Digital Commons Network^™

Implementing Evidence-Based Fall Risk Assessment To Improve Identifying Home Fall Risks, Jade M. Oakley, Ellie Youngblood

Scholars Week

This evidence-based practice project addresses the significant risk of falls among home hospice patients by proposing the implementation of a standardized, multifactorial assessment tool. The project advocates for replacing subjective nursing judgment and the inadequate Morse Fall Risk Assessment with the validated Missouri Alliance for Home Care (MAHC-10) tool, accompanied by a new Fall Prevention Protocol and comprehensive staff education. Utilizing the MAHC-10 will ensure consistent, evidence-based assessment, allowing nurses to proactively implement fall prevention interventions and thereby improve patient safety and quality of life at home.

Implementation Of A Dual-Registered Nurse Skin Assessment Protocol To Reduce Hospital Acquired Pressure Injuries, Kaylie V. Newbold, Nishita Trivedi, Mckenzie Clendenen, Jariah Mcdaniel

Scholars Week

Hospital-acquired pressure injuries(HAPIs) remain a significant patient safety concern due to gaps in early detection, lack of structured skin assessments, and thorough documentation. This evidence based practice project proposes a dual-Registered Nurse skin assessment protocol, requiring two Registered Nurses to perform a full risk assessment and co-sign documentation, within two hours of hospital admission, and every 12 hours thereafter. Implementing these practices will improve accuracy, reduce missed injuries, further improve the use of other skin assessment tools such as the Braden Scale. This set of interventions promotes early detection, prevention, accountability, and improved patient outcomes, guided by the Health Promotion …

Reducing Nurse Burnout, Kaylee R. Mofield

Scholars Week

I presented an evidence-based project to a healthcare facility with interventions and a suggested policy change to help reduce nurse burnout. One suggested policy change I made was changing the staffing policy. Within this new policy I suggest that if the patient census was 25 patients it calls for 5 nurses, 17-20 patient calls for 4 nurses, 16 or less patients calls for 3 nurses; along with no calling off staff due to census but rather utilizing this staff as a float or resource nurse. Another suggestion I made was nursing leadership holding monthly “check-in” meetings separate from the monthly …

Improving Nursing Prioritization Of Feeding Assistance During Mealtimes, Samantha Luker, Julie Moyers

Scholars Week

This evidence-based project focuses on improving how nursing staff prioritize feeding assistance for residents in long-term care during mealtimes. Research shows that having clear staffing roles, education, and structured mealtime interventions can improve nutritional intake and decrease the risk of malnutrition. Implementing a consistent feeding assistance policy can help improve resident safety, satisfaction, and overall quality of care.

Fast Track In The Emergency Department, Raegan Luechtefeld, Ella Kjellberg

Scholars Week

Emergency departments nationwide all consistently work to improve efficiency and patient care, reduce wait times to be seen and length of stay, decrease overcrowding, and increase both staff and patient satisfaction. One way to utilize evidence-based practice and provide better patient outcomes is to implement “fast tracks” into emergency departments. This is used as a triage tool in order to separate critical patients from ones with minor illnesses and injuries. Fast tracks help to accomplish all of the stated goals by helping the providers and nurses to give more specialized and efficient care. The purpose of this evidence-based practice project …

Decreasing Wound Healing Times By Decreasing Stress Levels, Bayleigh S. Kraus, Colson Burnett, Kelsey Spann

Scholars Week

The relationship between stress levels and delayed wound healing needs to be further investigated, particularly in hospitalized and chronically ill patients. Research shows that psychological stress can impair immune function, reduce tissue regeneration, and prolong inflammation, all of which slow the healing process. It is important to explore how both acute and chronic stress affect different types of wounds, such as surgical incisions, pressure injuries, and diabetic ulcers. Additionally, identifying which stress-reduction interventions are most effective in improving healing outcomes is essential. Understanding these factors can help nurses implement targeted, evidence-based interventions to promote faster recovery.

Implementing Labor Plans To Increase Labor Satisfaction, Allyson G. Johnson, Emma G. Hancock, Kinley Edwards

Scholars Week

This scholarly presentation examines the implementation of a standardized birth plan tool within a healthcare facility to improve maternal birth satisfaction. The project focuses on enhancing patient-provider communication, supporting shared decision-making, and ensuring that patient preferences are clearly documented and respected throughout labor and delivery. Findings suggest that integrating a structured birth plan tool may increase maternal satisfaction and promote more patient-centered obstetric care.

