Member checking, detailed descriptions, and audit trails were used to establish trustworthiness of the data. The findings of the study showed that father involvement was directly related to or …

Sexual Assault Complaint Management From The Perspectives Of Ex-Military Air Force Leaders, Annmarie Macaraeg

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Military sexual assault continues to be a persistent problem for the Department of Defense despite the development of new reporting procedures. A sexual assault in the military can cause a lapse in mission accomplishment, negatively interrupt the victim's career, and lead personnel to fail at meeting high standards and expectations. The management of sexual assault complaints in the military has not been effective in preventing sexual assaults from occurring. This grounded theory study looked to explain how military leadership approaches the sexual assault complaint management process. Bronfenbrenner's (1979) ecological model of human development was the conceptual lens used for this …

Retention Of Information Technology Employees, Sherry Ann Dixon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Business leaders often realize greater profitability when they have strategies to retain IT

employees. However, the cost to replace IT employees creates significant challenges for

business leaders. Given the growing impact of technology on operational costs, retention

of IT employees is imperative. This exploratory single case study sought to identify the

strategies that leaders use to increase IT employee retention. The population was 6

leaders from a military organization in Norfolk, Virginia, responsible for the retention of

IT employees. Herzberg's two-factor theory was the conceptual framework for this study.

The data was collected from semi-structured interviews with 6 leaders along …

Facilitating Person-Centered Care For People With Intellectual And Developmental Disabilities, Laure Bertille Ndeutchoua

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The patient centered care (PCC) model is recommended by the Institute of Medicine for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The problem identified in this quality improvement (QI) project was that PCC practices had not been included in the training curriculum within the organization. Framed within the plan-do-study-act model of QI, the purpose of this project was to develop an educational initiative on PCC that included a curriculum plan, a pretest/posttest, a protocol, a revision of the training policy, and an implementation and evaluation plan. Drawing upon the evidence-based literature and using a team approach, a curriculum plan on PCC …

The Relationship Between Male Involvement In Early Childhood Education And Student Academic Achievement, Carla Christinia Barnes

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Researchers have found that the limited involvement of fathers in their children's academic activities may negatively affect children's academic development. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the role of father involvement in the academic achievement of young children in early childhood classes and to assess barriers to such involvement. Guided by Erikson, Vygotsky, and Bronfenbrenner theories of learning and development, the research questions examined fathers' perceived level of educational involvement, barriers to educational involvement, and the relationship between the level of recorded father involvement and student achievement. Data were collected using a modified Parental Involvement Survey that …

Middle School Success Reading Intervention Strategies, Christina Ikwuegbu

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Guided by the cognitive development view of reading interventions, this qualitative case study addressed the lack of intervention programs in middle schools in a large city in New Jersey State. The purpose of the study was to examine teachers' perceptions of intervention programs for low-performing readers. Research questions addressed the intervention strategies to improve students' learning, school culture, and teaching styles used to teach them. Survey questions were sent to 25 teachers chosen randomly from 5 schools in the school district. Surveys were analyzed by developing codes, clustering themes, and then developing a full description from the teachers' perspectives. The …

Assessment Of Her2-Neu In Breast Cancer Lines Upon Differential Exposures To Xenoestrogens, Abha Aggarwal

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Synthetic xenoestrogens have differential estrogenic properties. Research has shown that exposures to xenoestrogens could promote breast cancer by disrupting normal function of the human epidermal growth factor receptor 2 (Her2) gene. Although animal models demonstrated a connection between xenoestrogen exposure and Her2 activity, no study using human cells has systematically examined their carcinogenic potential influencing the Her2 gene expression. Furthermore, breast cancer cells are phenotypically disparate (ER+, Her2+), with some phenotypes (Her2+), leading to more aggressive disease. This study aimed to dosimetrically assess the carcinogenic potential of commonly used xenoestrogens influencing Her2 gene expression, and delineate cellular phenotypes at greater …

