Digital Commons Network^™

Employee Engagement In The Pacu, Michelle Spadaro

Master's Projects and Capstones

A clear vision is a powerful tool that can help advance employee engagement within nursing units. There is a great need for a compelling vision for the operation of a safe, efficient, equitable, effective, and patient centered healthcare delivery system. It is crucial to identify what actions are needed to achieve this vision and what realistic strategies are necessary for success. The purpose of this vision statement is to achieve excellence in nursing by establishing a common identity and direction that responds to an ever-changing healthcare environment. The project was conducted on a 25 bed peri-operative and post anesthesia care …

Improving The Hcahps Score For Pain Well Controlled, Uwaezu J. Umeh

Master's Projects and Capstones

This project took place on a Renal/Endocrine unit of a northern California Hospital. As observed on this unit, pain was not well controlled and this caused the HCAHPS (Hospital Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems) score for ‘pain well controlled’ to be low. Hence, this project sought to address the underlying reasons why pain was not well controlled and to proffer solutions to raise the HCAHPS score to at least 65% from an average of 55%. In order to find the root causes, the nurses were surveyed, the patients and certified nursing assistants (CNAs) were interviewed, and a 24-hour …

Patient Satisfaction Related To Noise In The Coronary Care Unit, Anjanette S. Dominguez

Master's Projects and Capstones

Background The CCU staff recognized a department trend for low patient-satisfaction score related to environmental noise levels. Based on the Press Ganey score, the patient-satisfaction score plummeted in relation to noise level beginning in March 2014.

Purpose To improve patient satisfaction regarding noise level in the CCU to 100% by November 21, 2014.

Methods Senior & Fleming’s Hard System Model of Change guided this literature search of CINAHL and Fusion for articles published from 2009 to 2014. Specific terms used were noise, critical care, and sleep promotion. From September to November 2014, earplugs were offered to all alert/oriented patients entering …

Increasing Compliance Of Personal Protective Equipment S Election And Use For Isolation Precautions Among Rns & Nas On A Med-Surg Unit, Megan R. Alsmeyer

Master's Projects and Capstones

Background: Due to the high potential of transferring infectious diseases and/or organisms among patients, themselves, and the community, healthcare workers (HCWs) must be knowledgeable and confident in selecting the appropriate type of personal protective equipment (PPE), and the use in technique when putting on (donning) and removing (doffing) PPE based on the level of isolation precautions required for the patient being cared for.

Project Purpose: The purpose of this project is to determine whether assessing the knowledge and actual practice with observing, and utilizing an innovative approach of video and educational tools to isolation precautions would improve the consistency of …

Improving Patient Outcomes Through Use Of The Teach-Back Method In The Post Anesthesia Care Unit, Kathleen Osullivan

Master's Projects and Capstones

The setting for this Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) project was the Post Anesthesia Care Unit (PACU) at a level I trauma center in the Bay Area. The goal was to improve the discharge education performed by the PACU nurses to improve patient safety and decrease the chance of complications or readmissions to this hospital. With no clear instructions for how discharge teaching should be done, the nurses have many differing styles which leaves room for gaps in discharge planning. This influenced the implementation of the teach-back method during discharge planning in order to ensure proper education and increased patient understanding. …

Safe Patient Handling & No Lift Policy: Reducing The Incidence Of Work-Related Injuries Among Nursing Staff, Marissa N. Scanlon

Master's Projects and Capstones

Background: Patient handling is a major risk factor for work-related injuries among nurses. Inadequate and inappropriate safe patient handling practices contribute to increased work-related injuries, lost/restricted work days, and hospital costs.

Purpose: The focus of this study was to increase the use of mechanical lift equipment and Lift Team to reduce the incidence of work-related injuries among nursing staff involved in patient handling activities on the Medical-Cardiac IICU.

Methodology: The theoretical framework employed for this project was Lippitt’s change theory. Pre-and post-survey self-report evaluations were conducted prior to and following the implementation of the Bedside Mobility Assessment Tool (BMAT) and …

Oligomerization, Conformational Stability And Thermal Unfolding Of Harpin, Hrpzpss And Its Hypersensitive Response-Inducing C-Terminal Fragment, C-214-Hrpzpss., Pradip K Tarafdar, Lakshmi Vasudev Vedantam, Rajeshwer S Sankhala, Pallinti Purushotham, Appa Rao Podile, Musti J Swamy

