Digital Commons Network^™

Exertional Heat Strokes Incidents In Service Members, Adria Cosby, Brian A. Moore

Symposium of Student Scholars

A serious health concern active-duty service members (SMs) face is heat strokes (Donham et al., 2020). Heat strokes are caused when the body is overworked by extended periods of heat and dehydration that can result in convulsions, brain damage, and death (Shimazaki et al., 2022). Active-duty requires a lot of exertional training on their soldiers such as long-distance runs and weight-bearing exercises which may increase their risk of developing heatstrokes (Donham et al., 2020). However, there is a dearth of literature examining heat strokes among SMs. As such, the present study sought to examine incidence rate trends of heatstroke diagnoses …

Social Vulnerability, Diabetes, And Obesity In Georgia, Danny Jang

Symposium of Student Scholars

This project examines factors of health geography and population geography by examining the spatial correlation between diabetes and obesity prevalence among the population of Georgia. Diabetes and obesity are closely linked together, however, they are still far apart in various aspects which can be from personal to environmental impacts like geographical locations. This research attempts to investigate diabetes and obesity prevalence by examining the SVI of given counties of a state. This project uses data from the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and Opendata (which can be found on ESRI). Future studies can examine these health factors …

Examining The Experiences Of Black, White, And Other Student Groups On Campus, Christopher Pauyo, Reanna Tran, Kaelyn Ireland

Symposium of Student Scholars

The climate of a university can be critical to the experiences and mental health of students on a university’s campus (Budge et al., 2020), as such it is necessary to examine the experiences that perpetuate a university’s racial climate. Past psychological research has aimed to reduce negative emotional reactions born of race-related experiences in targeted and marginalized groups (Carter & Forsyth, 2020; Kim, 2016). Although the focus of prior research was essential in improving the experiences of people of color, other directions such as, analyzing the similarities and differences between experiences and emotional reactions of different racial groups, exist as …

How Do Cultural Similarities With Providers And Caregivers Shape The Management Of Chronic Conditions?, Maygui Jean

Symposium of Student Scholars

Previous research has outlined evident disparities in the development of chronic health conditions among African Americans compared to other groups, with African American men disproportionately affected by almost every disorder investigated. Examinations into chronic health conditions revealed that social determinants of health stemming from structural racism combined with cultural elements, compounded by the fact that African American men are much less likely to have access to health insurance, are highly related to the health burdens of African American men. Yet, much literature exploring the experiences, expectations, and effects of chronic health conditions rarely focuses specifically on African American men. The …

Preventative Interventions To Support Decreasing Compassion Fatigue Among Critical Care Nurses, Vanessa Otamendi

Symposium of Student Scholars

Title: Preventative Interventions to Support Decreasing Compassion Fatigue Among Critical Care Nurses

Background:

Nurses who are subjected to traumatic situations like difficult patient situations and a lack of support can experience compassion fatigue. Compassion fatigue is a problem throughout the healthcare field, especially in critical care where there are complex patients and high-pressure situations. Early forms of interventions such as workshops are important to offer in hopes of nurses becoming aware of and avoiding compassion fatigue.

Brief Literature Review:

This study aimed to synthesize existing interventions that focused on hospital nurses in a critical care capacity which focused on preventing …

Nursing Students' Attitude Towards People Living With Dementia During Covid-19 Pandemic., Jakira D. Usry, Janya Wilson

Symposium of Student Scholars

Background: The current global prevalence of dementia is estimated to increase from 55.2 million to 78 million in 2030 and 139 million in 2050. Prelicensure student nurses must be educated to have knowledge and skills in providing dementia care as well as positive attitudes.

Aim: To assess prelicensure nursing students' attitudes towards people living with dementia during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods: This is secondary data analysis of the data collected in an ongoing Mixed-Methods study investigating the impact of clinical experiential learning on prelicensure nursing students' dementia knowledge, attitudes, and skills during the COVID-19 pandemic. The data was collected via …

Nursing Education Regarding Take-Home Narcan In Relation To Opioid-Related Deaths, Taylor Birke, Nadia Butt, Bryce Farmer, Sarah Hendrick

Symposium of Student Scholars

The opioid epidemic in America has remained a national crisis since 2011 with opioid related deaths continuing to dramatically increase. Naloxone (Narcan) safely reverses the effects of an opioid overdose with little to no side effects. There is a gap in the literature regarding education and stigma-breaking conversations held between addicts and nurses surrounding an opioid overdose. This systematic literature review will examine the effects of nursing education on the acceptance and use of take-home Narcan kits within opioid drug users. Using the Kennesaw State University Library SuperSearch database, we searched for peer-reviewed studies that included one or more of …

The Effects Of Electronic Vs Traditional Cigarette Use On Heart And Lung Function, Kayla Stephenson, Daniel Stephenson, Sofia Robles, Luke Stewart

Symposium of Student Scholars

Abstract

Background: Due to the exponential growth in teenage use of electronic cigarettes, it appears that school aged children are starting to smoke at younger ages. It is frightening how many people are using electronic cigarettes and how sparse data exist. In this systematic review, we will illuminate the differences between electronic cigarettes and traditional cigarettes. With the rise in popularity of electronic cigarettes, we will describe the specific effects of electronic cigarettes on the cardiac and pulmonary systems. We sought to understand the long-term effect of using electronic and traditional cigarettes on cardiac and pulmonary systems.

