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Keynote Address And Meeting Program, Academy Editors

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

No abstract provided.

Antecedents Of Childhood Obesity Risk Factors, A Self Determination Theory Perspective, Katelyn Fox

Open Access Dissertations

Overweight and obesity effect one in three children in the US, with significant disparities for Non-Hispanic Black and Hispanic/ Latinx children. Factors such as rapid weight gain, non-responsive feeding practices, and poor diet quality in infancy and early childhood can contribute to the development of obesity. An in depth understanding of what predicts these factors is necessary to inform and improve obesity prevention and treatment efforts. This is especially important to understand in the communities disproportionately impacted by childhood obesity. Therefore, the objective of this dissertation was to explore the contextual factors that influence rapid weight gain, non-responsive feeding practices, …

Pushing Against Patriarchy: Indonesian Muslim Women Using Islam As A Form Of Resistance, Ariana Siddiqui-Dennis

Women, Gender, and Sexuality Studies Undergraduate Honors Theses

Seldom has Islam been understood in mainstream discourse as a means of achieving gender equality and resisting patriarchal powers. However, Indonesian Muslim women organizers did just that. This project analyzes how patriarchal culture, colonialism, the state, and religious powers have shaped current gender norms regarding women in the public and private sphere since the twentieth century. Centering how Javanese Muslim women have used Islam to resist patriarchal authorities, I analyze sociological, historical, and gender and sexuality studies. This project challenges conservative interpretations of Islam used within Muslim communities to limit women’s rights, and challenges Islamophobic misconceptions that frame the religion …

George Floyd And Empathy Stories, Binny Miller

Scholarly Articles in Law Reviews & Journals

In this essay, I explore the stories that lawyers tell on behalf of clients in the context of empathy, and also consider the power of proximity, particularly physical proximity, in forging deep connections with clients. Empathy has played a key, if sometimes silent, role in the endeavor of giving clients "back their lives," whether in case theory or in lawyering more generally. A renewed focus on empathy-informed by Bryan Stevenson's idea of proximity-can more securely ground lawyers in the lived experience of their clients.I use the context of the murder of George Floyd and the subsequent trial of Derek Chauvin …

Home-Based Interventions To Lower Neonatal Mortality Rates In Developing Countries, Josee Sarah Etienne

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Aim: To evaluate Home-based interventions to lower neonatal mortality rates in developing countries.

Background: A developing country is a country that is lacking in the services and facilities enjoyed by people in developed countries, such as personally owned automobiles and homes with indoor plumbing and water-carried sewage disposal systems. The difference in resources compared to developed regions, has been evident to the correlation of the increase neonatal mortality rates.

Method: An electronic, systematic review of four databases were used to retrieve 209 articles initially, later filtered to 42 articles utilized in this review. The following databases used are as listed: …

Use Of Mechanical Pronation Beds In Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome In The Intensive Care Unit: An Integrative Review Of The Literature, Amanda St. John

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The increasing rate of Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome (ARDS) reinforces the need for additional resources to assist clinical staff with an individual's care and recovery. Pronation therapy involves physically rotating an individual from the posterior position to the prone position. Pronation therapy has successfully been used for individuals diagnosed with ARDS in Intensive Care Units for decades. However, manual pronation maneuvers by staff members poses risks for those who are critically ill and risk of physical injury to caregivers. Mechanical pronation beds have revolutionized the art of pronation therapy, minimizing risks, and decreasing possibility of kinking or pulling out life …

Race-Based Adjustment In Egfr Algorithms: An Integrative Literature Review, Leah E. Utt

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Background: There is a 3-fold risk of developing end stage kidney disease in Non-Hispanic African Americans compared to Non-Hispanic White Americans (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2017). Estimated glomerular filtration rate (eGFR), one of the fundamental algorithms for coordinating treatment for kidney disease which factors in age, race, gender, and levels of creatinine, may pose an issue in this vulnerable population. Currently African Americans receive a correction factor between 1.21 and 1.16 to their eGFR to adjusting the value higher, potentially impacting appropriate kidney disease classification, and delaying beneficial interventions (National Kidney Foundation, 2020).

