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Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

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The Impact Of Functional Disabilities On The Quality Of Life Of Older U.S. Adults, Bernadette Lavender May 2025

The Impact Of Functional Disabilities On The Quality Of Life Of Older U.S. Adults, Bernadette Lavender

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Among older U.S. adults, functional disabilities are critical determinants of quality of life (QoL), influencing mobility, social engagement, and independence. Despite growing evidence of these impacts, limited research examines how healthcare access, social support, and socioeconomic factors moderate this relationship. This quantitative study explored the effects of functional disabilities on QoL, operationalized through self-reported health, while examining the moderating roles of key social determinants. Using a cross-sectional design, secondary data from the Health and Retirement Study (HRS) were analyzed. The sample included 42,405 participants aged 60 years and above from all 50 states. Multiple regression analyses and ANOVA were employed …


Food Insecurity, Myplate Utilization, And Hba1c In United States Adults With Prediabetes, Lindley R. Sharp May 2025

Food Insecurity, Myplate Utilization, And Hba1c In United States Adults With Prediabetes, Lindley R. Sharp

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The rising prevalence of prediabetes in the United States presents a significant public health challenge, particularly due to its progression into Type 2 diabetes. Despite national dietary guidelines, disparities in dietary adherence persist, especially among food-insecure adults. This quantitative study examined the impact of food insecurity and MyPlate utilization on HbA1C levels in prediabetic U.S. adults, while accounting for structural and intermediary determinants of health. Guided by the Commission on Social Determinants of Health framework, this cross-sectional study utilized secondary data from the 2015–March 2020 National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey including a sample size of 1,417 noninstitutionalized male and …


Staff Education On Psychoeducational Interventions For Older Patients With Mood Disorder, Vera Ngenwie Nkweti May 2025

Staff Education On Psychoeducational Interventions For Older Patients With Mood Disorder, Vera Ngenwie Nkweti

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

No included because we used the Walden University School Template


Staff Education To Enhance Nurse Knowledge Of Depression And Screening Tool Using Patient Health Questionnaire-9, Oluwakemi Omotayo Aregbesola May 2025

Staff Education To Enhance Nurse Knowledge Of Depression And Screening Tool Using Patient Health Questionnaire-9, Oluwakemi Omotayo Aregbesola

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Summary This staff education program focused on addressing a practice deficit regarding nonstandard depression assessment and substandard nurse knowledge of evidence-based screening tools, mainly the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), a nine-item, self-reporting test used to screen for depression and assess severity of the condition based on the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Illnesses, 5th Edition. Depression exists as a familiar yet unidentified disorder among psychiatric inpatients, resulting in delayed treatment inferior outcomes. The staff education project targeted the nurses’ knowledge of depression identification while also teaching them to administer the PHQ-9 for prompt screening and intervention. I used an …


Staff Education Program Utilizing A Workflow Template To Streamline Care In Occupational Health, Alicia Vogleson May 2025

Staff Education Program Utilizing A Workflow Template To Streamline Care In Occupational Health, Alicia Vogleson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This DNP Project is one designed to educate Occupational Health Staff. As there are varying levels of skills and education of staff working with patients, it is important to identify staff that who can play a large role in helping gather important information to help in treatment decisions early on in the process of patient care. The practice-focused question and the purpose of the project was to answer the following question: will a staff education program for Medical Assistants and Front Desk Staff in an Occupational Health clinic on the utilization of a template to streamline workflow improve their knowledge? …


Impact Of Safety Practices On Laboratory-Acquired Infections In Clinical Laboratories From 2018 To 2023, Lori Bane May 2025

Impact Of Safety Practices On Laboratory-Acquired Infections In Clinical Laboratories From 2018 To 2023, Lori Bane

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Laboratorians identifying unknown pandemic pathogens face elevated risks of laboratory-acquired infections yet limited research examines how regulated safety practices influence these risks. This quantitative, correlational study used the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s secondary data (2018–2023) to examine two research questions. The first one questioned whether there were differences in safety incidents between registered and exempt clinical laboratories. The second research question investigated whether there was an association of laboratory incidents between BSL-2 and BSL-3 laboratories. The research was limited to incident reports from registered and exempted clinical laboratories working in BSL-2 and BSL-3 conditions. Guided by the Health …


Community Health Workers’ Lived Experience Of Using Videoconferencing With Community Members, Valdora Lejune Avery May 2025

Community Health Workers’ Lived Experience Of Using Videoconferencing With Community Members, Valdora Lejune Avery

