Other Nursing Commons^™

A Descriptive Study On The Perceived Barriers To Academic Progression From Lpn To Rn, Rebekah B. Snyder

ATU Theses and Dissertations 2021 - Present

The significance of seamless academic progression has been emphasized in the nursing profession for more than a decade. A significant amount of research has been conducted on the transition from registered nurse (RN) to a Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) prepared nurse in order to identify potential barriers to progression: yet a significant literature gap exists for the transition from licensed practical nurse (LPN) to RN. The purpose of this quantitative descriptive study was to identify what perceived barriers practical nursing students and recent practical nursing graduates identify as potentially hindering academic progression to a registered nursing program. Data …

Preparing Nurses For The Transition To Practice With Virtual Simulation, Jennifer Holm

Doctoral Projects

This project assessed the clinical reasoning objectives of first-semester nursing students who had up to 75% of their clinical time using virtual simulations compared to those who primarily had traditional direct-care clinical experiences with up to 12% of their time in simulation. The principal investigator reviewed clinical reasoning measures within student evaluations from the Fall 2019 and Fall 2021 cohorts of an Associate Degree in Nursing (ADN) program. The results of a two-tailed independent samples t-test demonstrated a slight reduction in the clinical reasoning abilities of the cohort with a higher proportion of simulation. However, there were several possible confounding …

Reflective Journaling Intervention To Impact Self-Awareness, Professional Health, And Overall Well-Being In Nurses, Brittany M. Langan, Katherine Keppen

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects: College of Nursing

Background. Burnout among nurses has been on the rise and was exacerbated with the pandemic. Reflective journaling after work may be a strategy to decrease feelings of burnout. Reflective journaling, as an intervention, has been shown to improve self-awareness, compassion fatigue, and burnout among nurses. The purpose of this study was to pilot a 4-week reflective journaling intervention in hospital-based nurses and describe participant professional quality of life, self-awareness, and overall well-being.

Theoretical Framework. The Theory of Reasoned Action (TRA) was chosen as the theoretical framework because it identifies the belief that performing a particular behavior will lead to a …

Dnp Final Report: Executive Rounding And How It Affects The Completion Of A Quality Checklist And Quality Indicators: An Evidence-Based Practice Project, Ruben P. Castillo

DNP Final Reports

A question of inquiring led to the development of PICOT questions and a systematic search that recognized an executive leadership rounding process healthcare initiative need to improve the quality of care for patients, QI (quality improvement) initiatives such as reducing CAUTI (community-acquired urinary tract infections) and CLABSI (central-line associated bloodstream infections) in the medical floor population project was developed. The compelling internal and external evidence makes it vital to examine the following question, In acute care inpatients (P), how does an executive leaderships (manager &/or director), quality-indicator rounding plan (I) compare to no rounding plan (C) affect consistent completion of …

Nursing Students' Moral Courage Development Through Incivility Simulation Education, Melissa Madden

Nursing Theses and Dissertations

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine if the use of an incivility simulation intervention and incivility educational module would increase nursing students’ perceived moral courage more than an incivility educational module alone.

Hypotheses: Nursing students’ moral courage scores would increase more in response to an incivility simulation intervention and educational module than for those who received the incivility educational module intervention alone.

Methods: The NLN Jeffries Simulation Theory framed the proposed intervention using a quasi-experimental pre-test-post-test comparison group design. A convenience sample of 66 students was utilized from one university across two classes. The Moral Courage …

Asthma Care By Unlicensed Personnel In The Elementary School Setting: A Training Program, Teresa Eligio

Doctoral Projects

This Quality Improvement project (QI) aims to improve the competence and confidence of unlicensed school health staff in identifying asthma symptoms, reading an asthma action plan, asthma care, emergency response, medication delivery tools, and trigger reduction in the school setting. The QI project transpired in an Elementary School District in Los Angeles County, CA. The Project Manager, an asthma instructor trained by the American Lung Association, provided evidence-based Asthma-Basics training for health clerks (HCs), substitute health clerks (SHCs), licensed vocational nurse health clerks (LVN HCs), school office coordinators (SOCs), school office attendance clerks (SOAs), and substitute school office staff (SDO). …