Reducing 30-Day Readmissions: Simplifying Discharge, Olivia Hibbs

Scholars Week

Hospital readmissions within 30 days remain a major challenge for healthcare systems and are often linked to ineffective discharge communication and low patient health literacy. Improving discharge planning through simplified instructions, early education, and the teach-back method can help ensure patients understand their medications, follow-up care, and warning signs after leaving the hospital. Strengthening communication and care coordination during the transition from hospital to home may improve patient outcomes and reduce preventable readmissions.

Prevention Of Healthcare Associated Infections, Reese Gream, Ellie Edgine, Rayanna Geilhausen

Scholars Week

This presentation includes research on tactics that can be used in outpatient clinics to help decrease healthcare associated infections. We implemented evidence-based practice to improve the cleanliness of patient care areas and high-touch surfaces.

Meds-To-Beds Improving Medication Adherence, Hannah Draper, Regan Ashby, Ryan Rieke

Scholars Week

The Meds-to-Beds program improves medication adherence by delivering prescribed medications directly to patients before hospital discharge, ensuring timely access and reducing barriers such as transportation or pharmacy delays. By incorporating bedside education from pharmacists, patients gain a clearer understanding of their medications, which enhances confidence and proper use. This coordinated approach has been shown to decrease readmission rates and improve overall patient outcomes.

Implementing A Health Literacy Assessment To Reduce Readmissions, Saiylor M. Beecham, Jewel Render, Bethany Pruitt

Scholars Week

This presentation examines the impact of limited health literacy on patient outcomes, highlighting its role in medication errors and hospital readmissions. Grounded in Dorothea Orem’s Self-Care Deficit Theory, it emphasizes the importance of implementing standardized, non-stigmatizing health literacy assessments to improve nurse-patient communication and patient understanding. Evidence-based strategies such as teach-back methods and plain language education are recommended to enhance patient safety and reduce preventable readmissions.

Femoral Structure And Biomechanical Characteristics In Sanfilippo Syndrome Type-B Mice, Frederick J. Ashby, Evelyn J. Castillo, Yan Ludwig, Natalia K. Andraka, Cong Chen, Julia C. Jamieson, Nadia Kabbej, John D. Summerville, Jose I. Aquirre, Coy D. Heldermon, University Of Florida

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Sanfilippo syndrome Type-B, also known as mucopolysaccharidosis IIIB (MPS IIIB), accounts for approximately one-third of all Sanfilippo syndrome patients and is characterized by a similar natural history as Type-A. Patients suffer from developmental regression, bone malformation, organomegaly, GI distress, and profound neurological deficits. Despite human trials of enzyme replacement therapy (ERT) (SBC-103, AX250) in MPS IIIB, there is currently no FDA approved treatment and a few palliative options. The major concerns of ERT and gene therapy for the treatment of bone malformation are the inadequate biodistribution of the missing enzyme, N-acetyl-α-glucosaminidase (NAGLU), and that the skeleton is a poorly hit …

Medicaid Expansion And Breast Cancer Outcomes: Evidence From Staggered Adoption Under The Affordable Care Act, Parisa Khademhaghighian

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

In recent years, policymakers have increasingly looked to Medicaid coverage expansions as a tool to improve population health. For instance, Medicaid expansions implemented as part of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) have been linked to decreases in mortality, improvements in self-reported health, and higher rates of health insurance coverage. However, less is known about how these expansions affect cancer incidence and mortality rates. In this paper, I estimate the effects of ACA Medicaid expansion on breast cancer incidence and mortality among nonelderly women ages 40–65.

