Digital Commons Network^™

Utilizing A Mobile App To Enhance Patient Engagement & Self-Efficacy Of Adults With Type 2 Diabetes In Primary Care: A Quality Improvement Project, Melissa Ann Donais

DNP Scholarly Projects

Abstract

Background: Diabetes is a common condition encountered in primary care and requires significant attention to lifestyle factors to be properly managed. The primary care provider may lack the time needed to assist the patient with self-management strategies to improve glycemic control. Mobile applications may be a tool that the primary care provider can use to help improve diabetes self-efficacy and patient engagement.

Theoretical Framework: The Mountain Model guided this quality improvement (QI) project by providing a framework to translate research into clinical practice. The Mountain Model bridged the gap between research and the standard of care in this practice. …

Library Guide Assessment Standards For Quality-Checked Review Workbook, Sarah H. Moukhliss, Trina Mccowan Adams

Library Faculty Presentations & Publications

This OER workbook introduces the Library Guide Assessment Standards (LGAS), a practical, rubric-based framework for evaluating and improving LibGuides. Adapted from established online course quality models, LGAS provides a shared language for reviewing guide design, accessibility, usability, and maintenance. Designed for both individuals and teams, this workbook offers adaptable tools that support consistent, sustainable assessment in academic library contexts.

Blue-Winged Teal (Spatula Discors), Z. B. Holmes, Ann Hodgson, Florida Ornithological Society

Family 01: Anatidae

The expansive breeding range of Blue-Winged Teal stretches from the Canadian Arctic to northern Texas while, in the eastern United States, their non-breeding winter range extends from Florida and continues south throughout the Caribbean, Central America, and northern South America. In the United States, the highest winter densities occur in southern Texas and peninsular Florida in early January, but teal are present in Florida throughout the year.

Ruddy Duck (Oxyura Jamaicensis), C. Chancy, Ann Hodgson, Florida Ornithological Society

Family 01: Anatidae

The Ruddy Duck can be distinguished from most North American ducks by its unique plumage and stature. This stocky, still-tailed duck breeds in the southwest and southern interior of Canada and extends its breeding range into the Lower 48 to southern California, across the northern southwest, and up through Nebraska, the Dakotas, and the western half of Minnesota.

Frontmatter (Volume 46, Issue 4), Paul B. Mojzes

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

The Religious Landscape Of Ukraine During The War: Consolidation Potential And Destructive Imitations, Vadym Dyiak

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article examines the transformation of religion’s functional role in the context of the russian-Ukrainian war. The author analyzes how the extreme circumstances of armed conflict catalyze the polarization of Ukraine’s religious landscape, clearly distinguishing between authentic religiosity and its ideological imitations. The main focus is on conceptualizing the differences between churches that serve as a resource for spiritual consolidation and social therapy (the OCU, the UGCC) and religious institutions that are used as instruments of hybrid aggression. To describe the latter phenomenon, the author introduces and adapts Oswald Spengler’s concept of “historical pseudomorphosis.” It is argued that the activities …

Dynamics Of Changes Of Religiosity In Condition Of Crisis Events (Based On The Example Of The Russian-Ukrainian War), Yurii Boreiko, Fedotova Tetiana

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article analyzes changes in the religiosity of Ukrainians during the Russian-Ukrainian war as a large-scale event. It explores the nature of the connection between the traumatic experience of war and religiosity and determines the trajectory of changes in the religiosity of Ukrainians during the war. It has been established that the Russian-Ukrainian war caused social upheavals accompanied by crises in various spheres of public life. As a large-scale tragic event, the war became a catalyst for changes in self-assessment of faith in God and participation in religious practices. The level of religiosity of Ukrainians during the war was significantly …

The Reconfiguration Of Institutional Trust In The Church In Ukraine During The Full-Scale Russian–Ukrainian War, Nataliia Ishchuk

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article analyzes the transformation of institutional trust in the Church in Ukraine under the conditions of the full-scale Russian–Ukrainian war. The phenomenon of trust is interpreted as an interdisciplinary concept that makes it possible to combine theological, anthropological, and social approaches to its comprehension. Trust in God and trust in the Church belong to different levels of religious experience: the former has an existential character, while the latter functions as a form of institutional legitimacy. Based on sociological survey data from the Kyiv International Institute of Sociology (KIIS) and the Razumkov Centre, it is demonstrated that throughout all the …

The Ukrainian Religious Diaspora In Countering Russian Aggression, Liudmyla Fylypovych, Georgii D. Fylypovych Mr.