Dnp Final Report: Skilled Nursing Facility Readmissions: An Evidence-Based Telemedicine Innovation Project, Debra B. Graham

DNP Final Reports

Background: Nationally, 20% of patient readmissions occur within the first 48 hours after arrival to a skilled nurse facility (SNF), and 40-68% of these readmissions are potentially avoidable. Since 2016, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid penalized SNFs when their return to hospital (RTH) percentages was above national benchmarks. The four SNFs in this project experienced rising transfer rates and diminished RTH percentages since 2017, despite using in-house providers Monday through Friday. Furthermore, there was no provision to address patients’ changes in conditions after hours.

Purpose: This evidence-based practice (EBP) project aimed to standardize the care provided to …

Effects Of The Covid-19 Pandemic On The Health Behaviors And Feelings Of Career Preparedness Of Baccalaureate Nursing Students, Mary Haggard

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

The aim of this study was to determine if the COVID-19 pandemic affected the health behaviors and feelings of career preparedness of undergraduate nursing students. Participants were recruited from the pre-licensure program at the Eleanor Mann School of Nursing, at the University of Arkansas, Fayetteville during the Fall 2021 semester. The final sample consisted of 92 participants. This study used a cross-sectional design, retrospectively measuring behaviors and attitudes pre-pandemic and during the lockdown period. Two-tailed paired t-tests were run on the health behavior sections and feelings of career preparedness sections independently. Results were deemed significant with an alpha value set …

Nursing Students, Bullying, And Burnout: A Study On Bullying By Medical Staff Members Against Nursing Students In The Clinical Setting And Its Relation To Nursing Student Burnout, Kihley Bellamy

Undergraduate Honors Theses

The present study investigated the existence of bullying by medical staff members in the clinical setting as experienced by nursing students, the existence of burnout among these students, and if such students perceive feelings of burnout as directly related to experiences of bullying. Undergraduate main campus traditional Bachelor of Science in nursing students at East Tennessee State University in their second, third, fourth, or fifth semesters were invited to participate in the study. Participants (n=52) were required to complete an online survey that regarded bullying, burnout, and how participants perceive the relation between the two variables. The study shows that …

An Exploration Of Covid-19 Impact On Healthcare Workers’ Mental Health In China, Jenny Yang

Nursing | Senior Theses

Background

In December 2019, the first confirmed human case of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) or COVID-19 occurred in Wuhan, China. By March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) had classified the COVID-19 outbreak as a pandemic due to the rapid spread of the virus to other countries. Many people have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic in various aspects, especially front-line healthcare workers. Hospital working conditions are constantly changing to cope with the problems that arise from the pandemic. These problems can result in an unsafe patient-to-nurse ratio, understaffed healthcare workers in hospitals, equipment shortage, and increased …

The Relationship Between Perceived Support And Post Traumatic Growth Among Nurses During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Anna Nieman

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Background: Nurses continue to experience significant challenges related to the COVID-19 pandemic, putting them at risk of occupational stress, burnout, and turnover. The post-traumatic growth model focuses on growth and knowledge that comes from experiences of stress and trauma.

Aim: Identify post-traumatic growth (PTG) in a population of nurses affected by the COVID 19 pandemic.

Method: PTG was measured by the Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory, a 21-item questionnaire with five factors: relating to others, new possibilities, appreciation of life, personal strength, and spiritual change. Participants (n=22) responded on a 6-point Likert scale, 0 for no change and 5 for great degree …

Civility And Communication Interventions To Improve Patient Outcomes, Lane Denney

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Communication in health care is vital for the successful care of patients and their outcomes while they are hospitalized. Healthcare workers are responsible for communicating patient information whether it is between change of shifts or reporting to a patient’s provider. It is important that this information is communicated effectively. This review evaluates how nurses communicate in shift- report and how this affects patient outcomes and civility between nursing units and teams. Overall, bedside shift reports promoted the best patient outcomes and increased teamwork on hospital units.