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Community health workers in the United States faced significant challenges in conducting in-person community practice during the COVID-19 pandemic, which adversely affected their communication, training, and service delivery outcomes. Videoconferencing enabled workers to connect with underserved populations for individual and community crisis response. The purpose of this study was to describe the lived experiences of community health workers in the Rural Community Health Worker Network (RCHWN) regarding the use of videoconferencing among community members in practice and how members in RCHWN perceive the availability of videoconferencing devices to communicate in the community. Transcendental phenomenology provided the conceptual framework and research …


Implementing A Mindfulness Program To Reduce Burnout Rates, Nadine G. Kakanou May 2025

Implementing A Mindfulness Program To Reduce Burnout Rates, Nadine G. Kakanou

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Walden University College of Nursing This is to certify that the doctoral study by Nadine Kakanou has been found to be complete and satisfactory in all respects, and that any and all revisions required by the review committee have been made. Review Committee Dr. Sue Bell, Committee Chairperson, Nursing Faculty Dr. Mary Bemker Houghtaling, Committee Member, Nursing Faculty Chief Academic Officer and Provost Sue Subocz, Ph.D. Summary Burnout rates among mental healthcare workers remain a concern affected by the increasing demands of the profession and the COVID-19 pandemic. The identified practice gap among mental healthcare staff members at the northern …


Staff Education Program On The Vanderbilt Adhd Diagnostic Rating Scale, Rabiatu Bangura May 2025

Staff Education Program On The Vanderbilt Adhd Diagnostic Rating Scale, Rabiatu Bangura

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This DNP project evaluated the effectiveness of a structured staff education program designed to enhance healthcare professionals’ knowledge and utilization of the Vanderbilt ADHD Assessment Scale (VAS) in children aged ≥2 to ≤18 years. The practice problem addressed in this project was the inconsistent use and limited knowledge of the VAS among healthcare staff, which can lead to underdiagnosis or delayed diagnosis. The practice-focused question was: Will a staff education program specifically designed to instruct healthcare professionals on using the Vanderbilt ADHD Assessment Scale in children ≥2 years to ≤18 years increase their knowledge? Targeted educational sessions were implemented, and …


Staff Education For Nursing Teach-Back Facilitation To Reduce Frequent Readmission, Chikamunario Joy Ekeke May 2025

Staff Education For Nursing Teach-Back Facilitation To Reduce Frequent Readmission, Chikamunario Joy Ekeke

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Background: Teach-Back method of education is a simple technique that can be used to check, and correct inaccurate recall of patients’ instructions. It has a great impact on patients’ recall and understanding of discharged information in a healthcare setting and to help minimize hazards such as non-medication adherence, frequent re-hospitalization, and poor self-care/home care (Talevski et al., 2020). Gap in Practice/Problem: “Frequent readmission (30 days Return) of patients in a Rural Psychiatric Center.” The Practice Focus Question: “Does staff education on “teach-back” facilitate the knowledge and confidence level of staff in providing discharged patient education and subsequently minimize frequent rehospitalization?” …


Staff Education To Improve Patient Follow Through And Continuity Of Care, Aitenobhan Cynthia Ofeinmun May 2025

Staff Education To Improve Patient Follow Through And Continuity Of Care, Aitenobhan Cynthia Ofeinmun

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) staff education project was conducted in the adult inpatient psychiatric unit of a behavioral health facility in Texas over 4 weeks. The project involved addressing the absence of standardized staff practices related to patient follow through after discharge. This practice gap contributed to fragmented continuity of care and inconsistent discharge planning. The project’s practice-focused question was: How does staff education on patient follow through impact staff knowledge? The goal was to determine whether an evidence-based staff education program could improve staff knowledge and promote efficiency in terms of discharge practices. Education was delivered through …


Staff Education To Improve Gestational Diabetes Knowledge In Family Practice Staff, Lawretta Udogadi Aghomon May 2025

Staff Education To Improve Gestational Diabetes Knowledge In Family Practice Staff, Lawretta Udogadi Aghomon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The project was a staff education program on gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) that was carried out in an outpatient primary health facility to help improve staff knowledge of GDM. GDM is a pregnancy complication where women with no history of diabetes become hyperglycemic during their gestational period. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the percentage of mothers giving birth who received a diagnosis of diabetes during pregnancy has increased in the last 10 years. Limited healthcare staff knowledge is a constraint in preventing the increase of GDM incidence. The practice-focused question was: Among healthcare staff at a …


