Digital Commons Network^™

Disparities In Guideline-Directed Medical Therapies In Rural And Underserved Heart Failure Patients, Shawn Mcclaughry

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Papers

Heart failure with reduced ejection fraction (HFrEF) continues to be a substantial public health challenge, thus optimal management through guideline-directed medical therapy (GDMT) continues to be vital. Evolving GDMT has established four pillars of first-line optimal treatment with expeditious and maximized titration of established target dosing of pillar medications. GDMT has been shown to decrease mortality among HF patients. Although continuing advancements in treatment efficacy prevail, studies demonstrate that vulnerable populations, particularly rural, Black and Hispanic individuals, exhibit significantly lower rates of GDMT optimization, leading to increased hospitalization and mortality. This literature review evaluates disparities in GDMT implementation among urban, …

Improving Fertility In Women With Endometriosis, Todd Marchant

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

• Endometriosis is a common condition in women and has a strong association with infertility. The purpose of this systematic literature review is to determine the efficacy of hormonal therapy as compared to surgical therapy before assisted reproductive therapy (ART) on endometriosis-related infertility. • The electronic databases PubMed and Embase were searched from June 23, 2024, to January 4, 2025. Keywords used were associated with fertility, IVF, and endometriosis. Article selection was limited to research published after the year 2000 with a preference for randomized control trials (RCTs), although one pilot study and one clinical cohort study were also included. …

High Dose Intravenous Vitamin C In Breast Cancer Therapy, Brianna Solis

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

• Breast cancer remains one of the most prevalent malignancies globally, emphasizing the need for adjunct therapies to enhance treatment outcomes and improve patient care. Current breast cancer treatments, including radiation, chemotherapy, and surgery, are often effective but are frequently associated with significant side effects that can impact treatment tolerance and quality of life. This review examines the effectiveness of high-dose intravenous (IV) vitamin C as an adjunct therapy in breast cancer treatment, specifically its potential to reduce tumor size and alleviate chemotherapy-associated side effects. A literature review was performed using electronic databases PubMed and Google Scholar from April to …

The Utility Of Pharmacogenetic Testing In Pain Reduction, Jacqueline Mattson

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

Chronic pain is one of the most common reasons patients seek care from primary care providers. Individualized responses to pain medications make pain difficult to treat effectively. The purpose of this literature review is to examine the utility of pharmacogenetic-guided opioid therapy across chronic, postoperative, and cancer-related pain. A structured search of PubMed and Embase yielded 151 articles, of which nine met the inclusion criteria. Findings suggest that pharmacogenetic-guided therapy may reduce opioid dosages and enhance pain control, particularly in chronic pain settings. Evidence for postoperative pain outcomes was mixed, and studies on cancer-related pain emphasized the role of genetic …

Efficacy Of Stem Cell Therapy Versus Standard Drug Therapy In Adults With Heart Failure, Evie Reynolds

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Papers

Myocardial infarction (MI) or other damage to the heart tissue may result in ischemia, and because cardiomyocytes have limited regenerative capacity, this often leads to the development of heart failure (HF). Typical symptoms of HF include dyspnea, edema, cough, fatigue, and chest pain, which arises from fluid overload and congestion. Current medical treatments focus on alleviating these symptoms through loop diuretics, which reduce fluid accumulation but do not treat the underlying ischemic damage. Recent studies have shifted focus towards stem cell therapy, which have shown potential to differentiate into cardiomyocytes and regenerate ischemic heart tissue. A comprehensive search of databases …

Efficacy Of Prediabetes Management Options For Lowering Cardiovascular Risk, Cassidy Mindeman

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Papers

Around 86 million people in the United States are diagnosed with prediabetes, a metabolic syndrome characterized by insulin resistance and inflammation. The inflammatory nature of the disease increases a patient's cardiovascular risk. Common treatment options include metformin and lifestyle intervention – primarily exercise and diet plans. However, there is no standard medical recommendation for lowering cardiovascular risk. The purpose of this literature review is to determine which treatment options, including the combination of lifestyle and intervention, best lower cardiovascular risk and better detail the effect of prediabetes on cardiovascular risk. Electronic databases PubMed and Embase were utilized and 12 studies …