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Faculty Papers

HrpZ-a harpin from Pseudomonas syringae-is a highly thermostable protein that exhibits multifunctional abilities e.g., it elicits hypersensitive response (HR), enhances plant growth, acts as a virulence factor, and forms pores in plant plasma membranes as well as artificial membranes. However, the molecular mechanism of its biological activity and high thermal stability remained poorly understood. HR inducing abilities of non-overlapping short deletion mutants of harpins put further constraints on the ability to establish structure-activity relationships. We characterized HrpZPss from Pseudomonas syringae pv. syringae and its HR inducing C-terminal fragment with 214 amino acids (C-214-HrpZPss) using calorimetric, spectroscopic and microscopic approaches. Both …

Berkeley Youth Alternatives Fieldwork Summary Report: Assessing Social Determinants To Improve The Physical Health And Academic Development For Youth In Berkeley, California, Alane M. Cruz

Master's Projects and Capstones

The following paper summarizes the three hundred hour fieldwork experience at Berkeley Youth Alternatives (BYA), a non-profit community-based organization located in Southwest Berkeley that is committed to combating the social determinants that contribute to the prevalent health disparities within their community. The fieldwork internship is a major requirement in completing the Master’s of Public Health (MPH) program at the University of San Francisco (USF), and allows the education and experience gained over the duration of the program to be applied in a real public health setting.

The overall goal of the internship experience was to assess the social determinants of …

Gender, Smoking And Tobacco Reduction And Cessation: A Scoping Review, Joan L. Bottorff, Rebecca Haines-Saah, Mary T. Kelly, John L. Oliffe, Iris Torchalla, Nancy Poole, Lorraine Greaves, Carole A. Robinson, Mary H. H. Ensom, Chizimuzo T.C. Okoli, J. Craig Phillips

Nursing Faculty Publications

Considerations of how gender-related factors influence smoking first appeared over 20 years ago in the work of critical and feminist scholars. This scholarship highlighted the need to consider the social and cultural context of women's tobacco use and the relationships between smoking and gender inequity. Parallel research on men's smoking and masculinities has only recently emerged with some attention being given to gender influences on men's tobacco use. Since that time, a multidisciplinary literature addressing women and men's tobacco use has spanned the social, psychological and medical sciences. To incorporate these gender-related factors into tobacco reduction and cessation interventions, our …

Fall Commencement Ceremonies, University Of North Florida

Commencement Printed Materials

Program for the Fall Commencement ceremonies.

Diabetic Retinopathy: Variations In Patient Therapeutic Outcomes And Pharmacogenomics., Aniruddha Agarwal, Mohamed K. Soliman, Yasir J. Sepah, Diana V. Do, Quan Dong Nguyen

Journal Articles: Ophthalmology

Diabetes and its microvascular complications in patients poses a significant challenge and constitutes a major health problem. When it comes to manifestations in the eye, each case of diabetic retinopathy (DR) is unique, in terms of the phenotype, genotype, and, more importantly, the therapeutic response. It is therefore important to identify factors that distinguish one patient from another. Personalized therapy in DR is a new trend aimed at achieving maximum therapeutic response in patients by identifying genotypic and phenotypic factors that may result in less than optimal response to conventional therapy, and consequently, lead to poorer outcome. With advances in …

Fieldwork Summary Report: California Std/Hiv Prevention Training Center, Maureen L. Ryan

Master's Projects and Capstones

This fieldwork summary report encapsulates the author’s fieldwork internship at California STD/HIV Prevention Training Center (CA PTC) in Oakland, California. Students in the University of San Francisco (USF), Master of Public Health (MPH) program are required, as a final phase of their studies, to participate in a 300-hour fieldwork internship to demonstrate competency in the Core Knowledge areas as outlined by the Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH). Students choose their fieldwork placement site based on an area of particular interest and focus.

My fieldwork experience was different from many of my colleagues, in that I did not work …

The Negative Relationship Between Immunization Rates And Outbreaks: An Argument For Improving Awareness And Provider Recommendations, Advocating For, And Developing Intervention Strategies To Increase Immunization Rates Across California., Katelyn Conant

Master's Projects and Capstones

Prevention is the key to public health and immunizations is one of the most effective and efficient means of protection against infectious diseases. The California Immunization Coalition (CIC) is a public-private partnership whose mission is dedicated to achieving and maintaining full immunization protection for all Californians to promote health and prevent serious illness. In order to improve immunization rates, analysis of needs is a primary focus of CIC; immunization rates for both children and adults remain low, due to compounding factors such as rising personal belief exemptions, mistrust of government and doctors, and lack of strong provider recommendations. To address …

Minimizing Avoidable Interruptions During Medication Administration, Jaleel Anne Arnado

Master's Projects and Capstones

The objective of this CNL Internship Project is to improve patient outcomes and nurse satisfaction by minimizing the avoidable interruptions that occur during medication administration. The microsystem is a pediatric and adult medical-surgical overflow unit at a large, urban teaching hospital in Northern California. A series of surveys for nurses and patients and observations of medication administrations were conducted to assess barriers during mediation administration. It was determined phone calls interrupt a nurse the most during medication administration. Interruptions leave the medication administration process vulnerable to errors because it disrupts the nurse’s workflow and thought process. Because most pediatric medication …