The Experience Of Non-English Speaking Hispanic Patients During Kidney Transplant Evaluation, Ana Ivette Merced-Castro May 2025

The Experience Of Non-English Speaking Hispanic Patients During Kidney Transplant Evaluation, Ana Ivette Merced-Castro

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

There has been an increase in the incidence of Hispanics being diagnosed with end stage renal disease (ESRD), which has evolved from the rise in type 2 diabetes and hypertension. However, Hispanics and African American people are less likely to receive kidney transplants than non-Hispanic White individuals, and many Hispanics referred for transplants often do not complete the evaluation process due to its complexities. The purpose of this qualitative narrative descriptive study, guided by the socioeconomic model, was to explore the lived experiences of non-English-speaking Hispanic patients during the kidney transplant evaluation process. Six participants were recruited for the individual …


Staff Education On Bias Awareness, Macbarbara Amaechi May 2025

Staff Education On Bias Awareness, Macbarbara Amaechi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The project was a staff education initiative focused on addressing a knowledge gap about bias for treatment of patients on controlled substances at the practice site. I aimed to fill this practice gap by developing an education program that delivered evidence-based methods to reduce bias. The practice-focused question was: Will a staff education project result in an increase in staff knowledge and awareness around implicit bias among patients who are taking controlled substances? The purpose of the project was to determine if a formal educational program could enhance the knowledge of the staff and decrease bias, which would lead to …


Staff Education To Standardize Handoff Communication Protocols: Enhancing Patient Safety, Delali Adjele Tetteh-Assiakoley May 2025

Staff Education To Standardize Handoff Communication Protocols: Enhancing Patient Safety, Delali Adjele Tetteh-Assiakoley

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Summary This doctor of nursing practice (DNP) staff education project focused on providing a staff education program on standardized handoff communication protocols to enhance patient safety and communication efficiency and effectiveness of information exchange at the practicum site. The practice problem is the lack of consistency regarding handoff communication, which results in miscommunication, inefficiencies, and possible preventable patient harm. Under conditions of poor handoff communication, medical errors, delays in treatment, and adverse patient outcomes are well documented. The project sought to improve the nursing staff’s knowledge of standardized handoff tools through a structured education program guided by the following practice-focused …


Improving Staff Knowledge And Patient Care Outcomes Through Targeted Educational Interventions On Diabetes Management In Home Health Agencies, Chikita Domonique Smith May 2025

Improving Staff Knowledge And Patient Care Outcomes Through Targeted Educational Interventions On Diabetes Management In Home Health Agencies, Chikita Domonique Smith

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

No abstract provided.


Health Equity And Social Determinants Of Health Nurse Education, Jacqueline Arana Clements May 2025

Health Equity And Social Determinants Of Health Nurse Education, Jacqueline Arana Clements

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The primary care setting provides integrated healthcare services where nurses address many healthcare needs, develop patient relationships, and practice in the context of family and community. To provide comprehensive care, nurses must complete a social determinants of health screening that addresses the social factors that impact clinical outcomes. In 2021, the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine published a nursing education strategy on educating nurses on social determinants of health. This project aimed to develop a staff education program to prepare primary care nurses on the concepts and terminology encompassing social determinants of health, identifying the severity of health …


Staff Education To Address Communication In Correctional Healthcare, Pamela Renee Bredy May 2025

Staff Education To Address Communication In Correctional Healthcare, Pamela Renee Bredy

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This doctoral project was a staff education initiative focused on enhancing staff knowledge of Situation Background Assessment Recommendations (SBAR) communication through structured educational intervention in correctional healthcare settings. The practice problem centered on significant deficiencies in standardized communication. The practice-focused question was, Will implementing staff education on SBAR communication increase staff knowledge and confidence? I aimed to enhance staff communication and knowledge through SBAR implementation using live sessions, hands-on practice, and reference materials.


