Digital Commons Network^™

Self-Management By Adolescents And Young Adults Following A Stem Cell Transplant, Caroline F. Morrison

Dissertations

A grounded theory study was conducted to better understand the process AYA use to manage their care following a SCT. Specific aims included: 1) to explore self-management facilitators, barriers, processes and behaviors within individual, family, community and healthcare system domains using the pediatric self-management framework to develop initial interview guides; 2) to describe how AYA manage their care regimen post HSCT; and 3) to describe rates of oral medication adherence for AYA post HSCT and how they relate to patterns of self-management.

Leading Change: Generating Cultural Responsiveness And Competence In Nursing, Kerstin G. Hudgins

Dissertations

Culturally responsive teachings prepare students to support social justice, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in and beyond the classroom. Rising reports of culturally insensitive care and the reported challenges that nurses experience when caring for culturally diverse patients warrant the advancement of the intercultural readiness of nursing students. The study investigated the cultural content taught, encompassing LGBTQ+ health education, at the School of Nursing at a historically black college and university (HBCU) in the Southeastern United States. The participant selection involved purposeful sampling of various stakeholders engaged in interviews and focus groups, including faculty, nursing students, and nurse managers with …

Nursing Faculty Experiences With Interactive Learning In The Associate Degree Nursing Classroom, Katheryn M. Csonka

Dissertations

The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to explore associate degree nurse faculty perceptions and experiences with the use of interactive learning in their classroom. Interactive learning is an approach to teaching and learning that promotes student learning with an active process. The implementation and continued use of interactive learning can be difficult for nurse educators who may be influenced by their previous perceptions and experience with use. There is a plethora of knowledge on the benefits of interactive learning with students, yet there is a gap in literature specific to nursing faculty experiences in the nursing classroom..

How Exemplary Directors Of Special Education Use The Five Principles Associated With Grit To Accomplish Extraordinary Results: A Phenomenological Study, Maria L. Moore

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to identify and describe how exemplary directors of special education use the five principles associated with grit (courage, conscientiousness, long-term goals, resilience, and excellence versus perfection) to accomplish extraordinary results in their organizations.

Methodology: This qualitative study was part of a larger thematic research study conducted by nine peer researchers under the guidance of three University of Massachusetts Global faculty chairs. The qualitative research design encompassed a phenomenological model. Data for this study were gathered through a combination of eight semistructured interviews of exemplary directors of special education who met the predetermined …

Developing Clinical Judgment Through The Implementation Of Information And Communication Technology, Such As The Electronic Health Record (Ehr), Sherri Carter

Dissertations

Graduate nurses are expected to enter a technology-rich workforce with an understanding of the electronic health record (EHR) and how it is used to guide patient care. Limited access to EHRs in clinical settings may result in students entering professional practice with limited ability to understand the full potential of the EHR. Over a seven-week term, students enrolled in the Patient-Centered Care I course, during the 2018 Spring I term, participated in high-fidelity simulation and seminar activities that included an educational electronic healthcare record (EEHR). These activities were integrated into the course to guide students when making clinical decisions regarding …

Impact Of High-Fidelity Simulation On Confidence Level Of Nursing Students In The Care Of Covid-19 Patients, Faith A. Paine

Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic impacted the education of nursing students across the world. Nursing students were unable to care for patients with COVID-19 at the beginning and potentially throughout nursing school depending on the facility and nursing school restrictions. It was not known how the participation in a high-fidelity simulation will impact the confidence level of nursing students in the care of patients with COVID-19. A mixed methods phenomenological qualitative and survey design was utilized to determine the confidence level of nursing students after participation in a high-fidelity simulation of a patient diagnosed with COVID-19.

Effect Of The Virtual Simulation Paired Prebriefing-Debriefing Strategy On Nursing Students' Self-Efficacy Perceptions And Virtual Simulation Performance In The Care Of Patients Experiencing A Myocardial Infarction, Laura M. Penalo

Dissertations

Through the use of virtual simulations (VS) in nursing education, nursing students are exposed to a variety of clinical scenarios that may potentially improve their learning of competencies, increase their self-efficacy, and enhance their future clinical performance. Despite limited quantitative research incorporating evidence-based strategies such as prebriefing and debriefing as part of the VS experience, this educational technology continues to gain popularity. In 2020, the use of VS in the nursing curriculum exponentially increased when the global COVID-19 pandemic impacted traditional in-person clinicals, laboratory, and human patient simulation (HPS) experiences. Associate Degree Nursing (ADN) programs have benefited from the use …

The Superintendent Mindset, Marc Patterson

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore and describe how exemplary leaders perceive the practices of Sinek’s (2020) infinite mindset framework are embedded in their organization to inspire the achievement of extraordinary results. A further purpose was to understand organizational supports and barriers exemplary leaders perceive affect the development of an infinite mindset.

