Family Practice Nursing Commons^™

Integrating Palliative Care In A Family Nurse Practitioner Curricula - Post Survey Data, Betty Lang, Susan Montgomery, Ellen P. Moore, Amanda Townsend

MSN Project Data

There is a growing need to integrate Palliative Care in Family Nurse Practitioner (FNP) curricula. Due to increasing costs in an already overstretched healthcare system, a large portion of primary care is delivered by FNPs, often to older or sicker patients. Therefore, it is imperative that FNPs receive formal educational and professional preparation regarding palliative care resources. One of the Core concepts presented by The American Association of Colleges of Nursing's Essentials: Core Concepts for Professional Nursing Education (2021) is palliative care, as are hospice and supportive care. Graduate Competencies and Recommendations for Educating nursing Students (G-CARES) further describe advanced-level …

Home Visitation To Prevent And Reduce Postpartum Depression, Anna Bauer, Madison Polley, Laura Boesken Dnp, Msn, Rn

Posters-at-the-Capitol

Postpartum depression (PPD) occurs in 13-19% of women worldwide, and is a stigmatized medical condition affecting maternal and infantile long term outcomes. The purpose of this evidence-based practice project was to determine if women at high risk for PPD are affected by home visitation programs from discharge up to three years postpartum. CINHAL Ultimate, Google Scholar, and Medline databases were used. Current evidence supports the use of home-visitation programs for postpartum women to decrease the prevalence and the symptoms of PPD by allowing nurses access into homes to provide early intervention for PPD. In addition to providing care for prevention …

Exploring The Effects Of Different Types Of Diets On Preventing And Managing Diabetes Mellitus Type 2, Ma. Patricia Diorel Peig

Nursing | Senior Theses

Diabetes is a major health problem that is becoming an epidemic in major countries of the world. Diabetes can affect people of all ages and of all races. However, there is a higher risk of developing diabetes for certain groups of people. As of today, there is still no cure for diabetes. The treatment plan for patients diagnosed with diabetes is to control the level of blood glucose through different interventions. The progression of diabetes is influenced by food behaviors, and diet control is an important aspect of management of this disease. There are different types of diet recommended that …

Using Family Focused-Care Solutions To Improve Child’S Quality Of Life, Joshua M. Del Sol

Nursing | Senior Theses

Chronic illness in children impacts not only themselves but their families too. Everyone in the family supports each other and provides each other with pretty much all our physiological needs including our emotional needs. Parents/caregivers are the role models for their young children and really shape the person they become because basic values and their early relationships are formed. A family provides that consistent balance in our life that is the center of our life at a young age. When children are diagnosed with a chronic illness, parents may feel responsible, ashamed, guilty, or angry. Families may turn on each …

The Effects Of Screen Time On Children, Jacqueline Valdepenas

Nursing | Senior Theses

With the development of technology continuing to grow at a fast-paced pace in society, children are now becoming exposed to such technology at a younger age. The introduction of smartphones and tablets, which is defined as screen time in this paper, are being introduced to children as young as 6 months of age. Instead of children playing with toys recommended for their age, they use screen time for their play needs and entertainment. Some parents use screen time as a distraction and/or relief for their own needs when the child is upset or they’re unable to tend to the child. …

Assessment Of Caregiver Burden In A Memory Loss Clinic, Andrea Perkins

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Background: Over 131,000 people in Illinois identify themselves as caregivers of someone with memory loss. The family caregiver may provide care including, but not limited to, assistance with activities of daily living, financial responsibilities, behavior management, and scheduling, and transportation to medical appointments. The care provided by the caregivers may lead to caregiver burden symptoms of depression, anxiety, and perceived stress. Purpose: Health care providers at a central Illinois memory clinic are not currently completing formal assessments of caregiver burden. This quality improvement project was done to determine if the current memory loss program services provide enough support …

Increasing Colorectal Cancer Screening Rates In The Psychiatric Inpatient Unit, Diane R. Ventura

Master's Projects and Capstones

Increasing Colorectal Cancer Screening Rates in the Psychiatric Inpatient Unit

Abstract

Problem: Colorectal cancer is one of the leading cancer deaths in the United States. The Psychiatric Inpatient Unit has a colorectal cancer screening compliance rate of 40% compared to the statewide average of 80%.

Context: The Psychiatric Inpatient Unit is a 58-bed inpatient intermediate care facility mental health program in Northern California. Upon review of the EMR, most PIU nurses give verbal instructions and patient education on colorectal cancer screenings when due. Still, no printed handout was provided to the patients upon review of the EMR.

