Nursing Commons^™

Parental Hesitation As A Factor In Delayed Childhood Immunization, Karlen E. (Beth) Luthy, Renea L. Beckstrand, Neil E. Peterson

Faculty Publications

Introduction: One reason for lower immunization rates is that some parents hesitate to have their children immunized. A hesitancy questionnaire was developed to identify reasons parents hesitate in having their children immunized.

Methods: The hesitancy questionnaire was distributed from local pediatric and family practice offices and from the area's county health department. To be eligible, participants needed to be present in the clinic with a child needing a minimum of one immunization that was at least 6 months overdue.

Results: When questioned why their child was overdue for immunizations, the most common response was that participants were confused about the …

Teaching The Teacher Program To Assist Nurse Managers To Educate Nursing Staff In Ecuadorian Hospitals, Sheri P. Palmer, Sondra Heaston

Faculty Publications

Continuing education for hospital staff nurses is a concern worldwide. Current research shows that continuing education among nurses can positively affect patient outcomes (O’Brien, T., Freemantle, N., Oxman, A, et al., 2002. Interactive continuing education workshops or conferences can improve professional practice and patient outcomes. Journal of Evidence Based Nursing. 26 (5)). Seeing a need for improved patient outcomes among hospitals in Ecuador, we conducted a teaching the teacher program to assist nurse managers to carry-out continuing education in their hospital system. This teaching the teacher program was established through the collaboration between one College of Nursing in Utah, USA …

Cost-Efficient Treatment Options For Uninsured Or Underinsured Patients For Five Common Conditions, Karlen E. (Beth) Luthy, Neil E. Peterson, Joey Wilkinson

Faculty Publications

The nurse practitioner's (NP's) role in providing quality care continues to evolve, concurrent with the ever-evolving health care system. With an influx of uninsured and underinsured patients, NPs must not only provide high-quality health care, they must also address cost-efficient treatment options for patients who cannot afford expensive medications. Familiarity with the cost of medications and prescribing cost-efficient medications are valuable tools NPs can use to encourage patient compliance with a specific care regimen, consequently improving the overall health of uninsured or underinsured individuals. Knowledge of patient assistance programs may also assist NPs in decreasing prescription drug costs for patients. …

It's What We're Here For: Nurses Caring For Military Personnel During The Persian Gulf Wars, Patricia Rushton, Lynn Clark Callister, Jared E. Scott

Faculty Publications

Military nursing service during wartime represents significant contributions to a unique type of health care. The purposes of this study were to: (1) generate themes that elucidate combat nursing experiences, (2) honor nurses who served by sharing their stories, and (3) permanently archive accounts of nursing personnel who served during the Persian Gulf Wars during the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Eleven military nurses who provided health care to American troops in the Persian Gulf participated in a historical study as part of the ongoing Nurses at War oral history project documenting the experiences of nurses during times of …

Emergency Nurses’ Perceptions Of Size, Frequency, And Magnitude Of Obstacles And Supportive Behaviors In End-Of-Life Care, Renea L. Beckstrand, Michelle D. Smith, Sondra Heaston, A. Elaine Bond

Faculty Publications

Introduction: Emergency nurses care for dying patients daily. The process of dying in an emergency department can be complicated. Research on specific obstacles that impede the delivery of end-of-life care in emergency departments and behaviors that support it is limited.

Methods: A 70-item questionnaire was mailed to randomly selected ENA members. Subjects were asked to rate items on the size, frequency, and manitude of obstacles and supportive behaviors that relate to end-of-life care for ED patients.

Results:

The perceived obstacles with the greatest magnitude were as follows: (a) ED nurses’ work loads being too high to allow adequate time for …

Paripartum Cardiomyopathy: Implications For Nps, Jeffrey A. Goss, A. Elaine Bond, Renea L. Beckstrand, Lynn C. Callister

Faculty Publications

Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM), the fifth leading cause of death in pregnancy, is often overlooked or misdiagnosed because of vague symptoms and a lack of specific criteria for diagnosis. The authors performed a literature review of articles published between January 2000 and November 2007, and found that early diagnosis via echocardiography and interventions with specific treatment modalities can reduce mortality. Dobutamine stress testing may be prognostic for left ventricular (LV) dysfunction. Standard heart failure (HF) drug regimens, heart transplantation, and mechanical assist devices are viable treatment modalities, depending on individual needs. Subsequent pregnancies must be followed closely. The authors recommend that …

Peripheral Intravenous Catheters Started In Prehospital And Emergency Department Settings, Ligia Zarate, Barbara Mandleco, Russell Wilshaw, Patricia K. Ravert

Faculty Publications

The purpose of this study was to determine the rates of phlebitis in trauma patients according to where the peripheral intravenous catheter (PIVC) was inserted in a prehospital setting or in an emergency department setting. Variables investigated also included where the catheter was anatomically placed, the gauge of the catheter, and the patients' Injury Severity Score. The overall phlebitis rate was 5.79%. The rate of phlebitis was 2.92% when started by an RN in the emergency department, 6.09% when started by an intermediate emergency medical technician and 7.78% when started by a paramedic in prehospital setting. There was no significant …

Promoting Self-Confidence In Clinical Nursing Students, Karen M. Lundberg

Faculty Publications

Clinical nursing instructors are continually telling their students that they just need more confidence. But how do students find this needed confidence and how can nursing instructors help them? The author discusses sources and principles of confidence in relationship to teaching behaviors and strategies for increasing self-confidence, such as simulations, peer modeling, story telling, skill review sessions, and journaling.

Hospital Nursing Research Program: Partnership Of Service And Academia, Patricia Ravert, Katreena Collette Merrill

Faculty Publications

Hospitals in a nonprofit mountain west corporation conducted a gap analysis to determine readiness for Magnet Recognition. Major gaps included nursing research and availability of consultation and resources for research. Based on the findings, the development of a dynamic research program promoting nursing research and evidence-based practice within hospitals was undertaken. A nursing research council was reestablished with representatives from service and academia. A literature review and analysis of corporate/academia resources were completed. The plan called for a nursing research coordinator position and development of a research budget. Academia continues to be represented on the hospital institutional review board. A …

The Efficacy Of Complementary Therapies In Reducing Cancer-Related Pain, Sarah A. Hocking

Student Works

Pain is a persistent and troubling condition for patients with cancer. Because medications often provide incomplete management of cancer-related pain, adjunct treatment may be necessary to provide more complete pain management. Complementary and alternative therapies are becoming increasingly prevalent in cancer pain management. However, lack of knowledge regarding the efficacy of complementary therapies may prevent patients and nurses from implementing them. The purpose of this article is to provide a review of literature on the efficacy of various complementary and alternative therapies for managing cancer-related pain, including massage, aromatherapy, hypnosis, and music therapy. Eighteen recent research articles related to this …

Patient Simulator Sessions And Critical Thinking, Patricia K. Ravert

Faculty Publications

The project purpose was too determine whether measures of critical thinking show differences between three groups (simulator, non-simulator, control) of baccalaureate nursing students. The second purpose was to determine the moderating effect of students' preferred learning style. All groups experienced a moderate to large effect size in critical thinking scores. The corrected model for the total scale gain score was statistically significant but not significant for learning style or group.