Employee Turnover In Frontline Hospital Staff, Jeanne Lynn Wilson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Employee turnover is costly in service-intensive organizations where employee-customer interactions directly affect the organization's success. The purpose of this multiple case study was to identify strategies community hospital leaders use to reduce frontline support employee turnover. The study population consisted of leaders of a community hospital in southeast Louisiana. The conceptual framework for this study is Kahn's model of employee engagement. Semistructured interviews were conducted with eight hospital leaders in southeast Louisiana who were selected through census sampling. Interview transcripts were analyzed and coded following Yin's case study analysis process. Methodological triangulation allowed for a comparison of the findings of …

Preceptor Progam For New Graduate Nurses, Althea Louise Webster

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The transition from student to new graduate nurse is a difficult conversion. The challenges of the new graduate are the demanding workload, lack of clinical skills, and incivility from staff nurses and unfamiliar institutional cultures. More than 40% of new graduate nurses report making medication errors and feel unprepared to recognize and intervene in life-threatening complications that keep the patient safe from harm. Preceptorship is a clinical instructive model in which a professional relationship provides new graduate nurses with access to a clinical expert and role model within a preset time frame. The goal of the program was to evaluate …

An Obesity Needs Assessment With African American Adults In Central Virginia, Nicole Michelle Brown

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The risk for obesity is especially prevalent among African American adults in Central Virginia, who have one of the highest rates of obesity in the nation. Efforts to address obesity in African American adults through diet, weight reduction, and increased physical activity in settings such as schools, worksites, healthcare organizations, churches, and communities, are among the initiatives of Healthy People 2020. The objective of this project, conducted with 91 African American adults (33 females and 58 males) in central Virginia, was to complete a community needs assessment that related to obesity among members of an African American church. The needs …

Identifying Barriers To Graduation For Nontraditional Students, Abena Salvant

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Increased enrollments of nontraditional students in U.S. higher education institutions have prompted many college and university administrators to consider student service programs. These programs ensure that support services are available to nontraditional students to cultivate healthy graduation rates among that student population. The purpose of this study was to discover factors that influence nontraditional students to become disengaged or be retained. The study was a qualitative case study with data collected from individual interviews with 10 nontraditional students participating in online and traditional onsite delivery systems at a private, nontraditional higher education institution in the western United States. The theoretical …

The Successful Implementation Of Electronic Health Records At Small Rural Hospitals, Daniel Richardson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Electronic health records (EHRs) have been in use since the 1960s. U.S. rural hospital leaders and administrators face significant pressure to implement health information technology because of the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. However, some leaders and managers of small rural hospital lack strategies to develop and implement EHRs. The focus of this descriptive phenomenological study was to explore lived experiences of hospital leaders and administrators who have used successful strategies to implement EHRs in small rural hospitals. Diffusion of innovation theory shaped the theoretical framework of this study. Data were collected through telephone interviews conducted with participants …

An Exploration Of A State Mandated Health Education Program, Patricia Lyons

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Shaken baby syndrome (SBS) is one of the most violent forms of physical child abuse. In 2007, the State of Ohio enacted a health education mandate known as Claire's law. Claire's law requires all birthing hospitals to provide SBS education to mothers prior to their discharge. This law is the result of public demand and advocacy initiatives; however, it was not clear how the mandate was developed or whether or not the mandate and subsequent educational programs have had an impact on efforts to prevent SBS. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the state of Ohio's …

Nurse Practitioners' Attitudes Toward Nonpharmacological Interventions For Individuals Diagnosed With Clinical Depression, Joseph Ocran

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Depression negatively impacts the American economy, and there is a shortage of physicians to provide treatment. Nurse practitioners are viable alternatives to provide high-quality treatment of depression. The project's purpose was to describe nurse practitioners' attitudes toward nonpharmacological interventions to treat clinical depression. Attitude theory provided the theoretical framework. The American Psychiatric Association's guidelines for treating major depression provided the conceptual framework. The project used a quantitative nonexperimental descriptive survey research design. A purposeful sample of 63 nurse practitioners was obtained from members of the American Association of Nurse Practitioners. Data were collected through an online survey that included questions …

Perceptions Of Career And Technical Education Held By High School Career Counselors, Marlon Thornburg