Cannabidiol: Anxiety Relief Or Fool’S Gold?, Jase Bakker

Physician Assistant Scholarly Project Posters

This literature review evaluates the efficacy of cannabidiol (CBD) as a treatment for anxiety in adults and adolescents. A systematic search of three databases (PubMed, PsychInfo, EMBASE) yielded 775 articles, with 11 randomized controlled trials meeting inclusion criteria. These studies utilized diverse methodologies, including public speaking tests, neuroimaging, and physiological measures, to assess CBD's effects compared to placebo. • Findings indicate mixed results: moderate doses (300 mg) show promise in social anxiety, while other trials report inconsistent outcomes due to dosing and bioavailability challenges. Limitations such as small sample sizes and variable methodologies hinder definitive conclusions. Further research is needed …

Feral And Free: The Queering Of Motherhood In Rachel Yoder’S Nightbitch, Cassandra Haskell

Master's Theses

This thesis explores motherhood from a perspective that seeks to inform and challenge the patriarchal definitions of motherhood in order to simultaneously confront its restrictions and create new meanings from its institutionalized definition. The main text that this thesis analyzes is the 2021 novel Nightbitch by Rachel Yoder, as well as the 2024 film of the same name, critiquing how it successfully queers motherhood by questioning, challenging, and defying the impractical expectations placed upon mothers by society. Some secondary scholars whose works that I utilize to support my argument are authors such as Audre Lorde, Jessica Calarco, Adrienne Rich and …

Ialways Perform Bedside Report, Lindsay Kephart

Nursing Posters

The aim was to create a standard tool for handoff that aids nurses and providers to consistently communicate patient information in the inpatient acute care setting.

Key Driver:

• Staff reported confusion surrounding several different acronyms or tools used to discuss patient information across the care team.

Creating Standard Work To Improve Length Of Stay, Jennifer Burris, Patricia Dumonceaux, Lindsay Kephart

Nursing Posters

Plan:

Improve the geometric mean length of stay (GMLOW) from 1.071 to 1.024 by creating and implementing patient flow and throughput standard work.

Do:

Implement standard work for interdisciplinary team members.

• Create a culture of accountability with consistent use of the expected discharge date (EDD) and patient milestones in Epic, during hand offs, and use of My Care Boards.
• Ensure provider to nurse communication occurs daily using ALWAYS, a standardized tool
• Create and ensure beside nurse-to-nurse hand off occurs using a standardized method known as iALWAYS.
• Create and implement patient education tools.
• Enhance discharge readiness tools to improve real-time communication …

Consistent Inventory Of Sterilized Instruments Ensures A Safe And Uncompromised Supply Of Instruments For Procedural Use, Tiffany Tammen, Amber Eckstein, Ellen Simonson

Nursing Posters

CentraCare Rice Memorial Hospital received a regulatory citation related to sterile instrument integrity and storage. Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) created a systematic approach to assess instrument inventory and integrity to ensure an uncompromised supply of instruments for procedural use.

The Struggles For Equality And Democracy In Modern China: Which Was More Influential?, Angelina K. Lambros

Publications and Research

This paper analyzes the struggles for democracy and equality in modern China, from the fall of the Qing Dynasty to the Tiananmen Square movement. It considers which struggle was more influential, evaluating the recurring theme of a fight for democracy in China since the New Culture Movement, and a quest for social and economic equality that Mao and the Chinese Communist Party committed themselves to. Ultimately, the paper concludes that the struggle for democratic norms and institutions was always present among the Chinese people, but it did not succeed in pushing the government or the Party to adopt political reforms. …

The Promise Of Psilocybin-Assisted Therapy For Opioid Use Disorder, Craig Kimble, Alberto Coustasse

Management Faculty Research

The opioid epidemic presents a profound and escalating public health and economic crisis in the United States. According to the CDC, the economic burden of opioid use disorder and fatal opioid overdose in the U.S. reached an estimated $1.02 trillion in 2017 alone, encompassing healthcare costs, lost productivity, criminal justice expenditures, and premature mortality. While current pharmacologic treatments—such as methadone, buprenorphine, and naltrexone—have proven efficacy, they are not without limitations, including high relapse rates, issues with compliance, stigma, and insufficient engagement in long-term recovery. These shortcomings necessitate an exploration of innovative, cost-effective interventions. One such promising alternative is psilocybin-assisted therapy. …

Approaches To Addressing Unsheltered Homelessness In Texas, Bashar Ahmed Aldulymi

Theses & Dissertations

In the United States, the trend of homelessness is increasing, which is causing negative impacts on society. The present study demonstrated the relationship of various socioeconomic factors with the trend of homelessness to address unsheltered homelessness in Houston, Texas. For this purpose, the study employed a cross-sectional quantitative research design. Under multiple linear regression analysis, the findings of the quantitative data analysis revealed that income level (p < 0.001) and employment status (p < 0.001) were the promotors of homelessness in the country. Though this statistical test revealed race as a less significant promotor of homelessness, chi-square highlighted a strong association of this variable with the trends of homelessness. Thus, the findings implied that policymakers and authorities must address low-income levels and unemployment to curb homelessness in Houston.