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article analyzes the activities of the Ukrainian religious diaspora during the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, its involvement in humanitarian support, and information-media opposition to Russia. It examines the initiatives of various churches, including the UGCC, the Orthodox Church in America, and Protestant congregations abroad, in providing concrete assistance to Ukraine, specifically to refugees, displaced persons, medical institutions, and units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. The assistance provided is multi-vector in nature, ranging from financial support for individuals or institutions to psychological aid for those suffering from various traumas. The article highlights the necessity of creating inter-confessional coordination centers for …

Who Can We Trust When They Are Watching? Lessons From Communist Surveillance For Today's Hybrid And Authoritarian Realities: An Interview Series, Katharina Kunter

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article explores the intersection of trust, surveillance, and political instrumentalization in authoritarian and hybrid warfare contexts, drawing on interviews with four contemporary witnesses from the Cold War era: Paul Mojzes, Laurens Hogebrink, Renate Ellmenreich, and Markus Meckel. Their experiences—spanning communist surveillance in the GDR, ecumenical diplomacy, and Western peace activism—reveal enduring challenges for churches, activists, and scholars engaging with partners in authoritarian regimes.

Islamic Education And Imperial Governance: Kazakh Institutions In Turkestan (1867–Present), Mavluda Smanova

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article explores development of religious education among Kazakh populations within Turkestan Governor-Generalship from 1867 to the early twentieth century, placing it within wider context of imperial administration, Islamic intellectual heritage, and reformist initiatives. It contends that Islamic learning institutions were not merely shaped by colonial influence but operated as flexible and enduring systems deeply rooted in local social structures. Rather than suppressing these institutions, Russian imperial authorities adopted a policy of controlled integration, bringing them under administrative oversight while simultaneously promoting alternative educational models. This dynamic gave rise to diverse and negotiated educational landscape rather than a uniformly imposed …

Dnp Final Report: Reducing 30-Day Readmissions Through Follow-Up Appointments In An Acute Care Setting, Sukhnandan Kaur

DNP Final Reports

Thirty-day hospital readmissions remain a persistent quality and financial concern for acute care organizations. Poorly coordinated discharge processes, inconsistent follow-up appointment scheduling, and gaps in care transitions may increase the risk of avoidable readmissions among adult medical-surgical patients. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to implement a standardized follow-up appointment scheduling workflow prior to hospital discharge and evaluate its effect on follow-up scheduling compliance and 30-day readmission trends in a 93-bed acute care hospital. The intervention was implemented over 12 weeks on an adult medical-surgical unit from September through December 2025. The standardized workflow included electronic health record …

Dnp Final Report: Poverty Stigma: The Effects Of A Poverty Simulation On Undergraduate Nursing Students And Their Attitudes Toward Caring For Impoverished Patients, Jessica P. Bowen

DNP Final Reports

Background: Current evidence demonstrates that stigma toward individuals living in poverty persists among undergraduate nursing students and negatively influences patient outcomes. Evidence-based educational strategies addressing social determinants of health have been shown to improve nursing students’ perceptions of vulnerable populations.

Purpose: This quality improvement project intended to evaluate the feasibility of integrating an interactive Community Action Poverty Simulation© (CAPS) activity into an undergraduate nursing (BSN) program at an academic health system university in East Texas.

