Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

The Financial Performance Of System Acquired Hospitals, Janet Lynch

Theses and Dissertations

This study investigated the financial performance of not-for-profit hospitals in 10 Southern states acquired by either the for-profit or not-for-profit multihospital systems between the years 1978 through 1982. The impact of system affiliation on acquired hospitals was investigated by looking at average financial performance from the two years before acquisition to 1984/1985. Differences between the performance of hospitals acquired by for-profit and not-for-profit multihospital systems were examined as well. with regard to the latter, major findings revealed both for-profit and not-for-profit multihospital systems increased debt in acquired hospitals and made improvements to plant and equipment. For-profit multihospital systems additionally increased …

Corticosteroid Effects And Senescence In Cultured Endothelium, Stephen A. Gudas

Theses and Dissertations

Cultures of human umbilical vein endothelial cells were treated with heparin-corticosteroid combinations to determine effects on cellular growth. Standard proliferation assays, colony formation assays, and cytoflourometric analysis were the methods employed. Dexamethasone (DEX) and hydrocortisone (HC) were inhibitory to growth of HUVEC when EtOH was used as a solvent and fully supplemented medium (20% serum) was employed. When DMSO was the solvent, growth enhancement sometimes occurred when (DEX) was the test steroid; growth inhibition occurred with this steroid when a reduced (1%) serum component was used. Since significant inhibition of cell colony formation in response to DEX administration was observed, …

New Antimuscarinic Agents For Improved Treatment Of Poisoning By Cholinesterase Inhibitors, Robert Lee Hudkins

Theses and Dissertations

Poisoning by organophosphate cholinesterase inhibitors results in a rapid rise in acetylcholine (ACh) in the synapse and many pronounced pharmacological effects in numerous tissues in the body. The treatment for organophosphorus poisoning involves administration of a cholinesterase—reactivating oxime to restore the activity of the cholinesterase and an antimuscarinic agent to block the response to the excess ACh. Presently atropine is the standard antimuscarinic agent used clinically as an antidote. This research was directed toward finding an antimuscarinic agent better than atropine as an antidote.

Since caramiphen and aprophen have been reported to be effective antidotes we synthesized numerous structural variations …

Glucocorticoid-Responsive Hepatic Cytochromes P-450 In The Rat: Multiplicity And Differential Regulation, Keith Alan Hostetler

Theses and Dissertations

The multiplicity of glucocorticoid-responsive hepatic cytochromes P-450 in the rat was investigated by developing a series of monoclonal antibody probes directed against purified steroid-inducible isozymes from the rat (P-450p) and man (HLp). Two antibodies, termed 1G8 and 13-7-10, showed unique specificity for purified cytochromes P-450 upon immunoblot analyses. These antibodies were further characterized in terms of their reactivity toward proteins in liver microsomes from untreated and xenobiotic-treated rats. Three P-450p-related proteins were identified using 1G8 and 13-7-10 to monitor the expression of P-450p family subtypes. In untreated rats, members of this family exhibited sex-specific expression. Treatment with various chemicals resulted …

The Effect Of Pre-Emergence Gastric Aspiration On Postoperative Nausea And Vomiting Following Abdominal Surgery, Marc Alan Friedberg

Theses and Dissertations

An investigation was undertaken to determine the effect of pre-emergence gastric aspiration on the incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting in abdominal surgery patients. Thirty female ASA I and ASA II patients were randomly assigned to either a control group (n = 16) or a treatment group (n = 14). Those patients in the treatment group received pre-emergence gastric aspiration with a suction catheter; those patients in the control group did not. The incidence of postoperative nausea and vomiting was determined at various time intervals. Data were analyzed using Student's t test and the Chi-square statistic. Results indicated that there …

Perceived Stressors Of Hospitalized Antepartal Adolescents, Rita Murphy Ciavarelli

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore and describe adolescents' perception of stress during antepartal hospitalization. The research questions answered in this study were: 1. What are the perceived stressors of hospitalized antepartum adolescents? 2. Are there differences in the perceived stressors among early, middle, and late adolescents?

The study was conducted in a teaching hospital in the southeastern United States. A convenience sample of 14 adolescents participated in this study. The ages of the subjects ranged from 14 to 19 years old, with the majority of the subjects 16-19 years old. The subjects were all unmarried and had …

Modeling The Determinants Of Hospital Mortality, Abdolmohsin S. Al-Haider

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined hospital characteristics that affected the differential in hospital mortality, while controlling for the effect of community attributes. Analytical models for the determinants of hospital mortality were formulated and validated through an empirical examination of 243 hospitals that had higher or lower mortality rates than expected for Medicare beneficiaries. The dependent variable for this study was death rates for 1984 Medicare patients in united states hospitals released in 1986 by the Health Care Financing Administration.

Structural equation models that portray the causal relation between organizational constructs and hospital mortality rate were formulated. This causal model was empirically validated. …

The Relationship Between Position And Incidence Of Spinal Headache Following Spinal Anesthesia In The Young Adult Female, Royce A. Fishell

Theses and Dissertations

This investigation determined the difference in the incidence of spinal headache in 33 patients placed in 30 degrees (°) head-up position versus 33 patients who remained flat for four hours following the administration of spinal anesthesia. An experimental design was used. The two randomly assigned groups presented for elective postpartum tubal ligation under spinal anesthesia. Group A was placed flat and group B had the head of their beds elevated 30° postoperatively. Strict procedural protocol was adhered to prior to and during the administration of the spinal anesthetic. To determine if the patients had any symptoms consistent with spinal headache, …