Using state-years as the unit of observation, I construct a balanced panel of the 50 …

An Examination Of Resilience And Food And Alcohol Disturbance: How Black & White Women Measure Up, Jaye I. Brayboy, Alicia M. Moulder, Audrey L. Bell, Melissa N. Manning, Cathy L. Lau-Barraco

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Food and alcohol disturbance (FAD) combines dieting behaviors and alcohol use for alcohol enhancement (AE-FAD) or calorie compensation (CC-FAD). Though unclear whether racial differences exist in FAD engagement, research suggests strong ethnic identity protects Black Americans from FAD while strengthening risk in White Americans. Resilience (i.e., the ability to recover from adversity) is positively associated with body image amongst Black women; however, resilience has not been examined in relation to FAD. This study evaluated whether associations between resilience and FAD differed by race amongst college women, hypothesizing that resilience would be negatively associated with AE-FAD and CC-FAD for Black and …

Examining The Relationship Between A Positive Obstructive Sleep Apnea Diagnosis And Referring Symptoms Of The Pregnant Patient, Christina Emerson, Beth Tremblay

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

PROBLEM: Many healthcare providers do not routinely screen pregnant individuals for obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), contributing to its underdiagnosis and potentially leading to various pregnancy-related health issues. Currently used OSA screening tools, such as the Berlin Questionnaire, STOP-BANG Questionnaire, and Epworth Sleepiness Scale, often demonstrate poor predictive value in pregnant women due to the dynamic physiological changes of pregnancy and the differing presentation of OSA in this population.

PURPOSE: To examine the relationships between a positive OSA diagnosis, patient characteristics, and the symptoms among pregnant patients referred for sleep studies.

EBP QUESTIONS: 1) Is there a relationship between certain referring …

Predicting Trauma Admission In Anticoagulated Geriatric Patients Presenting With A Ground Level Fall, Y-Nhi H. Bui Ms, Trevor Glad Bmus, Dylan Jack Bs, Michael Martyak

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Our study undertook a rigorous investigation into an expanding trauma patient population, tackling some of the significant challenges with this patient population in trauma triage. Our research has not only addressed key questions, but has also paved the way for future inquiries by offering innovative perspectives. This presentation is particularly important given the current advancements and interests in geriatric trauma. We hope that our findings will influence ongoing projects and spark collaborations among diverse research communities.

Comparative Effect Of Mineral, Organic, And Mixed Sunscreens Formulations On The Life History Of A Benthic Marine Invertebrate, Jacob Anthony Fox, Courtney Lott, Araceli Rodriguez-Romero, Gloria Massamba N'Siala

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Mineral and organic sunscreens are emerging anthropogenic pollutants in coastal marine waters and have been shown to affect marine invertebrates via genotoxicity, endocrine disruption, oxidative stress, and impacts on life-history traits, such as reduced survival, growth, and fecundity. Most experiments expose marine organisms to isolated UV filters, with fewer studies testing complete formulations, co-occurring exposure to organic and mineral sunscreens, or the modulating influence of format type on toxicity. In this experiment, we tested the impact of organic sunscreens (3% Avobenzone, 15% Homosalate, 5% Octinoxate, and 10% Octocylene) and 24% zinc oxide mineral sunscreens on the survival and fecundity of …

Effects Of Alk2 Deficiency On T Cell Fate And Regulatory T Cell Populations, Jalyn Reeves, Afia Salsabil Alam

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Regulatory T cells (Tregs) are central to immune tolerance, and their lineage stability is established during thymic development and maintained in the periphery through tightly regulated signaling networks. Members of the BMP receptor family have been implicated in T-cell differentiation, yet the specific role of the type I receptor ALK2 in shaping cell fate and sustaining the regulatory program remains unclear. To examine how ALK2 contributes to T-cell development, we generated ALK2-knockout murine chimeras and analyzed lymphoid populations from the thymus, spleen, and peripheral tissues. Thymocytes and lymphocytes were isolated and stained with antibody panels to identify developmental subsets and …

Heterotopic Pancreas Masquerading As Barrett’S Esophagus, Suravi Khanal, Shama Bhandari, Anish Paudel

Tower Health Research Day

No abstract provided.

Sprinkler Package Runoff Risk Tool For Center Pivot Irrigation Systems, Will Bowers

Spring Runoff Conference

Center pivots in Utah 

• 403,524 acres = 67% of sprinkler irrigated fields in the open in Utah 
• Considered one of the most effective sprinkler systems available with technological advancements over the years

Evaluating Alternative Water Conservation Scenarios For Alfalfa In The Great Salt Lake Basin Using Integrated Climate Model Projections, Saddy Pineda-Castellanos, Masoumeh Hashemi

Spring Runoff Conference

Elevation of Great Salt Lake North and South Arms (1903-2026)

An Estimation Of Crop Evapotranspiration Using Soil Water Balance In Vineyards, Tarique Aziz, Burdette Barker, Michael Caron, Michael Pace

Spring Runoff Conference

Breakout Session presentation given at the 2026 Spring Runoff Conference

Immersive Modeling To Generate Holistic Strategies To Get More Water To Great Salt Lake, Hadia Akbar

Spring Runoff Conference

How to get more water to GSL?

