Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Patients' Attitudes Toward The Use Of Nurse Practitioners, Laurie Maxwell

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Since the advent of the role of nurse practitioner in the mid 1960s, nurse practitioners have practiced in traditional settings such as health departments, clinics, and physicians' offices. More recently, nurse practitioners have been utilized in non-traditional settings such as the emergency department. Some studies have been done that support the theory that nurse practitioners can function effectively in this setting; however additional studies are needed on this topic. The purpose of this study was to explore patients' attitudes toward the use of nurse practitioners and to determine what patient variables were related to these attitudes. More specifically, this study …

Characteristics And Resource Utilization Of Patients Of A Proprietary Home Health Agency In Rural South Central Kentucky, Linda Sewell

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The home health industry's introduction to managed care raises the prospect of reduced access to health care and poor outcomes for a vulnerable segment of our population—the rural elderly. Before effective intervention strategies can be accurately evaluated, a clearer picture of the sociodemographic features and home care service consumption is needed for this understudied group. The study was intended to provide a basis for future research into the evaluation of alternative methods of delivering effective care in terms of outcome and decreased cost for this population. A retrospective descriptive analysis was made of the patient record for the first six …

Personality Types Of Registered Nurses Employed In A Rural Community Hospital, Tina Snodgrass

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this study was to identify the personality types of registered nurses in a rural community. An extensive literature review revealed that no studies, utilizing the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) to identify personality types, had been conducted with rural nurses. Jung's Psychological Type Theory was the theoretical framework for the study. The MBTI operationalizes Jung's theory and was utilized to determine the most frequently occurring personality types of the nurses. A descriptive study was conducted at a 68 bed acute care hospital. The sample consisted of 40 experienced registered nurses working in staff positions within the hospital. Sensing, …

Maternal Age: Influence On Length Of Gestation And Birth Weight, Charlotte Bratcher

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The findings indicated no significant differences among the age groups in relation to infant birth weight nor in relation to the risk factors of smoking, maternal weight gain, trimester of first entry into prenatal care, or marital status They did indicate a significant difference [F(2,85) = 4.1364, p < .05] between the oldest and the youngest group (CD = 3.37, a = .05) in relation to gestational length. These findings are significant for healthcare providers in rural areas, since much of the previous research had been done in highly urbanized or inner city settings.

The General Well-Being Of Recreational Drug Users: A Sub-Analysis Of The Drugnet Survey, Jennifer Reneau

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Issues related to substance use/abuse and mental health are significant public health concerns. Substance abuse is considered an individual and community mental health problem. The relationship between substance use and positive mental well-being, however, is less well understood. The purpose of this study was to describe the mental well-being of a sample of occasional, recreational drug users. Drugnet was an on-line survey of recreational drug use by non-deviant adults via the WWW. Volunteer subjects completed the survey over the internet between March and September 1997. Mental health was assessed utilizing the General Well-being Schedule (GWBS). A complete demographic profile of …

The Effect Of Self-Focused Attention On Psychopathology, Keith Payne

Mahurin Honors College Capstone Experience/Thesis Projects

This study investigated whether self-focused attention is related to psychopathology in general or if, instead, specific types of self-focus are associated with specific disorders. Self-focus was measured as private self-consciousness, public self-consciousness, emotional self-reference, or performance self-reference. Personality measures included depression, phobias, 'health concern, obsessiveness, and disordered eating. Public self-consciousness was related to greater depression, obsessiveness, and disordered eating. Private self-consciousness was positively correlated with depression and obsessiveness. Performance self-reference was related to lower levels of depression and obsessiveness. The findings indicate that different types of self-focused attention are involved in different disorders. Results are interpreted with reference to self-awareness …

Rural Acceptance Of The Nurse Practitioner, Mary Branstetter

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The rural community has lacked adequate healthcare providers for the past thirty years. Collaboration between physician and family nurse practitioner is an option for meeting the need for delivery of primary healthcare in the rural community. A descriptive design was used to describe the acceptance of the nurse practitioner by patients living in rural southcentral Kentucky who utilize the services of the community hospital. Every fifth inpatient and outpatient discharge was mailed the Kviz Assessment Questionnaire and a demographic survey. The questionnaires (N = 842) were mailed over a four week survey period with reminder postcards mailed to each survey …

The Relationship Between Meaning In Life And The Occurrence Of Drug Abuse: An Epidemiological Retrospective Study, Ben Howard

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Humans have been using plant-derived drugs for as long as we have recorded history. Significant negative consequences related to drug abuse have occurred in the areas of health, social issues, family relations, legal systems, and economic productivity. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between meaning in life and drug abuse. An epidemiological, retrospective study was performed to compare personal meaning in life between individuals receiving inpatient treatment for drug abuse and a group of non-drug abusing controls. Study participants completed the Purpose-In-Life Test and Life Attitude Profile-Revised. On both instruments, the inpatient drug abusing subjects were …

The Beneficial Effect Of Vitamin E And Selenium During Experimental Chagas' Disease, Yue Hou

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The present study was conducted to determine if vitamin E and selenium could have a positive synergistic effect during experimental Chagas' disease. In the first phase of the study, 25 female C3HeB/FeJ mice were infected with a Brazil strain of Trypanosoma cruzi while receiving vitamin E supplementation of 0 IU/kg, 200 IU/kg, 400 IU/kg, 600 IU/kg, 800 IU/kg in their diets. In the second phase, 20 female C3HeB/FeJ mice were infected while receiving 400 IU/kg vitamin E plus selenium supplementation of 2 ppm, 4 ppm, 8 ppm, 16 ppm in their drinking water. The results demonstrate that vitamin E does …