Collaborating With The Unit Clerk To Decrease Avoidable Interruptions During Medication Administration On A Medical Surgical Unit, Christine Dimaano

Master's Projects and Capstones

Medical errors are the third leading cause of death in the United States. Medical errors also incur significant cost ramifications due to increased hospital length of stay and fines. Medication errors, a type of medical error, are one of the most common types of inpatient errors. Nurses are most often are responsible for medication administration, but safety during medication administration should be a priority of all hospital personnel. Avoidable interruptions during medication administration contribute to medical errors. Decreasing interruptions require increased nurse assertiveness during medication administration, interdisciplinary cooperation and unit culture change. This project identified that educating the unit clerk …

Ebola Response: A Summary Of Field Work Project, Jeffrey A. Schmidt Mr.

Master's Projects and Capstones

While epidemics and disease outbreaks are not uncommon world wide, the most recent outbreak of Ebola Virus Disease (EVD) has been the largest outbreak of the disease and the most wide spread in history. The outbreak has caused international concern and was declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organization (WHO) in August of 2014. Since the outbreak started there have been a total of 15,351 confirmed, probable and suspected cases of EVD reported in six affected countries including Guinea, Liberia, Mali, Sierra Leone, Spain and the United States. There have been 5459 reported deaths …

Using Video Simulation To Enhance Rn-Pca Communication, Boris Chang

Master's Projects and Capstones

The purpose of this project was to develop a video simulation exercise to enhance communication between Registered Nurses (RNs) and Patient Care Assistants (PCAs). From a general microsystem assessment initially performed on an urban hospital medical-surgical unit, 75% of respondents noted that the most pertinent issue to address was improving communication between RNs and PCAs. Literature review of evidence-based practices found several studies that support the use of human clinical simulation to promote teamwork and interdisciplinary communication. RNs (n = 24) and PCAs (n = 9) were then individually interviewed with surveys and responses scored based on the …

Development And Implementation Of A Patient Education Tool To Increase Fall Risk Awareness, Natalie Ybarra

Master's Projects and Capstones

The Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) project is intended to identify a problem and implement an intervention that will change the current problem in a hospital setting. This project explores the reasons for patient falls on an inpatient unit at an urban hospital, referred to as Unit A and Hospital Y. Unit A is a 45-bed cardiac floor where patients are at high risk for falls due to diagnosis, medications, and treatment. Development and implementation of a patient education tool was conducted through an assessment of the microsystem and evaluation of the patient education tool. The foundation for this project is …

Ent Educational Patient Bedside Tool, Alina M. Toma

Master's Projects and Capstones

Early educational and discharge preparations are an advantage to patients, the interdisciplinary team, and hospital. It was determined that lack in communication and coordination among staff members led to inadequate patient teaching, therefore an educational tool that is kept at the bedside may facilitate accountability and smoother transition to home.

The aim of the project is to improve the education of patients with tracheostomies and laryngectomies, and enhance staff communication and coordination by December 2014.

Analysis methods used included Failure Mode Effects Analysis (FMEA), fishbone diagram, process map, and SWOT analysis. The social learning theory is the framework chosen for …

Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit Patient Transition, Jenna-Lynn Stewrat

Master's Projects and Capstones

With no designated cardiovascular step-down unit at Phoenix Children’s Hospital, patient transitions to acute care are inconsistent following admission to the Cardiovascular Intensive Care Unit (CVICU). We aim to improve CVICU patient continuum of care through transferring patients to a step-down telemetry unit starting October 13^th, 2014 exemplified by a 95% patient satisfaction of care provided by January 1^st, 2015. The progression of the project was influenced by Lippitt’s theory, which includes seven phases in the change process. To accommodate post CVICU patients, the acute care unit was transformed to include cardiac monitors, telepacks, a central …

Relocation Of Orc To Or2, Svetlana N. Schopp

Master's Projects and Capstones

The goal of this Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) internship project was to maintain safety and quality of care of obstetric (OB) patients undergoing Cesarean Sections (C/S) after operating room for cesarean sections (ORC) is relocated from obstetric unit to the main operating room (OR). The microsystem will accomplish this through effective teamwork, clear interdisciplinary communication, collaboration, and standardization of processes involved. The institution is a not for profit rural health care facility and is a designated Critical Access Hospital; it is located in Northern California. A general obligation bond was passed in 2007 to fund seismic upgrades. Old OB unit …

Controlling Pm2.5 In Chengdu: Analysis And Recommendations From The China, U.S. And California Experience, Weijia Li

Master's Projects and Capstones

Chengdu, China, is experiencing rapid economic growth and urbanization at a cost of serious air pollution problems. China has developed a series of policies to reduce PM2.5 emissions and to reform energy structure. However, problems exist which may prevent effectively implementation of the PM2.5 policies, include poor PM2.5 monitoring, isolated environmental management, lack of health improvement target, unclear consequence of non-compliance, and unequally distributed PM2.5 management.