Methods: A systematic literature search …

The Relationship Between Locus Of Control, Affective Disorders, And Weight Loss Expectations In Adults Seeking Bariatric Surgery, Rachel Brookland

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

Bariatric surgery is the most effective long-term treatment for severe obesity. Although bariatric surgery results in significant weight loss for many patients, variability exists in expectations surrounding postoperative outcomes. Therefore, this study examined two psychosocial factors that may contribute to variability in weight loss expectations among adults seeking bariatric surgery: affective disorders and locus of control. Specifically, it was hypothesized that individuals scoring higher on external measures of locus of control would report lower weight loss expectations for surgery than those scoring higher on internal measures of locus of control (as measured by the Levenson’s Multidimensional Locus of Control Scale, …

Effects Of Trained Providers And Naloxone Distribution On Prescription Opioid Use Disorder, Samuel Sarpong

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractOpioid abuse and overdose are associated with substantial morbidity and mortality rates, as well as social and economic costs. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the independent and interactive effects of state-sponsored prescription drug monitoring program (PDMP) trained healthcare providers and community-based naloxone distribution program related factors in the states of Florida and Georgia for the prevention and reduction of prescription opioid use disorder, overdose, and deaths. The research theory adopted was the socio-ecological model with an emphasis on risk factors such as age. The study used secondary data from 2014 to 2018 from the Florida and Georgia …

Social Determinants Of Health And Type 2 Diabetes Among Enrollees Of California Children’S Services Program In Fresno County, California, Daniela Marie Aghadjanian

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite extensive study in adults, Type 2 diabetes (T2D) has been the subject of little research concerning young adults or children. Doctors believed T2D to develop only in a person’s later years until health care providers found younger individuals developing this disease. The purpose of this cross-sectional quantitative analysis was to determine correlations between T2D and social determinants of health in Fresno County, California, based on children and adolescents. The 2017-19 data came from the Fresno County Department of Public Health. The theoretical foundation for the study was the socio-ecological framework focusing on individuals’ traits having a bidirectional impact on …

Understanding How Religious Practices Influence Self-Care In Black Churchgoers Diagnosed With Hypertension, Taquina C. Davis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Religion plays an essential role in managing health; however, there is limited research on religious practices among Black churchgoers diagnosed with hypertension. This research aims to understand how religious practices influence self-care in Black churchgoers diagnosed with hypertension. The sample consisted of 21 Black men and women, ages 29 to 70 years, with a clinical diagnosis of hypertension. Participants were recruited from two local, predominately Black churches in South Carolina and administered semistructured interviews to participants. A grounded theory design was used, and the data analysis consisted of constant comparison. Two core concepts were identified. One core concept identified was …

Elementary Stakeholder Perceptions Of Data Team Discussions Influence On Instructional Adjustments, Michelle Shay

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Federal law requires schools to conduct formative, summative, and diagnostic assessments to inform instructional strategies. However, the collection of student accountability compliance data has not always resulted in improved student academic achievement. The research problem addressed in this study is that little is understood about how data team discussions influence elementary teachers’ instructional adjustments. The purpose of this basic qualitative study is to gain an in-depth understanding of elementary teacher and leader perceptions of how data team discussions influence teachers’ data-driven decision making (DDDM) instructional adjustments. The conceptual framework for this study is based on the theory of planned behavior, …

The Lived Experience Of Black Women With Weight Loss And Counseling Post Bariatric Surgery, Cynthia Williams

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractStudies have shown that bariatric surgery can assist obese individuals to both lose a significant amount of weight rapidly and improve or resolve health comorbidities associated with obesity. This weight loss, however, can be considerably less for the obese Black woman. While reasons for this difference appears multifactorial entailing dietary, genetics, and environmental factors, limited research concerning the lived experiences of obese or formerly obese Black women with weight loss and post bariatric counseling have been conducted. The primary objective of this interpretative phenomenological study was to increase the understanding of the lived experiences of obese or formerly obese Black …