Methods: After searching …

The Efficacy Of Educational Interventions In Reducing Patient Falls, Hailey Carroll

Symposium of Student Scholars

Determining the Efficacy of Educational Interventions in Reducing Patient Falls

Background: Despite there being an abundance of interventions put in place in hospitals, patient falls are still a frequent occurrence on the Acute Care unit at Kennestone Hospital and other healthcare settings worldwide. Staff members on the unit confirmed this problem, with 17 falls on the unit since September of 2021. It is essential to keep patient fall rates at a minimum because these events can devastate patient health by increasing recovery time as well as increasing the likelihood of more injuries and health complications. Data from multiple literature reviews …

Substance Use Disorders, Cognitive Dysfunction, And Neurodivergence In Emerging Adulthood, David Posada, Jordyn Hebert

Symposium of Student Scholars

Substance Use Disorders, Cognitive Dysfunction, and Neurodivergence in Emerging Adulthood

Posada, D., Herbert, J., Weingast, L., Holliday, E.

Cognitive functioning in college students with substance use disorders (SUD) has been widely researched, however, discussions have largely concentrated on executive functions (EF) such as working memory, flexible thinking, and self-control. Literature on the relationship between cognitive dysfunction and SUD has largely underreported the influence of Attention Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorders (ADD/ADHD) and other neurodivergent characteristics. The current review explores the state of the literature on the relationship between neurodivergence, cognitive dysfunction, and SUD in emerging adulthood. More specifically, it speculates whether college students …

Decreasing The Number Of Venipuncture Attempts In Infants On A Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, Laura Grace Holton

Symposium of Student Scholars

Decreasing the Number of Venipuncture Attempts in Infants on a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit

Laura Grace Holton

Obtaining intravenous access is a procedure performed on most preterm infants in neonatal intensive care units, for the purpose of obtaining blood samples, administering fluids and medications. Venipuncture is the process of puncturing the skin to insert a needle for IV access and often must be performed multiple times to be successful given the small veins of preterm infants. Research shows that multiple venipuncture attempts can be distressing to hospitalized infants, increases the risk of bloodstream infections, and causes lasting vein damage. Literature …

Ventilator Associated Pneumonia, Helena Walker

Symposium of Student Scholars

Ventilator Associated Pneumonia (VAP) is the instance in which a patient acquires pneumonia more than forty-eight hours after intubation with mechanical ventilation. VAP is a serious medical issue that occurs frequently in intensive care unit patients. Not only does this condition increase the morbidity and mortality of a patient, it also increases the cost of the patient’s health care as well. Commonly as recent literature suggests, in an effort to prevent this infection from occurring, hospital staff have taken several approaches including antibiotic cycling, surveillance cultures, and de-escalation therapies. These methods do not always prevent the cases though. Currently, research …

Challenges Associated With The Integration Of Population Health Content And Prelicensure Nursing Curricula- Experiences Of Nurse Educators, Stephanie Jones

Symposium of Student Scholars

Background: In April 2021, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing released new BSN essentials that emphasized population health. This inclusion of population health as an essential could improve prelicensure nursing students’ knowledge and skills in providing population health-based services. Also, it could help improve their attitude towards population health.

Objective: To explore the challenges of nurse educators’ perception and experience associated with the integration of population health content to prelicensure nursing curricula.

Methods: This is a secondary analysis of the qualitative data collected in an ongoing mixed-methods study exploring how population health content is integrated into …

Cost-Efficient Bridge Scour Health Monitoring Using Commercial Sensors, Connor Embleau, Tien Yee, Metin Oguzmert, Mahyar Amirgholy, Alan Akazemi, Dale Goff

Symposium of Student Scholars

Bridge scouring has been a major international issue regarding bridge health and the overall longevity of a bridge. A common bridge health concern such as scouring accounts for close to 60% of bridge failures in the United States and is a leading cause to a bridge being in critical condition. Traditional methods to combat this failure is to measure the scour depth to assess a bridge health. Due to safety concerns of the traditional method, this study proposes to monitor a bridge’s health using a vibration-based technique. At present, vibration-based techniques have yet to be utilized reliably in the field. …

