Nursing Commons^™

Small Windows Of Hope: Understanding The Meaning Of Fatigue Experienced By Cancer Patients, Lois Starnes Doane

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of the study was to describe the experience of early stage breast cancer women who were living with cancer-related fatigue. Using a phenomenological approach based on the work of Merleau-Ponty, the researcher completed six interviews in which women described the experience of being tired each day.

Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed using a hermeneutical approach developed by Pollio and applied to nursing research by Thomas. Each interview was examined within the context of all the interviews to identify themes noted in all transcriptions. Dealing with the prevailing and profound fatigue that entrenched these women‟s lives was overwhelming. …

The Current Practice Of Nursing Clinical Simulation Debriefing: A Multiple Case Study, Maria L. Overstreet

Doctoral Dissertations

Experts have identified simulation debriefing as the crucial or pivotal point to learning (Baldwin, 2007; Gaba, Howard, Fish, Smith, & Sowb, 2001), and the “heart and soul” of simulation (Rall, Manser, & Howard, 2000, p. 517). No research studies exist that support how best to perform this crucial activity, particularly as it relates to nursing clinical simulation (NCS) debriefing.

My aim in this study was to explore and describe the current practice of NCS debriefing. I studied the phenomenon as it naturally occurred, a group exercise, and interaction between the educator, student, and environment. The research question was the following: …

Situational Awareness In Multi-Casualty Incidents: Theory Development From The Field, Steven T. Busby

Doctoral Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to understand the process of situational awareness (SA) in multi-casualty incidents (MCI). This study is significant because SA provides information on which critical decisions are made during emergency events. The literature concerning SA is mostly drawn from the domains of aviation, military operations and business and not nursing. Current conceptual and theoretical development is insufficient for application to the domain of MCI. MCI occur daily across the United States, yet a literature review revealed no studies involving SA in MCI. Limited issues that are possibly related to SA in MCI have been researched such …

"I Am A Living History": A Qualitative Descriptive Study Of Atomic Bomb Survivors, Amy Knowles

Doctoral Dissertations

Never has the world experienced such extreme desecration as with the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, Japan, in August 1945. This magnitude of destruction serves as the foundation for this disaster research. Although significant quantitative research has been completed about medical effects following radiation, the literature lacks qualitative exploration from a holistic health perspective. The purpose of this study was to explore the experience of atomic bomb survivors from Hiroshima and Nagasaki. From ethnographic data and interviews with eight survivors who currently reside in the United States, a thematic structure was developed that depicts the essential elements of the …