Perceived Learning Needs Of High School Teachers Regarding Suicide Prevention, Miranda Lynne Bevilacqua

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Suicide is the second leading cause of death among youth in Canada. Though school-aged youth are surrounded by teachers, mentors, and school mental health nurses (SMHN), little is known about what teachers want to know regarding suicide and whether the teachers have the knowledge to recognize youth at risk. The purpose of this generic exploratory qualitative study, guided by the health belief model, was to explore the perceived learning needs of high school teachers in northwestern Ontario (NWO) regarding suicide prevention. The data collection process involved semistructured virtual interviews with 14 high school teachers in NWO recruited via social media. …

African American Social Service Nonprofit Leaders’ Success Strategies, Orletta Ekpene Caldwell

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This study sought to understand successful African American social service nonprofit leaders’ stories about building sustainable organizations. There was currently limited research on this topic. Therefore, the study used a basic qualitative methodology to understand their backgrounds and influences that impacted their ability to maintain a sustainable nonprofit organization despite the unique challenges these leaders face. The White racial frame and social cognitive theory theories identified the context and foundation of these challenges. Nine successful African American social services nonprofit organization leaders were interviewed. Qualitative thematic analysis was used to identify key themes from the interview data. The interviews helped …

Experiences Of Volunteer Staff In Eldercare Facilities During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Novelle S. Davis

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The exploitation of unpaid healthcare staff led to a volunteer flight from long-term residential facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. A literature gap existed on human resource policies to support volunteer eldercare workers who had remained at their posts and taken charge of work in long-term care facilities during the public health crisis. The purpose of this qualitative narrative inquiry study was to explore how volunteers in eldercare facilities viewed their daily experiences and interpreted their role in eldercare facilities during the COVID-19 pandemic. This study was framed by Garner and Garner’s theory of volunteer retention and Studer’s concept of volunteer …

Relationship Between Social Media Screen Time, Sedentariness, And Bmi Among Young Adults, Helen Golod

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Obesity has quickly become an epidemic that affects adults and youth not only in the United States, but also increasingly elsewhere in the global community. Research suggests that most children and adolescents spend a significant amount of time indulging in screen-based leisure, especially on social media. Such behavior may also be linked to sedentary lifestyle, which can impact an individual’s body mass index (BMI). There is a lack of understanding concerning how sedentary behavior moderates the relationship between screen time spent on different types of social media and BMI among young adults in the United States. To address this research …

Staff Education On Fall Prevention For Inpatient, Geriatric, Psychiatric Patients, Shannon C. Hampton

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Falls among hospitalized, geriatric patients are a leading cause of injury. Geriatric patients with psychiatric illnesses are at an even greater risk of falls. The project site was experiencing an increase in the number of patient falls and identified a need for staff education on fall risk assessment and implementation of interventions specific to the hospitalized, geriatric, psychiatric patient. Thus, the practice-focused question for this project was whether an educational program on evidence-based assessment and fall prevention strategies would improve nurses’ knowledge and skills to assess risk for falls and implement appropriate interventions for inpatient, geriatric, psychiatric patients. Knowles’s adult …

Educators' And Parents' Perceptions Of Family Engagement In A Head Start Program, Sondeania Marie Johnson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Family engagement benefits children’s development and contributes to student academic success. However, educators feel that they are unprepared to engage families in the educational process, although they are encouraged to do so. The purpose of this basic qualitative study with interviews was to explore educators’ and parents’ perceptions of family engagement. The conceptual framework for this study was supported by Epstein’s ecological framework. A basic qualitative study and purposeful sampling were used to conduct semistructured interviews with 10 educators who were currently employed as teachers and with five parents who had a child enrolled in the Head Start program who …