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Current enrollment in Career and Technical Education (CTE) programs in the United States and in the state of Kansas is lagging behind the future demand for skilled workers. With millions of skilled labor positions unfilled and the pending retirement of the baby boomer generation, the United States is at a critical juncture to compete in the global marketplace. High school career counselors are the primary resource for CTE program recruitment. The purpose of this study was to examine whether high school career counselors' educational backgrounds, knowledge levels of CTE initiatives and programs in Kansas, and available counseling time were associated …

Behavioral Health Medical Interpreters: Cluster Analysis Of Vicarious Traumatization And Posttraumatic Growth, Pauline N. Stahlbrodt

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Medical interpreter services will be essential for developing and implementing culturally relevant interventions and treatment for limited English proficiency (LEP) populations. This study sought to identify the possible risks or protective factors that may be associated with vicarious traumatization (VT) or vicarious posttraumatic growth among medical interpreters in behavioral health settings. A 2-step cluster analysis was conducted yielding 2 distinct groupings of medical interpreters (Subtype 1, n = 73; Subtype 2, n = 101). The most important predictor determining the 2 subtypes was whether the participant had a personal history of trauma. In addition, there were significant differences between the …

Teacher And Administrator Responses To Bullying Within A Professional Learning Community, Tracey Gomez

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

In a local suburban K-8 school in California, administrators and teachers were concerned when more than half of the fifth- and seventh-grade students indicated on the California Healthy Kids Survey that they do not feel safe at school. Researchers have noted that using a professional learning community (PLC) model in schools may assist with addressing bullying. The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore teachers' and administrators' responses to incidences of bullying and the PLC processes used to address such incidents in their school. The conceptual framework for this study was Hord's dimensions of the PLC. Data were …

Federal Health Care Fraud Statute Sentencing In Georgia And Florida, 2011-2012, Lisa Walker Johnson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The financial costs of U.S. federal health care fraud continue to increase, and as health care payments due to fraudulent claims increase, the portion of The Medicare Trust Fund available to pay for legitimate health care expenses decreases. Prosecution is one of several fraud management life cycle components that contributes to and can alter the course of increasing health care fraud; however, despite this recognition, there is a gap in the literature regarding the consistency of prosecution for federal health care fraud across different judicial districts. The purpose of this qualitative, exploratory multiple case study was to explore the federal …

The Impact Of Technology Acceptance And Openess To Innovaion On Software Implementation, Michael Marin Bertini

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Senior management decisions to foster innovation and adopt new technology solutions have serious implications for the success of their organization change initiatives. This project examined the issue of senior management decision or reasons of their decision to adopt new Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) systems as a solution to solve their business problems. This project investigated the degree that perceived ease of use and usefulness of the ERP system influenced decisions made by senior managers to innovate. Roger's diffusion of innovations theory and Davis technology acceptance model theory were used to predict when senior managers were open to innovation, and whether …

Military Child Care Providers And Challenging Behaviors Of Early Childhood Students, Donna J. Blackburn

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Job satisfaction of early childhood teachers in military programs and satisfaction changes as teachers deal with challenging behaviors in the workplace was the focus of this study. The goal of The National Association for the Education of Young Children is to ensure quality programming that promotes positive child development experiences. Child development experiences are impacted by teaching staff, partnerships, administration, and the children's' environment. This case study examined the specific environment and behaviors that military childcare providers experience at a small military installation and explored how working with children with challenging behaviors impacts the job satisfaction of early childhood teachers. …

Implementation Of A Nurse Practitioner Residency Program In Critical Access Hospitals, Anna Ngwisah Bolima

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Access to health care in rural communities is challenged by workforce shortages. Nurse practitioners (NPs) have been filling the gap created by physician migration into specialty areas. Flex hospital legislation allows critical access hospitals (CAHs) to staff the emergency department with NPs without on-site physicians. NP education often lacks emergency and trauma curriculum, resulting in gaps in practice expectations and significant role transition stress and turnover. The purpose of this project was to construct from the scholarly literature a transition-to-practice residency program to support NP's in providing emergency department care in the CAH. The limbo to legitimacy theory guided the …

Diabetes Mellitus Type 2: A Quality Improvement And Patient Safety Initiative, Remeliza Navarrete Tukay