Intercellular Stress Generation During 1d Collective Migration Of Cancer Cells, Logan Waddle

Physics Undergraduate Honors Theses

Physical forces drive many cellular processes such as migration and proliferation. A metastatic tumor will have invasive strands/chains that extend from the main tumor. These chains of cells collectively migrate away from the main tumor to establish new colonies elsewhere in the body. However, how physical forces drive this collective invasion and the required energy for this process is not well understood. Invasion of a metastatic tumor to surrounding tissues leads to a majority of cancer-associated death and is often a collective effort among cells, it is therefore important to fully understand the process behind collective cancer invasion.

The goal …

The Perry Lewis Interview, Shane Hand, John Brundrett

Oral Histories

This is an interview related to the integration of Alvin Community College (ACC), which was called Alvin Junior College (AJC) from its founding in 1948 until 1976. The interview is with Mr. Perry Lewis and takes place on May 7, 2025. The interviewers are Dr. Shane Hand and Professor John Brundrett.

Mass Spectrometry-Based Proteomic Analysis Of Changes In Surface Expression Of Oatp1b1 And Oatp1b3 Upon Inhibition Of Palmitoylation During Co-Expression Studies, Priscilla Flores-Ascencio, Cecilia Villanueva, Bruno Hagenbuch, Whitney M. Nolte

Research at Children's Mercy Month 2025

Two out of every five US adults and one out of every five US children meet the criteria for obesity. Obese patients are at an increased risk for nonalcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD), which can progress to nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and cirrhosis. Compared to healthy controls, NAFLD and NASH patients have higher levels of free cholesterol and palmitoylated proteins in their liver, as well as significantly elevated plasma bile acids. Investigation of the effect of dyslipidemia associated with these disease states and how bile acid and drug transport are affected by protein-lipid modification is essential. Several uptake transporters in human …

A Study On The Self-Reported Experience Of Acute Urinary Catheterization In Children And Adolescents, Lora Bear, Chris K. Fan, Heather S. Jung, Margret Kamel, Sandeep Riar

Research at Children's Mercy Month 2025

Background: Urinary catheterization, a common pediatric procedure, requires the use of topical anesthesia but some studies suggest no benefit of lidocaine gel over non-anesthetic gel. It is challenging to counsel patients about this procedure as the experience of catheterization in the literature is based on observation in pre-verbal and nonverbal children rather than self-report.

Design/Methods: We included 8- to 21-year-old subjects undergoing urinary catheterization in the Emergency room or inpatient setting and used a written survey to record their experience. The survey included questions with a 5-point Likert scale. Procedural pain was measured using the Numerical Rating Scale (NRS-11), where …

Transcriptional Dynamics Of Natural Killer Cells Under Hyperthermic And Acidic Inflammatory Conditions, Heather Mwitani, Gage Greening, Rebecca Mclennan, Eric S. Geanes, Santosh Khanal, Todd Bradley

Research at Children's Mercy Month 2025

The cellular microenvironment is maintained by various homeostatic mechanisms, such as pH and temperature regulation. These factors can alter signaling and transcriptional activity in natural killer (NK) cells, significantly impacting their activation and function. These homeostatic mechanisms can be disrupted by factors such as infection or injury, such as within the tumor microenvironment. NK cells are essential for regulating the immune response by promoting and resolving inflammation to maintain tissue homeostasis. However, the mechanisms by which NK cells sense and respond to environmental factors, such as low pH or high heat, are not fully understood. In this study, we investigated …

The Rage, Spring 2025, Aspen Humphries, Savannah Moore, Lottie Taylor

The Rage Zine

The Rage zine is published in collaboration with Students Advocating Gender Equality and CCU Women's and Gender Studies. Volume 3, Issue 2.

Overview Of Reference Managers, Phillip Elam

AFIT Library Knowledge Base

No abstract provided.

