Nursing Commons^™

Loneliness: A Study Of Adult Clinic Patients With Metastatic Cancer, Katherine Norfleet Berry

Theses and Dissertations

Loneliness is a topic of growing concern in the literature. Despite inherent difficulties in measuring such a personal experience, the present study was undertaken in order to gain knowledge concerning emotional needs of the dying cancer patient.

The conceptual frameworks for loneliness of Francis and Brown were combined and added to Bowen’s theory of “family reaction to death” to formulate the framework for this research. The relationship of secondary loneliness among adult clinic patients with metastatic cancer, and openness of their relationship system with a significant other was explored using the structured interview method. The loneliness scale and relationship system …

Comparison Of Burned Patients' Perception Of Pain With Nurses' Perception Of Patients' Pain, Merri Diane Walkenstein

Theses and Dissertations

Pain is a universal experience. Caring for people in pain is a central aspect of nursing practice. Many studies have been done to determine the physical and psychosocial mechanisms of the pain sensation, in addition to methods of relief. Very little has been done, however, dealing specifically with the pain experienced by the burned patient.

People hospitalized with thermal injuries complain most often of the intensity and long duration of their pain experience. Due to the large number of persons sustaining thermal injuries every year, it is apparent that nurses must familiarize themselves with methods of evaluation and intervention to …

Clean Technique Intermittent Catheterization As An Alternative To The Indwelling Urethral Catheter, Christine Heuston Lessels

Theses and Dissertations

Research has documented numerous risks and complications in the use of indwelling urethral catheters.¹ In spite of this, indwelling catheters are still widely used for the management of incontinence.²

During the past four decades, studies have shown that incontinence can be managed or resolved in many patients by using intermittent catheterization. Early investigators used elaborate sterile technique and included only patients with neurogenic bladder as a result of spinal cord injury.³ Later studies showed favorable results in patients with incontinence of non-traumatic etiology--even in patients previously dependent on an indwelling urethral catheter.⁴ The early literature on …

The Relationship Between Self-Esteem And Duration Of Low Back Pain, Betty Sue Holliday Ashby

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between self-esteem and duration of low back pain. Low back pain is one of the most common types of chronic pain. Sternbach et al. (1973) have estimated that the chief complaint of at least seventy percent of the patients presenting at the Pain Clinic associated with the School of Medicine of the University of California, San Diego is back pain. They feel that the major reason for this phenomena is the failure of physicians to recognize it as a psychosomatic illness. Erena (1978) concurs with this conclusion. He notes that …

The Effects Of Prepared Childbirth On Length Of Labor In Low-Risk Primiparae, Beth S. Mollick

Theses and Dissertations

The hypothesis that prepared low-risk primiparae would experience shorter labors than unprepared low-risk primiparae was not upheld in the findings of the present study. The findings of the present study did appear to validate the findings of several other similar studies which reported no differences in length of labor between prepared and unprepared women. Suggestions for further study of some questions raised by the present study have been made.

The Relationship Between Maternal Self-Concept And Demonstration Of Adaptive Behavior, Barbara Woodland Fleming

Theses and Dissertations

The study examined whether adaptive maternal behaviors correlated with a positive self-concept measurement. The adaptive behaviors observed were those which the literature suggested indicate a positive response to the changes of the puerperium. The study aimed at assisting the nurse in assessing the self-concept level of clients. The researcher also hoped to contribute to the continued development of nursing theories and the application of the theories to the arena of clinical practice.

Life Change Events In Patients With Minor Injuries, Janice Vandenburg Keitz

Theses and Dissertations

This study explored the time relationship of life change events in young adult patients with minor injuries for which medical attention was sought in an emergency department (ED). Life change events are those occurrences in life which require an alteration in a person's adaptive and coping responses to ease the discomfort associated with the change. Too much change without an increase in adaptation responses may cause loss of control. The manifestation of loss of control under evaluation in this study was the occurrence of a minor injury.

Activities Of Nurse Practitioners As Identified By Medical Directors Of University Student Health Services, Candace Beaman Moore, Miriam Lee Gottlieb

Theses and Dissertations

University health services play a very important role in the general health, performance, and well-being of the students, the university itself, and the community. As stated by the American College Health Association, the goal of a university health service is to "promote and maintain those conditions which will permit and encourage each individual to realize optimum physical, emotional, intellectual, and social well-being."

University students have special health care needs such as drug and alcohol abuses, emotional problems, and gynecological, sexual, and contraceptive problems. It is the goal of the health professionals involved with students to meet those needs. Because of …

Early Sibling Relationships, Patricia Mccook Rager

Theses and Dissertations

Most of the richness and beauty of life is derived from the close relationship that each individual has with a small number of other human beings--mother, father, brother, sister, husband, wife, son, daughter, and a small cadre of close friends. With each person in this small group, the individual has a uniquely close attachment or bond. Much of the joy and sorrow of life revolves around attachments or affectional relationships--making them, breaking them, preparing for them, and adjusting to their loss.

This study dealt with one of those special attachments, the relationship a child formed with his newborn brother or …

Changes In Serum Osmolality And The Clinical Manifestations Of The Dialysis Disequilibrium Syndrome, Donna L. Young

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if a relationship existed between the change in serum osmolality in the chronic renal failure patient on hemodialysis and the number of clinical symptoms of the dialysis disequilibrium syndrome experienced during hemodialysis. The study was conducted at the Renal Dialysis Unit of an urban medical center located in a southeastern city. Data were collected from May 25, 1978 to June 30, 1978. Data were obtained during 28 hemodialysis procedures performed on 11 subjects. Serum osmolality measurements were collected prior to initiation of the dialysis procedure, at half-hour intervals during dialysis, and prior …

Sexual Adjustment After Myocardial Infarction, Brenda Hove Long

Theses and Dissertations

"Cardiovascular diseases claim more American lives than all other causes of death combined,”¹ as stated in the American Heart Association's Heart Facts 1975. In 1972, it was estimated that 1,036,560 individuals died of cardiovascular disease; 683,100 of these were attributable to acute myocardial infarction.² In addition, an estimated 28,420,000 Americans have some type of cardiovascular disease at a cost of $20 billion annually.³ The figures ”bring home" a stalking reality; cardiovascular disease is epidemic in this country, the incidence and ramifications of which make it an ever-present threat to all Americans. The greatest threat is heart attack, …

A Survey Of Parental Knowledge Of Asthma, Nancy Aldred O'Donnell

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to investigate the level of parents' knowledge regarding asthma.

Twenty-five parents of children who have asthma were interviewed during their child's hospitalization for status asthmaticus. Adequate knowledge about environmental control and medication was noted in the majority of the subjects but over half were unable to explain the pathological changes which caused wheezeing. While most parents appear to have adequate knowledge of medications and environmental control on which to base their decisions about their child’s care there appears to be a need for more information regarding the pathophysiology.