Secret Keeping And Subjective Well-Being In Nurses, Augustina Marie Frazier

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Studies suggest that “secret-keeping,” the act of maintaining confidences or personal information, is a problem in the nursing population. Secret keeping may cause depression and anxiety, which might bring about isolation and reduce the ability to provide patient care. The purpose of this study was to address the gap in the literature concerning the relationship between secret-keeping and subjective well-being among early- and late-career nurses. Nurses are those who primarily work at the bedside and who supply the nursing labor force in health cares. I used Seligman's well-being theory to focus on the nurses’ happiness based on positive psychology. The …

Zolpidem: Efficacy And Side Effects For Insomnia, Amber N. Edinoff, Natalie W. Wu, Yahya Y. Ghaffar, Rosemary Prejean, Rachel Gremillion, Mark Cogburn, Azem A. Chami, Adam M. Kaye, Alan David Kaye

School of Pharmacy Faculty Articles

Insomnia is linked to fatigue, distractibility, mood instability, decreased satisfaction, and overall decreased quality of life. Optimal therapy can aid patients in returning to baseline and increase their quality of life. Zolpidem is a helpful drug for the treatment of insomnia in conjunction with cognitive-behavioral therapy. When prescribed to elderly patients, the dose should be adjusted to account for their slower drug metabolism. Still, zolpidem is considered a reasonable choice of therapy because it has a lower incidence of residual daytime sleepiness and risk of falls when compared to other drugs. The most concerning adverse effects, which are often the …

The Antisense Oligonucleotide Nusinersen For Treatment Of Spinal Muscular Atrophy, Amber N. Edinoff, Long H. Nguyen, Amira S. Odisho, Benjamin S. Maxey, John W. Pruitt, Brook Girma, Elyse M. Cornett, Adam M. Kaye, Alan David Kaye

School of Pharmacy Faculty Articles

Spinal muscular atrophy (SMA) is a rare, autosomal recessive neuromuscular degenerative disease characterized by loss of spinal cord motor neurons leading to progressive muscle wasting. The most common pathology results from a homozygous disruption in the survival motor neuron 1 (SMN1) gene on chromosome 5q13 via deletion, conversion, or mutation. SMN2 is a near duplicate of SMN1 that can produce full-length SMN mRNA transcripts, but its overall production capability of these mRNA transcripts is lower than that seen in SMN1. This leads to lower levels of functional SMN protein within motor neurons. The FDA approved nusinersen in December 2016 to …

Anti-Parasitic Activity Of Cherry Tomato Peel Powders, Mendel Friedman, Christina C. Tam, Jong H. Kim, Sydney Escobar, Steven Gong, Max Liu, Xuan Yu Mao, Cindy Do, Irene Kuang, Kelvin Boateng, Janica Ha, Megan Tran, Srimanth Alluri, Tam Le, Ryan Leong, Luisa W. Cheng, Kirkwood M. Land

College of the Pacific Faculty Articles

Trichomoniasis in humans, caused by the protozoal parasite Trichomonas vaginalis, is the most common non-viral sexually transmitted disease, while Tritrichomonas foetus causes trichomonosis, an infection of the gastrointestinal tract and diarrhea in farm animals and domesticated cats. As part of an effort to determine the inhibitory effects of plant-based extracts and pure compounds, seven commercially available cherry tomato varieties were hand-peeled, freeze-dried, and pounded into powders. The anti-trichomonad inhibitory activities of these peel powders at 0.02% concentration determined using an in vitro cell assay varied widely from 0.0% to 66.7% against T. vaginalis G3 (human); from 0.9% to 66.8% for …

Perceived Health And Preventative Care In The Transgender Population, Gregory Page Carpenter

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Historically, the transgender community has been treated and studied myopically, using the lens of psychological illness. As treatment and research efforts have expanded in the past decade, the transgender population is becoming better understood. The purpose of the study was to examine the relationship between perceived health and preventative care in the transgender community. The health belief model was the theoretical framework for this cross-sectional study, which included data from the 2014–2018 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System Survey. Chi-square tests and binomial logistic regressions were performed to investigate associations between perceived health and preventative care in the transgender community. The …