Improving Tha (Total Hip Arthroscopy) Patient Satisfaction Scores By Reducing Time Spent In The Pacu From 90 Minutes To 60 Minutes, Jennifer Stultz

Symposium of Student Scholars

BACKGROUND, SIGNIFICANCE & PURPOSE

Total Hip Arthroplasty (THA) reduces pain and improves range of motion in patients with end stage osteoarthritis. Patients whose post-THA outcome matches their pre-surgical expectations report higher patient satisfaction scores. Post-surgical pain is expected, but if patients don’t ambulate soon enough after surgery, the pain escalates. Simply put, early ambulation improves patient satisfaction scores. To promote early ambulation, spinal block and Propofol are favored over general anesthesia to reduce time spent in the PACU (post anesthesia care unit). The current PACU goal for THA patient discharge is within ninety minutes of PACU arrival. Sometimes the spinal …

Geography Of Covid-19 Waves In Georgia, Walker Tompkins

Symposium of Student Scholars

Geography of COVID-19 Waves in Georgia

Over the past 2 years everyone on the globe’s lives have been changed drastically after the COVID-19 virus spread across the world. This united and divided us more than any other event in most of our lifetimes. The pandemic everyone and now that there are two years of data, it is important to examine impacts at various geographic scales. As such, focusing on the state of Georgia, this project explores how the different variants, public policy, and vaccination of our population has changed the trajectory of the virus and how many deaths it has …

The Development Of Purpose Among Marginalized Older Adults: A Resource For Resilient Aging, Ameesha Narine, Semper Habib, Shubam Sharma

Symposium of Student Scholars

Contrary to societal presumptions, older adults can show positive adaptation despite facing declines associated with late life (i.e., resilient aging; Wiles et al.,2019). One understudied resource that older adults may use to support their resilience is having a sense of purpose. Drawing on purpose has been shown to positively relate to mental and physical health (Musich et al., 2018). However, there is limited research that has examined how older adults develop purpose, particularly those who experience challenges due to aspects of their identity (i.e., due to marginalization). The current study explores older adults’ life stories to understand how a sense …

Rethinking Malignant Hyperthermia Protocols, Kelsey Currie

Symposium of Student Scholars

Rethinking Malignant Hyperthermia Protocols

In person poster

Undergraduate Student: Currie, Kelsey

Research Mentor: Kristi Brannen

Background: Although malignant hyperthermia (MH) is rare, it is a life-threatening event that can have many nurses unprepared to manage due to its irregularity, lack of training, and supplies. MH is considered a severe medical crisis that can happen within 30 minutes of anesthetic induction. To give the patient the best outcome, hospitals have protocols in place so the team can respond quickly and efficiently. Purpose: This study aims to investigate how creating central locations for MH carts, ice, and supplies compares to yearly training …

Heat Strokes In Military Service Members, Adria Cosby, Brian A. Moore, Michael Schlenk

Symposium of Student Scholars

Heat strokes are caused when the body is overworked by extended periods of heat and dehydration that can result in convulsions, brain damage, and death (Shimazaki et al., 2022). Heat strokes are a serious health concern for active-duty military service members (SMs) due to extended exertional training (i.e., long-distance running and weight-bearing exercises) which may increase their risk of developing heat strokes (Donham et al., 2020). However, there is a dearth of literature examining heat strokes among SMs. The present study sought to address this by examining diagnostic trends of heatstroke incidence among various military SM demographic classifications between 2016 …

Effects Of Healthcare Providers Personal Life On Low-Income African American Men, Allison Oglesby

Symposium of Student Scholars

Previous research has outlined evident disparities in the development of chronic health conditions among African Americans compared to other groups, with African American men disproportionately affected by almost every disorder investigated. Examinations into health conditions such as Chronic Heart Disease (CHD) revealed that social determinants of health stemming from structural racism combined with cultural elements such as diet and risk-taking behaviors were highly related to the health burdens of African American men. Compounded by the fact that African American men are less likely to have access to adequate health insurance, a disturbing picture of healthcare emerges for many African American …

Trajectory Of Substance Use Disorders And Collegiate Recovery In Emerging Adults, Jordyn Hebert, Victoria Chaney, Rebecca Smith Msw, Thomas Bannard, Leah Weingast Ma, Danielle Dick Phd, Erica Holliday Phd

Symposium of Student Scholars

Abstract

Collegiate Recovery Programs (CRPs) provide services to support emerging adults achieve academic success, while maintaining substance use disorder recovery. College and university campuses can often be considered abstinence-hostile environments, giving rise to the need of support services for students in recovery. A nationwide survey to understand the efficacy of services provided by CRPs was conducted to assess the demographics and academic profiles of students involved with CRPs. Co-occurring disorders including mental health issues, criminal histories, utilizations of recovery services and 12-step groups, and work histories of students were also assessed. CRPs can provide services and an environment to students …