Exploring The Efficacy Of Herbal & Medicinal Plants Native To China And Thailand As A Complementary & Alternative Treatment In Mitigating Mild-To-Moderate Covid-19 Symptoms, Jiramanee Apiwansri

Nursing | Senior Theses

Background

In December 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) was informed of an outbreak of an unknown cause of pneumonia-like symptoms in residents concentrated in Wuhan, China; this marked the start of China’s epidemic, which transformed into a pandemic affecting all continents of the world. The cause of the pneumonia-like symptoms was found to be due to the growth and development of the virus severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2) which spreads through an infected person’s respiratory droplets through activities such as talking, coughing, and sneezing. With COVID-19 vaccine manufacturers available worldwide, even the economically and technologically forward countries …

Factors Contributing To Nurse Burnout In Oncology, Caroline Withers

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Nurse burnout is a pressing concern for healthcare with significant implications for all areas of nursing and patient outcomes. However, the specialty of oncology experiences burnout differently than other specialties for a multitude of reasons. This literature review aims to determine factors that contribute to nurse burnout within oncology, and identify evidence-based prevention strategies. The twenty studies included in the review underscore the crucial role of management and leadership in the prevention of nurse burnout. Further education and research are needed to better understand causes of burnout, as well as proper interventions. Interventions need to be established on a hospital …

Effects Of Inadequate Nurse Staffing And Need For Standard Nurse-To-Patient Ratios To Increase Patient Safety In Acute Care Settings, Macey Schwenker

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

This study includes articles including research regarding the effects of the current nursing staff shortage and overtime on patient care and outcomes. A systematic review of research was conducted guided by PRISMA guidelines and consists of articles collected from PubMed. Studies were taken place in the United States, England, Taiwan, Singapore, United Kingdom, Brazil, South Korea, Sweden, India, and Australia involving hundreds of thousands of participants. Methods include mean ratio, regression models, surveys, and questionnaires. Nurse staffing shortages, overtime, and inadequate staffing increased the risk of patient mortality and decreased overall patient safety and quality of care in acute care …

The Effects Of The Transition From Pre-Nursing To Nursing On Mental Health, Andrew J. Davis, Paige R. Mullins, Kimberly A. Sell

Undergraduate Honors Theses

Mental health is an ever-growing crisis among adolescents and young adults, with suicide as second leading cause of death and the number of those negatively affected continually on the rise. Transitions are one of the major stressors prevalent among these age groups, placing individuals at risk for mental health deficits. This quantitative voluntary response comparative study assesses the transitional mental health of pre-nursing students and students in the nursing program at East Tennessee State University. Emailed to all with a declared major of pre-nursing or nursing, this study measured mental health using evidenced based assessment tools. The PHQ-9 for depression …

A Quantitative Job Satisfaction Comparison Between Certified Nursing Assistants (Cnas) Providing Care In Patients’ Homes Versus In Long-Term Care (Ltc) Facilities In The Omaha Metropolitan Area, Rusheena Shah

Capstone Experience: Master of Public Health

This capstone project looks at overall job satisfaction comparison between two groups of Certified Nursing Assistants (CNAs) – CNAs who provide home care in patients’ homes and CNAs who provide care in Long-term Care (LTC) facilities in the Omaha Metropolitan Area. In this quantitative study, a survey was sent to CNAs who provide home care to patients and CNAs who provide patient care at different nursing home facilities in the Omaha area. Prior research has indicated that even though CNAs perform similar job duties irrespective of the work environment; they experience varying degrees of job satisfaction which could be attributed …

Interventional Radiology Procedures Without Sedation: The Nurse Experience, Catherine De Leon

Dissertations

Background: Many IR procedures offer a less invasive and economical alternative to some open or laparoscopic surgeries. Patients undergoing a procedure without moderate sedation are awake, alert, with heightened sensory perceptions, and vulnerable to their surroundings. There is a gap in the current body of literature relating to the IR nurse’s experience of caring for patients during procedures without the use of moderate sedation.