Investigating The Association Between Metabolically Healthy And Metabolically Unhealthy Obesity With Disease, Colleen Marie Cohick May 2025

Investigating The Association Between Metabolically Healthy And Metabolically Unhealthy Obesity With Disease, Colleen Marie Cohick

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Obesity is a global health concern, affecting individuals of all ages and ethnicities worldwide. A key factor in health concerns related to obesity is metabolic health: Obese individuals are either metabolically healthy obese or metabolically unhealthy obese, leading to different degrees of risk for cardiovascular disease and diabetes.. There is a lack of comprehensive research examining the association between metabolic health status among obese individuals and kidney, liver, and stomach diseases. This quantitative cross-sectional study was conducted to examine whether metabolic health status is a significant predictor of kidney, liver, and stomach diseases among obese individuals when lifestyle is a …


Reducing Medical Supplies Waste By Managing Healthcare Resources In A Clinical Setting In The United States: Lessons Learned From The Covid-19 Pandemic, Chiatuogu Anna Ukaga May 2025

Reducing Medical Supplies Waste By Managing Healthcare Resources In A Clinical Setting In The United States: Lessons Learned From The Covid-19 Pandemic, Chiatuogu Anna Ukaga

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The gap in practice identified for my DNP capstone project is reducing medical supplies waste by managing healthcare resources in a clinic setting in the United States of America. The Organizational Change Process (OCP) Evaluation project assessed a tracking and exchange system to track the inventory of supplies used in different worksite clinics and their expiration dates. Knowledge of the expiration dates enabled exchange or shift to high-utilization areas before the supplies expired, thereby reducing waste, costs, and environmental pollution. The healthcare organization was a mix of ambulatory clinics and hospitals of varying scopes and sizes. The small clinics served …


Staff Education On The Importance Of Polypharmacy Management, Ronie Emmanuel May 2025

Staff Education On The Importance Of Polypharmacy Management, Ronie Emmanuel

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This DNP project was a staff education created to address the practice problem of staff knowledge deficit around polypharmacy management in an outpatient internal medicine clinic. Inadequate staff education and inconsistent use of validated tools contribute to medication errors, adverse drug events, and fragmented care, thereby increasing health care costs and patient risk. The practice-focused question was: Will staff education on the importance of polypharmacy management increase staff knowledge? The purpose of this education project was to implement and evaluate a targeted staff education program focused on polypharmacy risks, safe prescribing practices, and the application of evidence-based strategies, such as …


Staff Education To Reduce Medication Error In Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit, Christiana Omodugba-Udeh May 2025

Staff Education To Reduce Medication Error In Psychiatric Intensive Care Unit, Christiana Omodugba-Udeh

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Summary This staff education project was an initiative designed to address the practice problem of medication errors in the psychiatric intensive care unit (PICU). The project’s purpose was to improve the nursing staff’s knowledge regarding medication administration and documentation through a structured educational intervention. The practice-focused question was: Will staff education on medication administration and documentation in the electronic medical record (EMR) result in an increase in staff knowledge with an aim to promote a reduction in medication errors in the PICU? The education was delivered through in-person sessions during regularly scheduled staff meetings to ensure full participation without disrupting …


Staff Education To Early Detection And Response To Patient Decline, Kein Gareth Rufino Pantaleon May 2025

Staff Education To Early Detection And Response To Patient Decline, Kein Gareth Rufino Pantaleon

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This doctoral project implemented a staff education program to enhance early recognition and escalation of patient deterioration. Conducted at a 343-bed acute care hospital, the initiative addressed the ongoing problem of delayed detection and response to clinical decline, which often results in rapid response team activations and code blue events. Delays in intervention increase patient morbidity and mortality, despite many of these events being preventable through timely action. The project evaluated whether an interactive targeted education program could improve nursing staff’s knowledge, confidence, and willingness to activate escalation protocols, including Condition H and Code Help. Pre- and post-education surveys were …


Experience Of Coparents/Partners Of African American Mothers Participating In Breastfeeding Education, Samantha Hickson May 2025

Experience Of Coparents/Partners Of African American Mothers Participating In Breastfeeding Education, Samantha Hickson

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Coparents and partners of African American mothers are critical in the initiation and continuation of breastfeeding and influence a woman’s decision to breastfeed. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the experience of coparents/partners of African American mothers participating in breastfeeding education and its impact on the support they provide. Bandura’s social cognitive theory provided the theoretical foundation for this study. Data were collected via semi-structured interviews with 11 participants. Data analysis followed the traditional seven steps of interpretative phenomenological analysis. Findings showed that while coparents and partners of African American breastfeeding mothers found breastfeeding education to be …


Staff Education On Medication Reconciliation, Ivana Priscilla Adwoa Antwiwaa Buamah May 2025

Staff Education On Medication Reconciliation, Ivana Priscilla Adwoa Antwiwaa Buamah