Methodology: The thematic team concluded a phenomenological methodology was the most appropriate approach to identify and describe the superintendents’ perceived importance of the practices of Sinek’s (2020) infinite mindset to achieve exemplary results. Identifying and describing the unique lived experiences of superintendents is best …

Experiences Of Food Insecure College Students During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Amy E. Kendrick

Dissertations

The aims of this qualitative descriptive study were to describe the experiences and needs of food insecure college students during the COVID-19 pandemic and to obtain foundational information about food insecurity during a public health crisis to provide guidance for the development of future interventions.

Persistence Factors Described By Nursing Students Of African Descent: A Narrative Inquiry, Claudette R. Spencer

Dissertations

High attrition rates among nursing students of African descent have resulted in a nursing workforce that lacks diversity. Research has largely focused on the obstacles facing students who dropped out of their nursing programs, including financial constraints, academic issues, and personal challenges. Few studies have considered the students who persisted. The purpose of this qualitative dissertation study was to examine the factors that contributed to the persistence of students of African descent enrolled in nursing programs in community colleges as described in the stories and reflections of recently graduated alumni. Data was obtained with the use of two research questions …

Clinical Faculty Strategies To Decrease Nursing Students' Anxiety During Clinical Practice: A Qualitative Study, Elijah Z. Yarpah

Dissertations

Stress in the clinical learning environment is a psychological and physiological element that affects nursing students' learning outcomes and health. In clinical settings, nursing students encounter stressors that are critical to their academic success as well as their future professional performance. Nursing educators struggle to assist students in developing strategies to manage clinical stress. A review of relevant literature did not identify coping strategies clinical educators and nursing staff can promote to help learners deal with stressors. Therefore, to provide robust ideas to help nursing students manage stress in the clinical learning environment, this study was designed to answer one …

Examining The Effects Of A Rater Training Program On Interrater Reliability With The Lasater Clinical Judgment Rubric, Deborah A. Halliday

Dissertations

There is high demand for competent graduate nurses as they begin working in healthcare. However, the transition from classroom to professional practice can be difficult. Students and newly licensed entry-level practitioners must develop and possess suitable clinical judgments in order to demonstrate clinical competency in the delivery of safe patient care. Currently, there is a call for nursing education to provide increased rigor in performance evaluation of students' clinical judgment prior to graduation.

The primary purpose of this study was to determine if rater training had an effect on interrater reliability among raters with the Lasater Clinical Judgment Rubric (LCJR) …

Reconstruction Of The Professional Identity: The Mature Ad Nurse After Bsn Completion, Constance G. Demmery

Dissertations

In 2011, the Institute of Medicine (IOM) announced a key initiative to increase the number of registered nurses (RN) at the bedside prepared at the baccalaureate of science in nursing (BSN) level. For decades, the RN entry level into the profession has been debated, often lying dormant during nursing shortages. The profile of today's RN is age 50, has many years of clinical experience, and holds an associate degree in nursing (ADN). Many ADN-prepared nurses are returning to academia to earn their BSN. However, there is little research on how the mature, experienced ADN integrates years of clinical experience with …

The Relationship Among Spirituality, Self-Efficacy, And Quality Of Life In Adults With Sickle Cell Disease, Maxine A. Adegbola

Dissertations

For the individual with sickle cell disease (SCD), the lifespan is increasing but adults report decreased quality of life (QOL), low self-efficacy, and ineffective coping skills. The care of adult patients with SCD requires a complex multidisciplinary team approach with focus not only on physiological, psychological, and social needs, but also on spiritual needs. Quality of life, spirituality, and self-efficacy have been sparsely and separately studied in individuals with SCD. These three constructs have never been combined in one study in the adult SCD population.

The purpose of this study was to explore and describe the relationships among spirituality, self-efficacy, …

A Delphi Study Of The Strategies Necessary For Successful Improvement Of Student Emotional Intelligence Within K-8 Public School Classrooms, Megan Ybarra

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this Delphi Study was to identify classroom strategies that expert K-8 teachers use to support and promote the development of student emotional intelligence, as defined by Bradberry and Greaves (2009), within K-8 classrooms, to rate the importance of the identified strategies, and to identify specific activities to implement the four most highly rated strategies identified in Round 2.

Methodology: This study utilized the Delphi method, which is an iterative process used to collect and distill the judgments of experts using a series of questionnaires interspersed with feedback. Twenty-one expert K-8 teachers identified strategies to develop student …

Exploring Grit In Exemplary School Superintendents, Denise Jaramillo

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to identify and describe how exemplary superintendents use five principles associated with grit (courage, conscientiousness, long-term goals, resilience, and excellence versus perfection) to accomplish extraordinary results in their organizations.