Purpose/Aims: The purpose of this study was to explore the lived experience of Interventional Radiology (IR) nurses caring for conscious patients undergoing a procedure without the use of sedation. This phenomenological study aimed to describe the …

Evidenced-Based Practice Guideline Development: Selection Of Local Anesthetics And The Additive Dexamethasone In Brachial Plexus Blocks, Sabina Lamichhane Wagle

Doctor of Nursing Practice Scholarly Projects

Brachial plexus blocks (BPB) are a type of regional anesthesia that inhibits the sensory and motor function of the upper extremity. The efficacy of a BPB depends on the type and dose of local anesthetics (LA), as well as the use of any additive agent. The selection of LA depends on the type, concentration, and volume of LA. Certain additives, such as dexamethasone, when added to BPB, were shown to increase motor and sensory block duration.

A chart audit conducted by the pharmacy and anesthesia departments revealed a significant variability of clinical practice in the use of LA and additives …

Dnp Final Report: Sane Finder: A Web-Based Mobile Solution To Identify The Location Of Currently Available Sexual Assault Nurse Examiners (Sane) For First Responders, Brenda D. Herrmann

DNP Final Reports

Society views sexual assault as one of the most horrific crimes committed by one human being against another, but the “rescue” has the potential to make the experience even more difficult for the victim, in essence re-traumatizing them (Nugent-Borakove et al., 2006). In the United States in 2018, almost 140,000 victims reported being sexually assaulted (U.S. Department of Justice - Federal Bureau of Investigation, 2019). In Texas, over 6 million individuals have been sexually assaulted in their lifetime (Busch-Armendariz et al., 2015). Getting victims to a specially trained sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) as quickly as possible improves outcomes. SANEs …

Dnp Final Report: Psychosocial Screening For Oncology Patients, Robyn V. Beard

DNP Final Reports

Background: Patients with cancer often face severe distress related to fear of death, body disfigurement, financial stress, and lack of support system. This distress may lead to physical and emotional symptoms that bring patients to seek care at emergency departments, delay care or make poor health choices, and increase utilization of prescription drugs. With the already over burdened healthcare system, addressing these psychosocial needs is vital to improving patients outcomes as well as improving healthcare expenditure. Purpose: The purpose of this evidence based practice project was to improve perceived quality of life for oncology patients through detailed screening and behavioural …

Dnp Final Report: Mission Cyborg: An Ebp Project Integrating Hybrid Learning In An Undergraduate Nursing Course, Mary A. Thomas

DNP Final Reports

In modern times it is an expectation of students that technology be incorporated into how they receive their education. The COVID-19 pandemic brought to light how pure reliance on traditional face-to-face (F2F) learning can be detrimental to student learning. Many institutes of higher education had already implemented hybrid/blended learning prior to the pandemic and saw no difference in their NCLEX-RN pass rates. This evidence-based practice project gathered, reviewed, and synthesized evidence in order to determine if implementing different teaching strategies would maintain or improve student performance on both unit exams and end of course exit exams.

Ensuring Safety During Behavioral Health Emergencies In Emergency Rooms, Allison Logue

ONU Student Research Colloquium

Problem: Psychiatric patient emergencies and behavioral outbursts are increasingly present in nonmental health units. With the associated increase in complexity and acuity of mental health emergency room visits, there is an associated increase in risk that they will become agitated, posing a risk to themselves and others. The yelling, manipulating, physical outbursts, and verbal or physical threats that can be associated with this patient population increases the risk of injury for staff and patients.

Purpose: The purpose of this project is to determine if the implementation of a behavioral health/aggressive patient bundle will decrease the number of staff injuries by …

Implementation Of Staff Training Curriculum Aimed At Improving Mds Coding In A Long-Term Care Setting, Maureen Burns, Emalee Driemeyer, Caitlin O'Toole, Eliana Scheett, Erin Sticha

Celebrating Scholarship and Creativity Day (2018-)

Minimum Data Set (MDS) is used in long-term care facilities to document resident’s information and assessments and to determine the resident’s eligibility to receive Medicare or Medicaid insurance coverage for treatment expenses while in the LTC facility. When reviewing the MDS, the facility identified inaccurate documentation of the resident’s functional mobility ambulating on the unit. This quality improvement project was undertaken to improve assessments, resident interventions, and documentation regarding functional mobility. Following literature review and chart audits, an educational intervention was implemented for nursing assistants to promote understanding of the MDS coding system when charting functional mobility on the unit. …

The Effect Of Self-Management Support Interventions For Adults With Mild Traumatic Brain Injury And Family Caregivers, Ann Thaiudom

Dissertations

Purpose: This study aimed to examine the effect of a self-management support program for individuals with mild traumatic brain injury (mTBI) and their family caregivers.

