Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Mother-Infant Synchrony During Infant Feeding, Barbara Reyna

Theses and Dissertations

MOTHER-INFANT SYNCHRONY DURING INFANT FEEDING By Barbara A. Reyna, PhD A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy at Virginia Commonwealth University. Virginia Commonwealth University, 2010. Major Director: Rita H. Pickler, PhD Endowed Nursing Alumni Professor Department of Family and Community Health Nursing, School of Nursing Synchrony between a mother and her infant is fundamental to their developing relationship. Feeding is an essential activity that provides an opportunity for interaction between a mother and her infant and may lead to synchronous interaction. The purpose this study was to develop and test a …

Facial Expression Discriminates Between Pain And Absence Of Pain In The Non-Communicative, Critically Ill Adult Patient, Mamoona Arif-Rahu

Theses and Dissertations

BACKGROUND: Pain assessment is a significant challenge in critically ill adults, especially those unable to communicate their pain level. At present there is no universally accepted pain scale for use in the non-communicative (cognitively impaired, sedated, paralyzed or mechanically ventilated) patient. Facial expressions are considered among the most reflexive and automatic nonverbal indices of pain. The facial expression component of pain assessment tools include a variety of facial descriptors (wincing, frowning, grimacing, smile/relaxed) with inconsistent pain intensity ratings or checklists of behaviors. The lack of consistent facial expression description and quantification of pain intensity makes standardization of pain evaluation difficult. …

The Relationship Among Maternal Infant Bonding, Spirituality, And Maternal Perception Of Childbirth Experience, Linda Bennington

Theses and Dissertations

The beginning of life is an intense experience for both mother and baby and sets the foundation for future interactions. Researchers have theorized that maternal infant bonding begins prenatally and continues on through the postnatal period. Mṻller (1996) examined that process to determine if prenatal bonding was related to postnatal bonding and discovered that there was only a modest correlation between the two. This led to speculation as to what variables, besides prenatal bonding, could influence postnatal bonding. Klaus & Kennell (1976) noted the detrimental effects of a lack of bonding in terms of abuse and attachment disorders and emphasized …

Mild Traumatic Brain Injury: Are Emergency Department Providers Identifying Which Patients Are At Risk?, Barbara Kay Stuart

Theses and Dissertations

Objective: Identify patients with specific emergency department (ED) discharge diagnoses who later report symptoms associated with a mild traumatic brain injury (MTBI), compare frequency and severity of MTBI symptoms by discharge diagnoses, investigate the frequency of head injury education provided to ED patients with each diagnosis, and finally, to learn what type of changes have occurred in the lives of patients as a result of their injury.

Methods: Fifty-two ED patients, aged 18 to 28 who were at least two weeks post injury, spoke English and were discharged with a diagnosis of concussion/closed head injury (CHI), head laceration, motor vehicle …

The Prevalence Of Postpartum Depression In Hispanic Immigrant Women, Nissa Breann Lucero

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to determine the prevalence of postpartum depression among Hispanic immigrant women seeking healthcare services at a community health clinic.

Data Sources: Hispanic immigrant women were recruited. Out of 116 study participants, 96 women were in the final sample. Using the Beck PDSS-Spanish version, women were screened for symptoms of postpartum depression.

Conclusions: The prevalence rate of significant symptoms of PPD was 54.2% for the entire sample of 96 women. Nearly 66% of women who screened positive for symptoms of PPD scored above the listed cutoff score for suicidal thoughts. Women were divided into …

Understanding The Perspective Of Adolescent Siblings Of Children With Down Syndrome Who Have Multiple Health Problems, Carol Ann Graff

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to obtain information from adolescent siblings of children with Down syndrome (CWDS) regarding their perceptions of living with a child who has Down syndrome (DS). Twenty-three adolescents between 12 and 19 years of age who lived with a child who had DS and additional health problems including cardiac, endocrine, gastrointestinal, hematological, neurological, and behavioral conditions were interviewed individually. After examining the tape recorded interviews, major themes revealed both positive and negative aspects of living with a child with DS who has major health problems. However, overall the adolescents reflected more positive experiences …

Understanding Nurses’ Experiences Of Providing End-Of-Life Care In The United States Hospital Setting, Susan Johnson

Theses and Dissertations

Nurses perform a vital role in the care of dying patients and their families. Hence, experiences of nurses are a meaningful source from which to advance holistic end-of-life care. In this study, a hermeneutic phenomenological perspective was used to explore the phenomenon of end-of-life nursing care. Details derived from a scientific exploration into the experiences of 13 registered nurses who provided care for patients and families at end-of-life in the inpatient hospital setting offer understandings regarding this important phenomenon. The hermeneutic phenomenological methods of Max van Manen guided data collection and analysis. Three main themes described the participants’ experience of …

The Lived Experience Of Faith Community Nurses Living The Call To Health Ministry, Deborah Mobley

Theses and Dissertations

Faith community nursing is one of the newest specialized practices of professional nursing. A faith community nurse is an actively registered professional nurse, who serves as a paid or volunteer staff member in a faith community. The faith community nurse promotes health and wholism of the faith community, its groups, families, and individual members. A faith community, as in a church, synagogue or mosque, is an organization of individuals and families who share common beliefs, values, religious doctrine, and faith practices that influence their lives. The faith community functions as a client system for the faith community nurse. The purpose …

Maternal Attitudes Related To Infant Feeding And Breastfeeding Behaviors In Taiwan, Yen-Ju Ho

Theses and Dissertations

Background: The government in Taiwan has promoted breastfeeding in recent years yet, exclusive initiation rates and continuation of breastfeeding remain low. Maternal attitudes have been found to be better predictors of infant feeding method during the postpartum period than socio-demographic factors. Understanding maternal attitudes related to infant feeding in Taiwan will support the development of better targeted, more effective health promotion programs aimed at increasing breastfeeding rates. Objectives: To examine maternal attitudes toward breastfeeding and the relationship of these factors to breastfeeding duration at six weeks postpartum. The Iowa Infant Feeding Attitude Scale (IIFAS) was translated into Chinese for this …

Patient Ventilator Dyssynchrony: Types, Frequency And Patterns In Critically Ill Adults, Karen Mellott

Theses and Dissertations

Patient ventilator dyssynchrony (PVD) occurs frequently, but little is known about the types, frequency and patterns of PVD for longer than 30 minutes. Deeper levels of sedation are associated with PVD. Evaluation of ventilator graphics and the ability to identify PVD should assist clinicians to optimize patient ventilator interactions and promote earlier interventions. The purpose of this study was to identify the different types, frequency and patterns of PVD in critically ill adults and determine the effect of sedation level on PVD. Thirty medical and surgical ICU adult patients were enrolled; 27 were used for analysis. Pressure/time and flow/ time …