Methodology: This qualitative study was part of a larger thematic study conducted by nine doctoral candidates under the supervision of three University of Massachusetts Global faculty. The study used a phenomenological design to identify and describe how exemplary superintendents use five principles associated with grit to accomplish extraordinary results. Data were gathered through a combination of eight semistructured interviews, related observations, and a …

K-12 Principals And Special Education: A Study Of Mississippi Principals’ Knowledge Of Special Education Policies And Procedures, Jodi Cameron-Polk

Dissertations

This study sought to assess the knowledge of Mississippi K-12 public school principals and assistant principals in special education law, policies, and procedures concerning the six principles (i.e., zero reject, non-discriminatory evaluation, least restrictive environment, free appropriate public education, due process, and parent participation) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004. This study also sought to establish by which method (i.e., university coursework, administrative trainings, on-the-job experiences, self-taught research, or did not learn this) they acquired their knowledge of special education law, policies, and procedures. The researcher adapted Jesteadt’s survey tool to ascertain participants’ special education teaching …

Chaos Is Not Rational: Nursing Leadership And Intuition In Disaster Preparedness And Response, Sarah Banks

Dissertations

Nurses are looked upon as leaders in disaster preparedness and response. Charged with making life-altering decisions, experienced nurse leaders utilize analytical and intuitive strategies to manage crisis situations. Rarely recognized by upper-level management and educational institutions, intuition is our natural ability to know something without any evidence or validation. Intuition allows us to make decisions in ever-changing circumstances when solutions are not obvious. Though difficult to explain, intuition is a powerful skill that gives nurse leaders the confidence needed to make decisions based on their previous experience. Experienced nurse leaders utilize intuition to arrive at a solution without conscious awareness …

The Effects Of Disinformation Upon National Attitudes Towards The Eu And Its Institutions, Alex Murphy

Dissertations

This work explores the effects of misinformation and disinformation upon national attitudes towards the EU. Several nations, in particular the Russian Federation, have been working for decades to spread narratives that debase the political processes of healthy democracies around the world. There is strong evidence to show that extensive efforts have been made to disrupt the inner workings and overall membership of the EU, to support disruptive policies in the United States such that political deadlock is maintained indefinitely. These efforts are largely based on the spreading of misinformation and disinformation across social networks that have done very little to …

Development Of A Hospital Discharge Planning System Augmented With A Neural Clinical Decision Support Engine, David Mulqueen

Dissertations

The process of discharging patients from a tertiary care hospital, is one of the key activities to ensure the efficient and effective operation of a hospital. However, the decision to discharge a patient from a hospital is complex, as it requires multiple interactions with nurses, family, consultants, health information records and doctors, which can be very time consuming and prone to error. This thesis descries how a neural network based Clinical Decision Support system can be developed, to help in the decision making process and dramatically reduce the time and effort in running the discharge process in a hospital. A …

The "Othering" Of America: How The Strategic Use Of Crisis And Ressentiment Succeeded In The Trump Era, Laura J. Franklin

Dissertations

The establishment of a crisis theme through public rhetoric often triggers widespread attention, resulting in public concern and media coverage of an issue that could potentially be overblown or deceptive. In right-wing political discourse, this crisis warning is typically delivered by a White male leader with ready access to the powerful news media. An “us versus them” theme often occurs. Within this mode of a hegemonic exclusion, a culture of immigrants or an American minority are often depicted, perhaps aggressively, as a threat: A threat used to motivate, enrage and create the frustrations inherent in ressentiment. This dissertation explores the …

Variation In Organizational Factors Influencing The Implementation Of The Pediatric Annual Physical Therapy Visit, Katherine Anne M. Smith

Dissertations

Hypothesis and Research Question

The research hypothesis is “Organizational Factors influencing the implementation of the Pediatric Annual Physical Therapy Visit (PAPTV) vary by practice setting, geographic location, and experience implementing the PAPTV.” The related research question is “How do organizational factors influencing the implementation of the PAPTV vary by geographic location, practice setting, and therapists experience with the PAPTV?

Problem and Purpose of Research

While health promotion and wellness (HPW) initiatives are widely accepted as beneficial to both the patient and the healthcare system, the rollout of new initiatives is often challenging. The PAPTV has been a significant HPW initiative …

Semantic Deduplication Of Redundant And Non-Conformant Data In Temporal Domains, Jon C. Rogers

Dissertations

Semantic deduplication is the process of identifying records that describe or are derivative of the same entity and is a crucial task when merging data pulled at different times and/or from multiple sources. Failure to resolve these duplicates may bias the data and the applications and models that use them. Duplicates may range in nature from exact matches to more interesting cases where the data differs due to syntactic representation, missing or updated information, or adversarial transforms. The implications of duplication may go beyond redundancy to include recognizing critical information updates, error detection, and identifying similar behaviors. This task is …

Energy Transfer From Fluid To Kinetic Scales In The Solar Wind, Michael Terres

Dissertations

This dissertation explores the relationship between MHD turbulence, intermittent structures, and particle velocity distributions in the solar wind. Intermittent structures serve as a means for increased energy exchange from turbulence to particles. My research delves into the different scales where dissipation occurs, the turbulent process that leads to it, and the ultimate impact it has on the plasma species. It is supported by observations from spacecraft such as Helios, MESSENGER, MMS, and Parker Solar Probe. This work was supported by NASA-HELIO-FINESST Grant 80NSSC20K1516.