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This Doctor of Nursing Practice education project focused on improving staff knowledge of medication reconciliation through an evidence-based educational intervention in an outpatient clinic. Medication reconciliation is crucial for ensuring accurate and consistent medication lists across care transitions, helping to prevent errors, such as omissions, duplications, dosing mistakes, and drug interactions. The project’s central question was whether staff education on an evidence-based approach to medication reconciliation would improve staff knowledge. A pre- and post-education survey was used to measure changes in staff knowledge after a PowerPoint presentation. Results showed a significant increase in staff knowledge after the intervention; the participants’ …


Executive Summary: Development Of An Evidence-Based Prevention Bundle To Reduce Falls On An Inpatient Psychiatric Detoxification Unit, Ramatu Dougrey Jalloh May 2025

Executive Summary: Development Of An Evidence-Based Prevention Bundle To Reduce Falls On An Inpatient Psychiatric Detoxification Unit, Ramatu Dougrey Jalloh

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Following a 16% increase in patient falls from 2023 to 2024 in an inpatient psychiatric detoxification unit, a quality improvement education project was implemented to assess the impact of an evidence-based fall prevention bundle on fall rates and nursing compliance. Nurses received education through a PowerPoint presentation to enhance understanding and implementation of the bundle, which included Edmonson reassessments after high-risk medication administration, ISHAPED bedside shift handoffs, care plan updates, and SWIFT daily safety huddles. Posttests identified that the objective score of 80% knowledge for nurses was met. During the 10-week implementation, the goal was 100% compliance with all bundle …


Staff Education For Infection Control Prevention, Beatrice I. Cesar May 2025

Staff Education For Infection Control Prevention, Beatrice I. Cesar

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This project was a quality improvement staff education program to address the increase in hospital-acquired infections in the project facility. The hospital administrator identified that staff were overwhelmed and may not be consistently implementing appropriate infection control practices. If infection control practices are not addressed in hospitals system, there would be a much higher rate of hospital-acquired diseases among hospitalized patients and the staff. A staff education program about evidence-based strategies relating to infection control prevention was implemented to increase the nurses’ knowledge about strategies to decrease the spread of infection in the project facility. Eleven registered nurses participated in …


Staff Education To Enhance The Diagnosis Of Depression In Older Adults, Abiola Oyenwen Izekor May 2025

Staff Education To Enhance The Diagnosis Of Depression In Older Adults, Abiola Oyenwen Izekor

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

The aim of this staff education project was to improve provider knowledge on using the Geriatric Depression Scale (GDS) for screening depression in older adults. Geriatric depression is often underdiagnosed due to atypical symptoms and reliance on generalized tools such as the Patient Health Questionnaire-9 (PHQ-9), leading to delays in treatment and increased health care costs. To address this gap, I collaborated with a librarian to conduct a literature search, initially identifying 149 articles and refining them to 20 for review. I followed the analysis, design, development, implementation, and evaluation (ADDIE) model to structure the educational intervention. The training included …


Staff Education To Improve Staff Knowledge And Attitudes Regarding Aggressive Patient Behaviors, Roya Khoshbakht May 2025

Staff Education To Improve Staff Knowledge And Attitudes Regarding Aggressive Patient Behaviors, Roya Khoshbakht

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Aggressive behavior among psychiatric patients threatens safety and quality in healthcare, causing physical and psychological harm to staff and contributing to burnout and high turnover rates. This Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) project addressed gaps in staff knowledge and attitudes, particularly among nurses, regarding aggression management and de-escalation techniques through a comprehensive education program on the causes of aggression, warning signs, and effective strategies. The evidence-based practice (EBP) question was, Will staff education on evidence-based strategies for preventing and managing aggressive behavior improve staff knowledge and attitude? Project team members used the Johns Hopkins Evidence-Based Practice (JHEBP) model to develop …


Parental Vaccine Hesitancy And The Decision To Vaccinate Children Against Covid-19, Jessica Mckee May 2025

Parental Vaccine Hesitancy And The Decision To Vaccinate Children Against Covid-19, Jessica Mckee

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

While there is a significant body of literature regarding vaccine hesitancy, there is a gap in the literature on its impact to parents’ decisions to vaccinate their children against a pandemic pathogen. The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between parental vaccine hesitancy, measured using the health belief model (HBM) theoretical framework constructs of the Vaccine Hesitancy Scale (VHS; the degree to which an individual trusts in vaccine efficacy, safety, the reliability and trustworthiness of vaccine programs, community impact, perceived risks, and the importance of childhood vaccinations), and parents’ decision to vaccinate their children against COVID-19 with …