Must Address

• Complex water rights
• Competing water needs
• Historical legacies
• Variable and arid hydrology
• Infrastructure limitations and opportunities
• Lack of trust

What Makes Smart Irrigation Work? Lessons From Producers In The Upper Colorado River Basin, Tejinder Singh, Matt Yost, Elisa Flint, Burdette Barker, Jessica Ulrich-Schad, Silas Ekadu

Spring Runoff Conference

Colorado River Basin Water Crisis

• Water allocations in the Colorado River Basin were set during wetter periods and now exceed current river flows, creating a gap between water supply (12.5 maf yr^-1) and demand (15 maf yr^-1).
• River flow has declined 19% since 2000.

Making Water Visible: Neutral, Verification-First Infrastructure For Basin-Scale Water Accountability, Eric Mcculley

Spring Runoff Conference

Every Tool Tells You What the Lake Level WAS.

None Tell You What It WILL BE.

• Current monitoring is retrospective — USGS gauges and DWR reports show only historical data
• Decision lag: By the time you see the problem, it’s too late to adjust
• 2024–2025 season: GSL dropped to record lows before upstream conservation kicked in
• Agricultural users, municipalities, and GSL all compete for limited supply with imperfect information

Leasing Water For Great Salt Lake: Water Savings And Producer Impacts, Conner Harwood

Spring Runoff Conference

Great Salt Lake Water Leasing

• Utah is working to increase inflows to GSL through voluntary water leasing from agriculture
• But key information is missing:
• How much water can leases save at the field level?
• At what price should farmers be compensated?
• This project:

1. Estimates field-level consumptive water use
2. Estimates the value of water in agricultural production
3. Evaluates water savings and producer impacts across leasing strategies

Meteorological Monitoring With Real-Time Data Processing Using Uas, Htoo Poe Sar, Cal Coopmans, Sierra Young

Spring Runoff Conference

Background and Motivation 

• Agricultural water management requires information about crop water use and water consumption 
• Remote sensing methods are used to model and estimate environmental processes – but they require weather data 

Utah Prototype For Visualizing Vulnerabilities Downstream Of Dams, Courtney Flint, Michael Englert, Nicolas Holden

Spring Runoff Conference

The climate question 

• Overtopping = 1/3^rd of all dam failures (ASDSO) 
• Drought concerns and supply uncertainty motivate keeping reservoirs full 
• Overtopping likelier if extreme storm when reservoir full 
• Over much of the country the probability of the annual daily maximum rainfall > 100-year event and the preceding 30-day rainfall >10-year event are going up (Hwang & Lall 2024) 

The Reform Of Prior Appropriation And The Fate Of Great Salt Lake, Christopher L. Lant, Rocky Seeley, Beth Parker, Andrew Follett

Spring Runoff Conference

Legal Issues Raised by the Decline of Great Salt Lake

• Violations of Clean Air Act from dust threaten federal intervention
• Petition to list Wilson’s Phalarope as an endangered species

Factors For Successful Craniosynostosis Surgery Gofundme Campaigns, Annarose Taylor, Rena Atayeva, Shikha Trivedi, Phavon Sage, David Park, Brendan Podszus, Jessica Bigner, Yifan Guo

Knowledge and Creativity Expo

Introduction

Craniosynostosis surgery costs can be as high as 100,000 dollars. Even with complete insurance coverage, patients often face large out-of-pocket expenses. Thus, patients seek other financial resources. As a crowdfunding platform, GoFundMe (GFM) is one of those resources. The objective of our study was to identify GFM campaign factors associated with greater fundraising success.

Methods

GoFundMe.com was queried for: craniosynostosis, synostosis, brachycephaly, trigonocephaly, scaphocephaly, and fused skull suture. Included campaigns had patients in the U.S. fundraising for craniosynostosis surgery or related expenses. Excluded campaigns were duplicates, for animals, helmets, charities, or other surgeries. Successful campaigns achieved third quartile of …