Investigating The Discrimination That Members Of The Lgbtq+ Community Face When Attempting To Receive Health Care, Sumerlin Olinger, Taylor English, Kelly Spera, Alex Kalman

Symposium of Student Scholars

Key Words: LGBTQ+, Discrimination, Attitudes, Beliefs, Perceived Access to Care

Background

The LGBTQ+ community has historically faced marginalization and discrimination when attempting to receive medical care. Delayed medical care can lead to poor health outcomes and can increase prevalence of risk factors of behaviors such as drug use, higher STI and obesity rates, and other mental health issues such as depression (Quinn et al., 2015). The purpose of this study is to investigate the impacts that discrimination, attitudes, and beliefs have on members of the LGBTQ+ community when seeking medical care.

Methodology

The study uses primary data obtained through descriptive …

Health Equity For All, Kirsten Davis

Symposium of Student Scholars

Abstract

Past research has found clear evidence for racial disparities of chronic disease among African Americans when considered alongside other racial groups. African American men are particularly impacted by these disparities. Social determinants of health such as structural racism combined with cultural elements such as diet and risk-taking behaviors are incredibly predictive of the health burdens of African American men. Furthermore, low-income African American men struggle with food insecurity, lack of housing, and often rely on government health programs due to a lack of health insurance. However, most research on chronic health conditions fails to focus on low-income African American …

The Periodic Table Of Women Of Color In Stem, Ella Wasson

2022 Claremont Colleges Library Undergraduate Research Award

This research project analyzes the resistance and resilience of women of color in fields of STEM by exploring three themes. The first theme investigates the historic and ongoing systemic barriers women of color face. The second theme reveals the erasure and exploitation of women of color, highlighting the testimonies and experiences of real women of color in STEM. The third theme explores possible solutions to increase the accessibility and inclusivity of STEM. This project was exhibited on an interactive physical poster, the images of which are embedded throughout.

Addressing Mental Health Concerns Among International Students During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Daniel Kimonyi

Liberty University Research Week

Doctoral

Theoretical Proposal

Registered Nurse Hesitancy To Providing Narcotics To Post-Surgical Neonates: A Narrative Literature Review, Jordan Slowik

Liberty University Research Week

Doctoral

Theoretical Proposal

Modeling Covid-19 Spread Through The Seird Epidemic Model And Optimal Control, Luz Melo

Proceedings of GREAT Day

Mathematical models serve as a powerful tool for visualizing and describing the dynamics of infectious diseases. In this article, the SEIRD (Susceptible-Exposed-Infected-Recovered-Deceased) epidemic model consisting of a system of five non-linear differential equations is considered. By using COVID-19 data pertinent to the United States and the world situation, the use of existence and uniqueness of the disease-free equilibrium is established, the value of the basic reproductive number is determined, a stability analysis is carried out, and the parameters that fit the model to the data are estimated. An optimal control approach is performed to study the effect of quarantine and …

Environmental Education: An Active Pedagogy To Integrate Environmentalism, Engagement, And Equity, Olivia Whitmarsh

Proceedings of GREAT Day

The environmental and climate changes occurring on our planet are largely the result of human actions. In concert, rampant bias and inequity exist in many human spheres, including—but not limited to—social, academic, and civic. Environmental education (EE) is a methodology and mindset that integrates systems thinking, hands-on learning, and social justice work across a cohesive curriculum. EE empowers educators, learners, and community members in many ways. Whether it is taking an active role in learning, protecting and restoring the environment, or dismantling biases, EE provides tools for success. I provide five lesson plans that serve as a basis for the …

Black Geographic Possibilities In Higher Education, Kazon Robinson

Proceedings of GREAT Day

Past geographical research and Whiteness impact the current course content and demographics of the discipline in the United States. In fact, there is still a disconnect between how “black matters are spatial matters” (McKittrick, 2006). In this paper, I will analyze the current state of geography programs in the United States. I begin with a literature review on the intersection and removal of Blackness in geography. I use the AAG’s Guide to Geography Programs to examine geography programs in New York that have course content on Blackness. I also analyze the 107 historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs) using the …

The Relationship Between Social Inequality And Covid-19 Morbidity And Mortality, Allison Panaro

Proceedings of GREAT Day

Coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, has greatly impacted the world as we know it. Each country has suffered in their own ways and faced many hardships regarding the pandemic. There have been 134,957,021 confirmed cases of COVID-19 globally and 2,918,752 recorded COVID-19 deaths (World Health Organization, n.d.-b). This study will analyze World Bank and World Health Organization data to examine the relationship between inequality and COVID-19 morbidity and mortality globally. The analyzed data includes, the total number of COVID-19 cases, COVID-19 deaths, percentage of total cases per population size, and the Gini coefficient (the measure of income inequality) for each …