Methods: Guided by the Plan Do Study Act (PDSA) quality improvement framework and The Johns Hopkins Evidence-Based Practice (JHEBP) Model, Missouri's Community Action Poverty Simulation …

The Phenomenon Of Professional Burnout Among Military Chaplains In Ukraine, Artem Makovskyi, Oleg Mateyuk, Oleksandr Bilovskyi, Anton Datskov, Dmytro Oleshko

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article presents a comprehensive study of the phenomenon of professional burnout among military chaplains in Ukraine in the context of their personal experience of being in extreme (combat) conditions. The relevance of the problem is due to the prolonged impact of combat operations, high psycho-emotional stress, and the special role of military chaplains in the system of moral and psychological support for Ukraine's security and defense sector. The theoretical and methodological basis of the study was the concept of professional burnout by K. Maslach, the provisions of the person-centered approach, and the theory of personal experience. The empirical study …

Bolshevik Anti-Religious Policy As An Instrument Of Ideological Influence On The Youth Of National Minorities In The Volhynia-Zhytomyr Region (1925-1936), Galyna Starodubets, Oleksandra Stasiuk

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The relevance of the research problem lies in the need to expand scholarly knowledge about the role and place of national minorities (Poles, Germans, and Jews) in the processes of Sovietization of the Ukrainian countryside and in the establishment of the totalitarian regime in general during the first decades of Soviet rule in Ukraine. Drawing on extensive source material, the article examines the policy of the Bolshevik authorities toward the youth of the Polish, German, and Jewish national minorities in the Volyn–Zhytomyr region against the background of the Sovietization of the countryside in the mid-1920s to the early 1930s. It …

Two Fronts Of War: Physical And Spiritual: A Conversation With The Head Of The Chaplaincy Service Of The Land Forces Of The Armed Forces Of Ukraine– Larysa Polianska, Valentyna Kuryliak

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

She is an officer – and a woman. Emphasizing that she is not a military chaplain herself, she describes her role as a manager of the spiritual front. She is responsible for organizing the fulfillment of soldiers’ spiritual and religious needs and coordinating military chaplaincy activities. This conversation with Colonel Larysa Polyanska explores what it means for a woman to lead the chaplaincy service of the Land Forces of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, the reality of two fronts – physical and spiritual – and the pain of loss, prayer, and the power of words.

Frontmatter (Volume 46, Issue 5), Paul B. Mojzes

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

No abstract provided.

Socio-Psychological Portrait Of Muslim Women Who Joined Radical Religious Organizations, Akerke Sakbayeva, Nagima Baitenova, Zhuldyz Zhorabek, Assel Alimkhanova, Raimbek Zeinullin

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article examines the socio-psychological characteristics, motivations for radicalization, and the legal and social status of Muslim women who have joined radical religious organizations from gender and cultural studies perspectives. In recent years, the increasing involvement of women in violent extremist movements has intensified the need to investigate this phenomenon not only as a security issue, but also as a complex social, cultural, psychological, and gender-related phenomenon. The study analyzes both internal and external factors influencing the radicalization of women, including social marginalization, identity crises, emotional dependency, limited religious literacy, and perceptions of social injustice. Particular attention is given to …

Religious Education In Bulgaria: Historical Development, Values, And Public Role In Contemporary Society, Ioannis Kaminis

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This paper examines the historical development, contemporary legal framework, and public debates related to religious education in Bulgaria. The analysis traces the role of Christian (Orthodox) education from the Middle Ages to the present day, paying special attention to the dramatic changes during the communist period and the transformations after 1989. At the heart of the study is the question of the place of religious education in a context of democracy, pluralism, and constitutionally guaranteed freedom of conscience. The article examines the current regulatory framework, the religious landscape in the country, and the various models for teaching religion in Bulgarian …

Disenchantment Of The World In The Context Of The Russian-Ukrainian War,, Olga Dobrodum, Eduard Martyniuk, Olena Nykytchenko, Mykola Palinchak, Ruslana Tkachenko

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article analyzes Max Weber's concept of the "disenchantment of the world" («Entzauberung der Welt») in the context of the full-scale Russian-Ukrainian war, which began with Russia's invasion in February 2022 and continues to the present. The author examines disenchantment as a process of rationalization and desacralization of society, tracing its development from ancient origins (Epicurus) and monotheistic traditions to contemporary interpretations (Adorno and Horkheimer, Barthes, Baudrillard, Habermas, Taylor, Haraway, Latour). The paradoxical nature of the process is emphasized: secularization does not eliminate the sacred but transforms it into new forms—from commodity fetishism to digital eschatology and posthumanist animism.