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The purpose of the quality improvement (QI) project was to examine the relationship between amended nursing education concerning diabetes mellitus (DM) Type 2 self-care management incorporating Tune in, Explore, Assist, Communicate, and Honor (TEACH) and Motivational Interviewing (MI) strategies and techniques and the Glycosylated hemoglobin (HgbA1C) of veteran patients with uncontrolled diabetes. The target sample included the 2 licensed practical nurses and 2 registered nurses assigned to 2 primary care teams, and the 10 purposively sampled patients with uncontrolled DM Type 2 from each team. The nurses' competencies were measured through descriptive comparison before and after nursing education implementation using …

Improving Quality Of Care For Mechanically Ventilated Patients In Long Term Care Through Full Compliance With The Ventilator Bundle Protocol, Tedgardo Pacal Mercene

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

One of the most common methods used by healthcare professionals in the ventilator unit to reduce morbidity and mortality due to ventilator-associated pneumonia (VAP) is a group of best practices known as the ventilator bundle. However, evidence from the literature shows that all its components must be in compliance if the bundle is to be effective. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to investigate the level of compliance with the different components of the ventilator bundle protocol at the study site's nursing home and rehabilitation center, as well as to improve compliance with the bundle protocol at the …

Influence Of Teacher Participation On Student Fitness And Student Participation In Physical Education, Whitney Morris

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Physical activity plays a key role in the health of children. Childhood obesity is increasing in the United States, and children are spending less time being physically active. Active participation by a physical education (PE) teacher in physical activities has been suggested as a means of promoting student fitness. The purpose of this quasi-experimental quantitative study was to determine whether modeling of physical activity by a PE teacher would increase student participation and physical fitness. Bandura's social learning theory provided the theoretical framework for the study. Participants included 311 4th and 5th grade elementary students enrolled in physical education classes. …

Developing A Guideline For Care Of Students With Diabetes, Rita Ozioma Onwenna-Aninyei

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Diabetes mellitus (DM) is one of the most common chronic diseases affecting children under the age of 20, and it often leads to serious complications. In recent decades, there has been an increase in incidence of both types of DM among U.S. children. Having this chronic condition not only negatively impacts the health of these children but also their academic achievements. School health nurses struggle to manage these children appropriately and safely. The purpose of this project was to develop an evidence- based guideline for a standardized process in which school nurses coordinate the school and student health care teams …

The Relationship Between Community College Academic Advising And Time To Degree Completion, Brenda Wepfer Pongracz

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Increasing student on-time completion is a challenge for many higher education institutions. In the community college chosen for this study, only 5.2% of its first-time-in-college, full-time students graduated within 3 years with a 2-year degree. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between participation in the college's academic advising program and students' time-to-degree completion, based on the pre- and post-entry attributes outlined in Tinto's institutional departure theory. A non-experimental, correlational, quantitative research method with multiple regression analysis was applied, using a convenience sample of 190 graduating students from the institution's 2011 Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System (IPEDS) …

Meeting Meaningful-Use Requirements With Electronic Medical Records In A Community Health Clinic, Tony Andrew Richardson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Small nonprofit medical practices lack the technical expertise to implement electronic medical records (EMRs) that are consistent with federal meaningful-use requirements. Failure to comply with meaningful-use EMR requirements affects nonprofit community health care leaders' ability to receive reimbursement for care. Complexity theory was the conceptual framework used in this exploratory single case study. The purpose of the study was to explore the strategies nonprofit community health care leaders in Washington, DC used to implement EMRs in order to comply with the meaningful-use requirements. Data were collected via in-depth interviews with 7 purposively-selected health care leaders in a nonprofit clinic and …

Developmental Evaluation Of A Centralized Denials Management Program, Lisa Schiener

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Health care reimbursement is changing, and hospitals are finding it difficult to receive payment due to insurers' denial of services already rendered to patients. A denial can be considered an underpayment by the insurer to the hospital. Using a Six Sigma approach, a large hospital system in the southeast United States found that individual hospitals were not focused strictly on denials, but other tasks as well. Hospital administrators conducted a literature review and found that centralizing denials management team has improved reimbursement outcomes elsewhere. Therefore, the hospital system implemented a centralized denials unit to focus on overturning insurer denials while …