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program Work Policy And Its Influence On College Students’ Academic Success, Annetta Ann Clark

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) is a public food supplement assistance program offered by the U.S. federal government. Undergraduate students who apply for the program must work at least 20 hours per week while concurrently enrolled in six academic units or more. However, students who work more find less time to commit to their college studies, resulting in a negative impact on their academic performance. This phenomenography study’s purpose is to understand from an academic advisor’s perspective how SNAP’s work policy affects academics among first-generation undergraduate students. Maslow’s hierarchy of needs and Goldratt’s theory of constraints were the conceptual …

Kindergarten Teachers’ Implementation Methods For School Readiness Skills In A Rural School, Beverly Vashon Woods

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Kindergarten students in a Title 1 elementary school are lacking school readiness skills. When students enter kindergarten unprepared to learn, they may experience difficulties with approaches toward learning skills related to physical, language, social, emotional, and cognitive development, which are reliable predictors of subsequent academic and life success. The purpose of this qualitative bounded case study with a constructivist framework was to examine how kindergarten teachers implemented the five domains of school readiness at a Title 1 school to improve incoming kindergarten students’ learning. Convenience sampling was used within a bounded system of four kindergarten teachers in a Title 1 …

The Relationship Between Health Insurance And Dialysis Utilization For Chronic Kidney Disease Patients In Saint Lucia, Anita Lilian Sydney

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractChronic kidney disease (CKD) is a significant cause of disability and death in Saint Lucia. The incidence of CKD is disproportionately higher among individuals who are socially and financially disadvantaged. New evidence suggests that in resource-poor countries, government subsidization programs for dialysis treatment aid in the delay of disease progression and its associated costs. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between health insurance, government subsidization, employment, and dialysis utilization for CKD patients and the efficacy of subsidization for dialysis in Saint Lucia. The study included a retrospective cohort of 979 moderate-to-severe CKD patients from secondary data …

School Administrators’ Perceptions On Teaching Foster Children, Tisha Marie Hess

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Children in foster care face multiple barriers compared to their nonfoster peers, especially as it pertains to their educational success. The problem was school administrators, such as principals and assistant principals, face greater challenges in meeting the educational needs of foster children in addition to balancing the extraneous issues foster children face. Using Bronfenbrenner’s ecological theory, the purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore the experiences, perceptions, and challenges of elementary school administrators who work with foster youth in one school district in Illinois. The specific focus was on administrators’ role in curriculum design, support services, and ability …

Clinical Guideline To Support Diabetes Education For Adult Nursing Home Residents, Adediwura Ajadi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractDiabetes is a major cause of increased disease burden and cost of care for patients in long-term care (LTC) settings. Of common diabetes-related complications, hypoglycemia has the most catastrophic implications for this population. Poor understanding, reporting, and management of hypoglycemia by LTC staff can cause increased diabetes-related hospitalizations, disability, deaths, and financial burden for LTC patients and nursing homes. This DNP project focuses on developing a clinical guideline to address the recognition and management of hypoglycemia in LTC settings. It will advance the skills and knowledge of LTC staff regarding hypoglycemia management. The project is grounded in nursing theoretical models …

Sociodemographic And Psychosocial Factors And Wellbeing Among Adults 65 And Older In England, Dainelle Clark

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The increased number of older adults living longer parallels with the growth of public health concerns regarding the impact of sociodemographic and psychosocial factors (e.g., loneliness and social isolation) on older adults' wellbeing. The purpose of this quantitative study was to examine the association between loneliness, social isolation, the combined model of loneliness, and social isolation on wellbeing among older adults when accounting for age, gender, ethnicity, and social support. The socioecological model (SEM) was used to evaluate the multiple levels of environmental determinants for loneliness, social isolation, and wellbeing. The target population included older adults 65 years and older …