The …

Ideology And Law In Tension: The Macedonian Socialist Model Of Secularism And Its Constitutional Legacy, Aleksandar Spasenovski

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article examines the constitutional and ideological foundations of church–state relations in socialist Macedonia (1945–1990), situating them within the broader framework of socialist Yugoslavia. It argues that the Macedonian model of secularism was shaped by a structural tension between Marxist atheism as an official ideological doctrine and formal constitutional guarantees of freedom of religion. While constitutional texts affirmed separation and religious liberty, statutory regulation and political practice constrained the public role of religion and marginalized religious communities within the socialist legal order.

By analyzing ideological premises, constitutional provisions, and legislative instruments, the article identifies the defining paradox of the Yugoslav …

Ten Signatories, A Hundred Communities: Pluralization Without Consolidation In Slovenian Protestantism, Katja Brkič Golob

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article examines why contemporary Slovenian Protestantism exhibits a dual structure: a low‑variance Lutheran core (the Evangelical Church of the Augsburg Confession - ECAC) and a high‑variance neo‑Protestant field (mainly Pentecostal, Charismatic, Evangelical, and some Baptist communities). Using the public Register of Churches and Other Religious Communities as an administrative tracer of organizational volatility (first registrations, renamings, deletions), and situating findings in census/survey context, the study shows that post‑1991 legal liberalization enabled rapid formalization without automatic consolidation. A four‑lens framework—historico‑legal, sociological (church–sect–mysticism; religious‑economy), ecclesiological (order vs. movement), and psychological (charisma and its routinization; risks of authoritarian patterns)—explains why tensions in …

Security Challenges For The Activities Of Religious Organizations During Russian-Ukrainian War, Iryna Kondratieva, Iryna Fenno

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

In the article authors identify the greatest security challenges for religious organizations of Ukraine during Russian-Ukrainian war. In conditions of martial law, external threats and risks associated with the existential dimension become particularly acute. In the context of armed conflict and military operations, issues of survival assume paramount importance. Religious communities, like all other civilian populations, incur substantial losses and are perpetually vulnerable during the active phase of armed conflict. Security challenges are defined by authors as the most significant factor in changes in religious life in Ukraine during martial law.  Among them authors examine in detail war crimes in …

An Interdisciplinary Approach To Understanding The Social Ministry Of The Orthodox Church Of Ukraine In The Context Of Christian Theology And Socio-Humanitarian Sciences, Rostyslav Didukh

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article presents a comprehensive interdisciplinary scientific and theological analysis of the social ministry of the Orthodox Church of Ukraine (OCU) in the context of Christian theology and socio-humanitarian disciplines. Modern approaches of Orthodox theology to the social mission of Christianity ensure the integrity of the development of the human and society. The need to ensure the coherence of theological concepts of the Orthodox Church social teaching with the existing church and parish life, church educational mission, theological education, and social work is emphasized. Special attention is paid to the interdisciplinary connections of Orthodox theology, religious studies, psychology, pedagogy and …

Religious Life In Western Ukrainian Lands From 1914 To 1918: The Situation Of Confessions Under Conditions Of War And Occupation, Oksana Markevych, Andrii V. Shevchuk Dr. Hist. Sc.