This research reviews U.S. PM2.5 emission control technologies related to coal-fired boilers and iron and steel manufacturing industries, which represent major emission sources of Chengdu. Chengdu’s choice of PM2.5 control technology should always consider …

Increasing Parent Involvement For Esl Parents, Cristina N. Holmes

Master's Projects and Capstones

Parents of ESL students are often misguided and misunderstood. As educators, it is important to understand theory and applying teaching frameworks to various cutural backgrounds. This handbook addresses some of the needs of ESL parents, focusing on the parent involvement framework, and applies to the daily lives of parents. By focusing on the school, family, and community, this paper explains why it is important for ESL parents to be involved in their child's education and how they can become more involved on the path to academic success.

Improving Medication Administration And Patient Outcomes By Decreasing Avoidable Interruptions, Polly Nghiem

Master's Projects and Capstones

This Clinical Nurse Leader (CNL) project took place at a level I trauma center in the San Francisco Bay Area, on a 34-bed Medical Surgical, Behavioral Medicine and Acute Care for the Elderly (ACE) Specialty Unit. The goal was to improve the adverse events made during medication administration, which in turn reduces medical error costs and improves patient outcomes and patient safety. A review of the literature revealed several key points: (1) Medication errors are increasingly recognized as a significant, but preventable problem in our health care system, (2) Interruptions are implicated as a cause of clinical error, (3) Medication …

The Future Of Direct Potable Reuse In California: Overcoming Public Acceptance Barriers, Allison Chan

Master's Projects and Capstones

Due to the water shortages, population growth, and competing demands for water in California, the possibility of incorporating direct potable reuse technology in the state’s water supply portfolio is being considered by various water resource providers. This paper focuses on public acceptance challenges that may be encountered. By evaluating best practices employed by six different potable water reuse case studies, recommendations for future direct potable reuse projects are developed. It is recommended that future project proponents plan early and conduct public opinion surveys regarding this type of technology, develop and implement public outreach and education plans that include best practices …

Remediation Options For Mercury-Contaminated Sediments Within The Yuba River Watershed, Tara Fitzgerald

Master's Projects and Capstones

Historical hydraulic mining activities in the Yuba River watershed have impacted the watershed and the San Francisco Bay. The research evaluates pathways for mercury entry into the watershed and potential remediation technologies to reduce the risk of future mercury contamination from hydraulic mining debris. Remediation technologies for the Yuba Goldfields and Englebright Reservoir are discussed and compared separately. The major pathway for mercury entry into surface water along Yuba Goldfields is within suspended sediment mobilized during flooding conditions. While multiple remediation options are available for the Yuba Goldfields, phytostabilization is the least costly and has the fewest environmental impacts. A …

Improving Interdisciplinary Communication To Improve Patient Satisfaction, Jennifer J. Barnes

Master's Projects and Capstones

The Clinical Nurse Leader project took place at a Magnet Hospital in Northern California. It involved the nursing staff on a 23-bed Post-Surgical Medical Surgical unit, as well as the therapists providing care to their diverse patient population. The goal was to improve interdisciplinary communication to decrease the frequency of missed or postponed therapy sessions. A review of literature revealed that this preventable issue could be the most significant factor resulting in an extended length of stay and affecting overall patient satisfaction. Project data was gathered from a variety of sources, including a unit assessment, shadowing therapists, interviews with key …

Improving Birth Outcomes: Women’S Oral Health Project, Dilem Polat

Master's Projects and Capstones

Improving Birth Outcomes: Women’s Oral Health Project is a new project housed within the Child Health and Disability Prevention, CHDP Program. The main goal of the project is to improve the birth outcomes of high-risk pregnant women and their children, by educating participants within the Maternal Child and Adolescent Health Section at the San Francisco Department of Public Health. The educational component will focus on the importance of oral health and the impact of oral disease on perinatal health. Following the educational component, referrals for appropriate dentists will be provided for participants to they may begin improving their oral health. …

Meeting Minutes, Wku University Senate

Faculty Senate

Meeting regarding benefits, salaries, Student Government Association, academic quality and Colonnade Plan.

Meeting Minutes, Wku Graduate Council

Graduate School

Meeting minutes.