Modeling And Simulation Of Cyberattacks To Aid Systems Security Engineers And Cyber-Physical Designs To Aid Systems Engineers, Christopher Daniel Colvett

Dissertations

The advent of the Internet has led to an ever-increasingly interconnected world. The range of cyber-physical systems being interconnected has expanded to include power generation facilities, automobiles, weapon systems, and others. Securing such systems against cyberattacks is crucial, and consequently cybersecurity research, including cybersecurity modeling, has been growing. However, most cybersecurity modeling efforts to date omit any representation of the computer systems' user, thereby overlooking the potentially negative impact that security measures can have on system users' productivity. A currently ongoing research program, consisting of multiple interrelated research projects, has been modeling cyberattacks based on their descriptions in the MITRE …

Hyperinsulinemic Lew.1wr1 Rats Develop Insulin Resistance And Nonalcoholic Steatohepatitis, Madushika M. Wimalarathne

Dissertations

The pathophysiological causes of nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) development are not fully understood but are often associated with hyperinsulinemia, insulin resistance and ectopic lipid accumulation. A subpopulation of type 1 diabetes patients develops the pathophysiological parameters to be termed “double diabetes,” which is associated with NASH. The objective of this work was to identify metabolic features of double diabetes and assess if LEW.1WR1 rats develop NASH. I assessed pathophysiologically relevant protein changes using proteomics and western blotting. I found that 17-week-old LEW.1WR1 rats showed protein changes related to non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, a precursor to NASH. We tested a second population …

Perceptions Of The Grant Decision-Making Process: A Study Of Foundation Grantmakers And Grant Seekers Who Focus On Youth Violence In Chicago, Illinois, Patiya Freely

Dissertations

Local partners like churches, schools, and community organizations are often at the front lines of addressing the problem of recurring deadly violence against Black urban youth. Foundation grants are frequently used to fund their work. While foundations annually award millions of dollars in grants to community-based organizations addressing youth violence, there is little detailed information available about the foundation grantmaking decision-making process. Notably, there is a lack of research on the determinants of the grant decision-making process that may inadvertently affect grantee outcomes and ultimately the of beneficiary organizations and communities.A sample of ten decision-makers who had funded or sought …

Gardening And Watering 21st Century Soil: Culturally Responsive And Technology Enhanced Instructional Design In K12 Schools, Elissa W. Frazier

Dissertations

Decades of research have documented the positive impact of culturally responsive teaching on academic outcomes for African American and LatinX students. However, as the field of education has become increasingly embedded with technology as a powerful tool of instruction, more attention is needed to understand how culturally responsive teachers use technology to close achievement gaps. Although national public policy over the last twenty-years has documented the negative impact of the digital divide on low SES, African American and LatinX students, large-scale efforts to close the divide have focused primarily on access to devices only. More recently, the second digital “use” …

A Qualitative Study Of The Time Of Completion For African Graduate Students At Andrews University, George Opoku

Dissertations

Problem

International students are an important part of higher education institutions because they bring in funds, they enhance the diversity, and increase the knowledge being shared (Srivastava et al., 2010; Luo & Jamieson-Drake, 2013; Ongo, 2019; Knight, 2007; Pandit, K., 2007; Baklashova & Kazakov, 2016). Therefore, if retention is not monitored and maintained, the United States could soon lose this important group to other countries with more competitive retention plans (Srivastava, 2010, p. 1561). Andrews University is one school in the U.S. that already shows signs of retention issues among international students, including African international students. There are several challenges …

Impact Of The Regionalization Of Universidad De Antioquia In The Development Of Human Capital And Improvement Of The Equity In The Region Of Urabá, Monica Castaño Mejía

Dissertations

Problem

In Colombia, higher education plays a relevant role in developing human capital and equity, giving everyone the opportunity to access higher education. In particular, the government has been supporting public and private universities to open campuses in rural areas where guerrillas, the mafia, and paramilitary groups were fighting the government to dominate the territories. In 1995, the government of the State of Antioquia officially established the regionalization of higher education as a strategy to promote higher education in disadvantaged regions. The Universidad de Antioquia (Universidad de Antioquia) adopted that strategy as part of its development plans during the last …