Narcissists In The Feedback Loop: Status Dynamics And Defensive Responses, Natalie Tal Bederman

Selected Full-Text Dissertations 2020-

The rising prevalence of narcissistic traits has sparked interest in how individuals with these traits navigate social interactions. Existing research often emphasizes antagonistic or provocative scenarios, potentially overlooking reactions in everyday contexts. This study examines responses to negative feedback in a less aggressive setting, where 205 undergraduate students wrote about something personally meaningful before receiving critical feedback from either a high-status or low-status evaluator. Emotional responses, including internalization, externalization, and self-protection strategies, were analyzed across varying levels of narcissistic traits. Findings revealed that evaluator status did not significantly influence emotional processing or self-protection strategies, regardless of narcissism levels, potentially due …

Election Results, Wku Staff Senate

Staff Council

Election results.

Newsletter, Wku Staff Senate

Staff Council

Newsletter created by WKU Staff Council to report on work accomplished.

Cracking The Gender Code: Quantitative Insights Into Women's Code-Switching Strategies In K-12 Educational Leadership, Morgan Walker

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Women in K–12 education find themselves in the majority in the classroom but in the minority in administration positions. Social conditioning has led many to believe that men's characteristics more naturally align with strong leadership. Because of this discrepancy, women find the need to act in an inauthentic way to be perceived as more confident and capable leaders. Code-switching is defined as a transactional social tool utilized in instances of an imbalance of power and in the development of relations and practices that help members of a subordinate group cope with or resist the condition of subordination (Heller, 2020). This …

Menstruation Cycles And The Impact On A Female Athlete's Performance And Perception Of Performance, Mckenzie Mcaloon

Honors Projects in Biological and Biomedical Sciences

This two-part study investigates the impact of menstrual cycle hormone levels on performances and perception of performance among division I athletes. A survey was given to the captains of all Bryant University female sports teams for the dispersal amongst their teams. Each of the 13 female sports teams participated and contributed. A total of 107 survey responses were collected. Data regarding the perception of menstrual cycle on specific aspects of their athletic lives were collected, as well as whether they were on contraception, their age of menarche and heaviness of flow. The results indicate that 83% of athletes surveyed believe …

Large Mammal Herbivores As Gardeners Of Tropical Forest Ecosystems, Kathryn Garner

Student Scholarship

Ecosystems worldwide are experiencing changes in structure and function as populations of fauna decline and experience local extinctions (Torres-Romero et al. 2020). Due primarily to their body size, large mammal herbivores (LMHs) are disproportionately prone to extinction from human activities such as agricultural expansion, deforestation, and anthropogenic climate change (Pringle et al. 2023). Additionally, as the number of domesticated LMHs (i.e. cattle, pigs, etc.) continue to increase in both density and distribution, their wild counterparts are continually displaced, resulting in increased competition for resources and an increased risk of disease transmission between domestic to wild species (Pringle et al. 2023; …

How God Acts In Healing Miracles: Understanding Special Divine Action As God's Universal Creative Action Through The Theological Approach Of William R. Stoeger, S.J., Herintsitohaina Mahasedra Ratsimbarison

Jesuit School of Theology Dissertations

Mainly addressing secularized Christian communities, we explore how miraculous healing supports the thesis that special divine action is a specific instantiation of divine creative action. While Christians acknowledge Christ’s healing ministry, which is continued in various forms by the Church, a theology of divine action in healing is essential for engaging with contemporary scientific and medical perspectives. The theology of divine action, articulated by William Stoeger and Denis Edwards, provides a framework for understanding special divine action as a particular mode of God’s creative action. We examine three main insights of this theological approach: understanding God as the first cause, …

Data Management Report May 2025, Tennessee. Department Of Disability And Aging

Compliance & System Data/Reports

This monthly report provides data on various aspects of the department's activities and programs.

Tunable Optical Beam Focusing Using Static Water Droplets On An Electrospun Polymer Fiber, Marco Laurence M. Budlayan, Dina C. Palangyos, Jonathan N. Patricio, Susan D. Arco, Raphael A. Guerrero

Physics Faculty Publications

This work explores the use of static water microdroplets on a microfiber to vary the width of an optical beam. Varying the water droplet volume changes the beam width without replacing any optical components. A surface derived from glass deposited with polyvinyl chloride (PVC) microfibers via electrospinning was used to sustain the droplet shape on the surface. Scanning electron microscopy revealed the presence of randomly intertwined microfibers with diameters of less than 3 µm which afforded the surface a hydrophobic property. A decrease in the optical transmittance of the films and an increase in the water contact angle were also …