Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

A Mother's Spiritual Journey With Her Disabled Son: An Autoethnography, Margaret C. Higgins Edd

Dissertations

Abstract

This autoethnographic research delves into a mother’s experiences with her disabled son over thirty-five years. Beginning with a thick description of the crib accident that resulted in physical and cognitive disabilities that profoundly change the course of both mother and son’s life, this research chronicles the search for meaning, community, and healing as they negotiate the realms of medicine, education, career, family, and spirituality. Models of disability that seek to explain various ways in which society often views disability are examined, but none resonate with the researcher’s intimate experiences nor satisfies her deepest needs for insight and healing. Making …

Faculty-To-Faculty Incivility As Perceived By Nursing Faculty, Melinda Lofton Sills

Dissertations

The purpose of this research was to determine the perceived presence of workplace incivility among nursing faculty in associate, baccalaureate, and graduate nursing programs and whether there was a significant difference between workplace incivility behaviors, occurrence of incivility, extent of incivility, and engagement of incivility among the three groups. A convenience sample of faculty from nursing programs accredited by Accreditation Commission for Education in Nursing and Commission of Collegiate Nursing Education in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Louisiana, and Tennessee completed the Incivility in Nursing Education-Revised (INE-R) survey. The final sample included 169 nursing faculty.

Based on the results of the study …

Group Empowerment Capacity And Capability In Associate Degree Schools Of Nursing In The United States, Christy Lee Savell

Dissertations

The purpose of conducting this research was to determine the perception of group empowerment capacity (EC) and group empowerment capability (E) among faculty and administrators in associate degree nursing programs (ADN) in the United States (U.S.), whether there was a significant difference in the scores of EC and E between the two groups and if there was a significant relationship between the mediating variables and EC. The study was conducted online with administrators and faculty of ADN programs throughout the United States (U.S.). Information letters with questionnaire links were sent to all members of the Organization of Associate Degree Nurses …

An Examination Of African Americans' Utilization Of Health Care, Brittany Powell

Dissertations

The study examined the relationship between perceptions of discrimination, social support, quality of health care received, and utilization of health care services among African Americans. Data was analyzed from 99 African American respondents that completed either an online or paper questionnaire. The responses demonstrated significant relationships existed between discrimination and quality of health care as well as social support and utilization of health care. Results concluded that the more discrimination one perceives, the lower quality of health care they are to expect, and therefore they are less likely to utilize services. However, the data also reflected that even in the …

The Associations Among Expressed Emotion, Relationship Satisfaction, Ptsd Symptoms, Alcohol Use, And Depression: A Longitudinal Investigation With A Military Sample, Laci Lee Zawilinski

Dissertations

PTSD in military personnel is highly prevalent and accompanied by elevated rates of additional issues such as depression, problematic alcohol use, and interpersonal relationship problems. Family members and spouses of military personnel have also been shown to be negatively impacted by PTSD symptoms. Previous research has indicated that family members and spouses’ expressed emotion regarding the PTSD patients’ symptoms negatively impacts treatment outcome in civilian populations. However, studies have yet to investigate the effect of expressed emotion on the course of PTSD symptoms and associated problems in military personnel. Therefore, the purpose of the present investigation was to examine the …

Three Essays On Informal Payments In The Health Care Sector In Russia, Alexandra Polovinka

Dissertations

Health care is one of the most corrupt sectors in Russia. In 2015 twenty percent of patients paid a bribe for the health care services once or twice, and thirteen percent more than twice (Russian Public Opinion Research Center, 2015). Using data on adults from over 5,000 households in Russia, this three-essay study analyzes out-of-pocket formal (official) and informal (unofficial, bribes) payments for the health care.

In the first essay, I study whether there is a difference in the amount of unofficial pay-ments across five types of health care services (ambulance, inpatient, outpatient, dental, and medical checkups) and two types …

Piloting A Screening Tool For Eating And Eating-Related Behavior, Michael N. Reynolds

Dissertations

Obesity is a common medical condition associated with negative health and social outcomes. Obesity has a primary malleable behavioral cause, eating more calories than are metabolized. While metabolic rate is malleable with exercise, eating can more quickly add calories than exercising can subtract them. In the past, behavioral weight-loss treatment studies relied on multi-component package interventions that have shown reliable patterns of participant weight-loss during treatment and weight-regain in follow-up. Those findings could be conceptualized as an ABA withdrawal design, eating behavior returns to baseline after the prosthetic contingencies of the treatment study are withdrawn. We must develop ways to …

Access And Barriers To Care During Transition From Active Duty To Veteran Status In Veterans With Diabetes: A Look At Health Literacy, Change, And Ongoing Diabetes Self-Management Education, Mark R. Malebranche

Dissertations

Background and Rationale: Transition from active duty to veteran status may be a challenging time, especially for veterans with diabetes. These veterans face multiple changes that can cause distress. Most veterans with diabetes have type 2 diabetes, however a diagnosis of type 1 diabetes on active duty is cause for discharge for active duty.

Purposes and Aims: The purpose of this study was to describe the transition experience of veterans diagnosed with diabetes while on active duty from active duty to veteran status. The study describes barriers and facilitators to healthcare and diabetes self-care management. The four aims of the …

Use Of Video Games In Patients' Self-Management Of Pain: A Feasibility Study, Janet Donnelly Phd(C), Rn-Bc, Acns-Bc, Pccn

Dissertations

Background: Pain affects more than 75 million Americans and is the primary reason people seek medical attention. Pain is a common cause of disability and diminished quality of life. While anecdotal evidence exists regarding nurses’ use of distraction therapy activities in pain management, little empirical research data is available.

Purpose: To examine the effects of video game use (VGU) on pain perception, pain interference perception and perceived self-efficacy in pain management in adult inpatients.

Conceptual Model: The conceptual model is based on Self-efficacy Theory (Bandura, 1995). The antecedents of the concept of distraction therapy with use of VGs in patients’ …

A Grounded Theory Approach To Healthy Work Environment: Its Impact On Nurses, Patient Safety, And Significance In Healthcare Settings, Nicole Sevilla-Zeigen

Dissertations

A healthy working environment has been an area of interest for occupation health providers. There is anticipation that a safe working environment improves patient safety, which is associated with reduction in clinical nurse errors. Issues with medication errors and poor working environment pose a greater risk to patient safety. The aim of this qualitative study was to provide a broad understanding on nurses’ perceptions on the processes that influence a healthy working environment and the impacts of a healthy working environment on patient safety. An interpretive grounded theory methodology was used in this study to evaluate nurses’ perceptions in acute …