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This article examines the religious life in Western Ukrainian lands during the First World War, amidst military operations and changing occupational regimes. It establishes that the Russian occupational authorities applied mechanisms of confessional control, previously tested in other captured Ukrainian and Belarusian territories, aimed at the forced imposition of Orthodoxy and the liquidation of the Greek Catholic Church. Particular attention is paid to the scale of religious persecution: the deportation of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky, the arrests of Greek Catholic priests, pogroms against the Jewish population, and mass deportations of Protestants. The phenomenon of mass displacement (refugee crisis) is explored as …

Islamic Identity In Post-Soviet Kazakhstan: Between Nation-Building And Global Religious Transformations, Ainur Adaikhan, Ainur Shormanova, Nurlan Orynbekov

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

This study examines the formation and expression of Islamic identity in Kazakhstan within the broader post-Soviet transformation of religion, nationhood, and state governance. Following decades of Soviet-imposed atheism, Islam re-emerged as a significant cultural and social force after independence in 1991. The objective of this research is to analyze how Islamic identity is constructed, expressed, and regulated in contemporary Kazakhstan, and to assess the interaction between ethnocultural belonging, institutional governance, and global religious influences. Methodologically, the study employs a mixed analytical approach combining theoretical interpretation, quantitative analysis of census and survey data, and institutional analysis of religious policy frameworks. Empirical …

The Canonical-Legal Status Of Autocephaly And Autonomy In The Context Of Pan-Orthodox Dialogue, Ivan Yovchev

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

Historical procedures for granting autonomy and autocephaly are not strictly standardized in canonical law and often rely on local traditions, agreements, and specific historical-political circumstances. This leads to a diversity of practices – from unilateral tomoses (decrees) of autocephaly issued by the mother church to decisions supported by a broader pan-Orthodox consensus. At the pan-Orthodox level, the question of how new autocephalous and autonomous churches are proclaimed has been under discussion since the Pan-Orthodox preparatory commissions of the 20th–21st centuries. Preparatory documents envisage the need for a pan-Orthodox agreement, with autocephaly to be granted through a tomos signed by the …

Volunteer Activities Of Religious Organizations In Ukraine During The Russian-Ukrainian War (2014-2025), Serhii Stelnykovych, Ivan Kovalchuk, Iryna Miakinchenko

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article analyzes the volunteer activities of religious organizations in Ukraine during the Russian-Ukrainian war in 2014–2025. Two stages are identified. In the first stage (2014–early 2022), volunteer initiatives of religious organizations adapted to the localized conflict in Donbas. In the second stage (early 2022–2025), under the conditions of the full- scale Russian invasion of Ukraine, volunteering by religious organizations took on the character of humanitarian mobilization. The role of interfaith structures–above all, the All- Ukrainian Council of Churches and Religious Organizations (AUCCRO)–in shaping and supporting volunteer initiatives is demonstrated. It is argued that humanitarian assistance to civilians and military …

Religious Television Of Ukraine In Shaping Spiritual Identity In The Context Of Contemporary Media Practices, Oleh Sokolovskyi, Vadym Slyusar, Maksym Melnychuk, Yuliia Kondratiuk

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

The article is devoted to analysing religious television in Ukraine as a key institution of contemporary sacred communication, which shapes a new configuration of spiritual presence within the digital media space. Religious TV channels are examined as mediatized spaces for producing and transmitting symbolic meanings, within which traditional theological narratives are adapted to the demands of audiovisual culture, and the sacred acquires new forms of visualisation, emotional accessibility, and communicative dynamism. It is demonstrated that television broadcasting provides a unique format of spiritual support, enabling faith communities to participate in prayer practices, catechetical programmes, and moral-ethical discourse beyond the boundaries …

The Phenomenon Of Ukrainian Chaplaincy From The Underground Of The 1990s To Officer Ranks In The Historical And Spiritual Experience Of Lieutenant Colonel Of Aviation And Pastor Vasyl Khimich, Valentyna Kuryliak

Occasional Papers on Religion in Eastern Europe

Vasyl Khimich is a career aviation officer, retired lieutenant colonel, and pastor who combined the discipline of a Soviet officer with the spiritual mission of developing educational standards. This interview is about how faith became a strategic resource of national security. The figure of Vasyl Khimich is exceptionally valuable for the history of Protestantism in Ukraine, as he combines the experience of a Soviet career aviation officer, a pastor, and a developer of the first standards of military chaplaincy in Ukraine. His path demonstrates the complex evolution of the Ukrainian military-Christian movement from underground meetings to official recognition at the …