Design: The study design was a two-group randomized control trial.

Method: A total of 73 mTBI patients and their primary family caregivers were randomly assigned to either the intervention group (n=36) receiving the self-management support program plus usual care or the control group (n=37) receiving only usual care. The self-management program was developed based on the Individual and Family Self-management theory, and relevant clinical practice guidelines. The program consisted of self-management support assessment at …

Successful Components For Developing An Oncology Nurse Residency Program: An Integrative Review, Andi Johnson

Master of Science in Nursing Final Projects

Problem Identification

Residency programs for newly licensed registered nurses (NLRNs) have become an integral part of the new nurse’s transition to professional practice, improving resilience and retention of the NLRN. The goal of this integrative review is to highlight concepts and components that have been successfully incorporated into NLRN residencies and provide nursing leaders with actionable guidance to incorporate into facility-based oncology nurse residencies.

Literature Search

An integrative review using Whittemore and Knafl’s approach was conducted in accordance with principles of thematic analysis established by Toronto and Remington.

Data Evaluation

Eighteen records were included. As few research articles were found …

Health Literacy In Acute Care Benchmark Study, Micah Duke

MSN Capstone Projects

Poor health literacy levels directly correlate to poor patient discharge adherence and to an increase in repeat emergency department visits and healthcare costs. In addition, poor health literacy levels are directly correlated to a decrease in patient health outcomes. Studies clearly demonstrate that determining patient health literacy levels can be used to develop appropriate discharge instructions and education that will improve patient adherence and health outcomes, thus reducing emergency department readmissions and healthcare costs.

The purpose of this benchmark project is to implement procedures for consistently obtaining patient health literacy levels, along with language preferences, using the HLS-SF12 and to …

To Use Or Not To Use Oxygen For Mi Benchmark Study, Alexia Celaya

MSN Capstone Projects

It is a common practice for emergency personnel to administer oxygen for a patient diagnosed with a myocardial infarction. It is a well-known practice to place the patient on supplemental oxygen even if they are not hypoxic. The use of supplemental oxygen has been a cornerstone in the treatment of myocardial infarction. The rationale behind the administration of oxygen therapy is to increase oxygen delivery to the myocardium, therefore limiting the infarct size and future complications (Hofmann et al., 2017). The use of supplemental oxygen on normoxic patients has been challenged due to the possibility of causing further injury to …

Non-Pharmacological Interventions For Fatigue In Lung Cancer Patients, Sydney Robey, Micah Stewart, Melody Trickett

Epsilon Sigma at-Large Research Conference

Abstract

Introduction & Background: One of the most common and debilitating side effects of cancer is fatigue. Fatigue is a general feeling of tiredness or weakness that can greatly impact a patient’s quality of life. It can have a profound impact on a patient’s ability to perform day to day activities and cause emotional distress leading to anxiety and depression. In recent years, there has been an increase in research to look at the effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions on improving cancer patients’ fatigue.

Purpose Statement: The purpose of our research is to look at the effectiveness of different types of …

Implementing A Flipped Classroom Approach In An Online Medical-Surgical Nursing Course, Ellen Schoen

Epsilon Sigma at-Large Research Conference

Background: According to Park, et. al. (2021) a flipped classroom consists of pre-class activities that expose students to the subject matter, in-class activities that promote interaction between classmates, learners and instructors and post-class activities that help solidify information. This method of education is thought to be more effective at promoting clinical judgement than traditional lecture-based classrooms. Delivery of course content through virtual meetings can also allow for additional flexibility in students’ schedules, while still allowing for engagement with classmates and promoting students’ engagement in their learning and motivations to learn (Philips & O’Flaherty, 2019).

The nation-wide restrictions on 2020-2021 academic …