A Preliminary Analysis Of Health Lifestyles Between International Students And American Students At Western Kentucky University, Mei Zhu

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

The purpose of this research was to assess the lifestyle of international students at Western Kentucky University (WKU) and to compare the lifestyles of international and American students and subgroups of international students. The Lifestyle Questionnaire (LSQ), was a 26-item personal health lifestyle test, which had six sections (nutrition, exercise, smoking, alcohol and drugs, safety, and stress). The test-retest reliability of LSQ was evaluated by Pearson Correlation Coefficient (r) and was .89. During October and November 1997, 55 international students and 64 American students at WKU finished the LSQ. Significant differences were found between the American student group and the …

Health Risk Behaviors In Rural Adolescents At Two High Schools Located In One Kentucky County, Melinda Hann

Masters Theses & Specialist Projects

Many adolescents throughout the United States practice health risk behaviors that place them at risk for serious health problems. Despite the high incidence of reported adolescent health risk behaviors, no reports have been published to document the current risk to rural adolescents in individual counties of Kentucky. The purpose of this retrospective descriptive study was to identify the health risk behaviors of rural adolescents from two high schools in one county in Kentucky and to compare the two schools to determine if the health risk behaviors of these students were the same or different. The study was accomplished through analysis …

Ua66/4/2 Ceremony Of Capping & Pinning, Wku Dental Hygiene

WKU Archives Records

Program from capping & pinning ceremony.

Ua66/14/1 Student Nurse, Vol. 1, Issue 2, Wku Nursing

WKU Archives Records

Newsletter created by WKU Nursing.

Ua66/14/4 Kentucky Partnership Newsletter, Vol. Iv, No. 2, Kentucky Partnership For Farm Family Health & Safety

University Organizations

Newsletter created by and about the Kentucky Partnership for Farm Family Health & Safety.

Ua61/1 Wku Nursing Class 1997, Wku Nursing

WKU Archives Records

Members of the 1997 nursing class: Donna Blakely, Donna Brown, Debbie Browning, Roger Burch, Tammy Childress, Pamela Cleveland, Rayner England, Traci Groce, Jennifer Holt, Dana Joiner, Patricia Keen, LaDonna Killebrew, Heather Nason, Mesha Pendley, Katina Reece, Stephanie Reynolds, Stacey Rouse, Teresa Rowlett, Holli Scott, Kristi Staples, Peggy Swann, Kevin Taylor and Heather Woodard.

Ua25/2 Connections, Wku Human Resources

WKU Archives Records

Newsletter created by WKU Human Resources for the faculty and staff of WKU regarding personnel issues and benefits.

Ua66/15/1 Student Nurse, Vol. 1, Issue 1, Wku Nursing

WKU Archives Records

Newsletter created by WKU Nursing.

Ua66/14/4 Kentucky Partnership Newsletter, Vol. Iv, No. 1, Kentucky Partnership For Farm Family Health & Safety

University Organizations

Newsletter created by and about the Kentucky Partnership for Farm Family Health & Safety.

Ua61/1 Wku Nursing Class 1997, Wku Nursing

WKU Archives Records

Members of the 1997 nursing class: Michelle Black, Nancy Bouldin, Miriah Buchanan, Dana Carpenter, Peggy Carter, Patricia Chaisson, Noreen Cullen, Stephanie Cunningham, Mitzi Ellis, Nancy English, Billy Foster, Melanie Good, Karen Hampton, Angie Howdyshell, Brad Humm, Brandy Humphrey, Avril Infanti, Judy Jones, Judith Lively, Kim McChesney, Denita McDonald, Anita Meador, Kari Moore, Bentley O'Dell, Libby Oldham, Jennifer Oliver, Stephanie Priddy, Jonathan Ricketts, Cari Rogers, Tanya Geraci-Stahl, James Staples, Rita Tabor, Shahin Thomas, April Tracy, Justina Vibbert, Tracey Wheeler, Cynthia Woodcock, Jean Woods, Kaylene Workman and Stephanie Young.

Ua35/11 Student Honors Research Bulletin, Wku Honors Program

WKU Archives Records

The WKU Student Honors Research Bulletin is dedicated to scholarly involvement and student research. These papers are representative of work done by students from throughout the university.

• Bullington, Brittany. A History of the Piano Girl and Her Accomplishments: Women and Music in Nineteenth-Century England
• Ellis, Joseph. The Howl of the Mob: Adapting to Violence in Somalia
• Farrar, Mary. Expectations of Family Physicians: Perceptions of the Doctor and Patient
• Freeman, Tracy. Martha Gellhorn: The Hemingway Years
• Guillory, Anne. The Flemish Mare: Anne of Cleves
• Jordan, Pat. Marketing a Deadly Addiction to Youths
• Marx, Sarah. Comic Books: Carnage in Living Color
• May, …

Ua21/1 Access & Opportunities, Wku Equal Opportunity / 504 / Ada Compliance

WKU Archives Records

This publication is meant to be a key resource for students with disabilities who are attending Western Kentucky University. This guidebook contains valuable information that will direct students to the tools and resources necessary to gain access to programs and services at the University.

Ua60/5 Wku Dental Hygiene Class Of 1997, Wku Dental Hygiene

WKU Archives Records

Members of the 1997 dental hygiene class: Stacy Lumsford, Kathy Cox, Paula Carrignton, Leigh Mattingly, Mandy Hobbs-Thomasson, Beth Casey, Emily DeLange, Melanie Alford, Sheridan Herron, Penny Reece, Natalie Thomson, Ricky Moreland, Tricia Presson, Amy Coomer, Michelle Cornwell, Jacqui Durbin, Janet Everett, Melissa Keith, Sharlee McDaniel, Robyn Hood, Nicole Mills and Gina Miller.