Intervention: Review of …

Impact Of Montessori-Based Dementia Programming On Engagement And Affect Of Older Adults With Dementia, Meredith S. Sheppard

Master's Projects and Capstones

The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted the Adult Day Services program and Adult Day programs across the country. As the Adult Day Services program transitions to an in-person format, goals within the organization include developing appropriate programming, increasing group size, and keeping clients entertained. The framework guiding this quality improvement project is Montessori-Based Dementia Programming ® (MBDP). This project aims to increase client engagement, decrease client anxiety, and decrease staff workload. This will be measured by a self-developed staff workload survey, the Menorah-Park Engagement, and the Affect rating scale. Implementation of MBDP at the Adult Day Center did not meet …

Mental Health Benefits Of Physical Activity In Older Adults, Adrian Kurt Zitzmann

Master of Science in Nursing Family Nurse Practitioner

Physical activity is the fountain of youth, strengthening both the physical body as well as the mind, leading to better emotional stability and a general sense of well-being. The population over age 65 is nearing retirement age and are transitioning from a high paced work and family life to a slower and less active “empty nest” lifestyle. Among adults over age 65, will implementing an exercise program for 30 minutes per day increase mental well-being? The benefits of physical activity will be supported by gathering a group of older adults ages 65 and up from a local retirement community to …

Effective Distraction Techniques During Immunizations For Pediatric Patients, Shae Eguchi

Master of Science in Nursing Family Nurse Practitioner

Purpose: Immunizations are the single most common painful procedure pediatric patients experience in the healthcare setting. The repeated pain experienced during immunizations potentiate negative, long-term sequelae for the patient. The primary aim of the literature review was to evaluate the effectiveness of distraction techniques for pain reduction during pediatric immunizations.

Designs and Methods: A literature search was completed to review studies evaluating the effectiveness of distraction techniques on pediatric pain scores as measured by the Wong-Baker FACES pain rating scale. A systematic and critical analyses was conducted on the results of seven randomized controlled trials.

Results: The …

Risk Assessments In The Reduction Of Medication Errors In Older Adults With Polypharmacy, Jacquelyn Blackwell

Symposium of Student Scholars

Abstract

Background: An increasing number of people are on multiple medications which is referred to as polypharmacy. Research has shown that polypharmacy increases the risk of adverse events related to medication errors, especially among elderly patients who are more sensitive to the effects of medication due to physiologic changes that occur due to aging. Information also exists on interventions that may decrease the likelihood of medication errors. However, there is a lack of research on the success of said interventions in preventing medication errors. This project aims to identify, develop, implement, and evaluate the effectiveness of the proposed interventions, …

Evidence-Based Best Practice For Transitions Of Care: A Policy Review On Medication Reconciliation Standards, Lovelyn Chizoba Ogbennah

Student Scholarly Projects

Practice Problem: Medication reconciliation (MR) is crucial in care transitions among healthcare facilities. Developing evidence-based discharge planning strategies, improving communication, optimizing electronic health record intelligence interoperability, and stakeholder engagement will promote a better transition process for patients and healthcare providers.

PICOT: The PICOT question that guided this project was: In an urban-based adult skilled nursing facility, how does an evidence-based structured review, and revision of current MR policy and procedures, compared to the existing MR policy, affect the clarity of the process for communication between clinicians during transitions of care over a 10-week review cycle?

Evidence: Fifteen …

The Emerging Epidemic Of Type 2 Diabetes And Obesity Amongst Young Children, Juliana Morales

Nursing | Senior Theses

Background:

In the past years childhood obesity has increased tremendously and currently ⅓ of children in the United States are obese today. Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes are illnesses that can later on lead to more severe health complications when as a child enters adulthood. Children who are obese have a greater risk of developing Type 2 diabetes, and currently more than 80% of children who already are diagnosed with Type 2 diabetes are obese. In school and often by health care providers we are told daily physical activity and healthy diet are the best ways to maintain optimal health, …

Factors Impacting Organ Transplant Outcomes, Katelyn Grubich

Nursing | Senior Theses

Organ transplants are crucial to the survival of those on the receiving end. With medicine advancing, so has transplantation. Health care providers are becoming more aware of the strategies necessary to prolong the transplanted organ and how to obtain better outcomes. Heart, lungs, kidney, liver, pancreas, and some where more than one organ are involved, are the types of organ transplants performed.

Providing patients information will allow them to be a part of their treatment and can help to ease their anxiety knowing what is being performed and what can be expected. Health care providers must ensure that patients and …

An Interprofessional Prediabetes And Diabetes Self--Management Education Quality Improvement Project Among Vulnerable Populations At A Tuberculosis Hospital, Robert Saul Castro Natal

Doctor of Nursing Practice

Background. Patients greatly benefit from diabetes self-management education (DSME) as it boosts knowledge and self-efficacy, decreases body weight, fasting blood sugar, and hemoglobin A₁C levels, and improves overall health outcomes in a cost-effective manner. Unfortunately, many individuals with prediabetes and diabetes who qualify for DSMEs do not attend these classes nor receive sufficient prediabetes and diabetes support elsewhere to attain guideline recommended metrics. However, individuals from vulnerable populations and without DSME education experience disproportionate diabetes-related complications worsening health outcomes. Aims: Increase general prediabetes and diabetes knowledge, facilitate behavior change, improve glycemic, metabolic, and lipid values, and increase …

Addressing Obstacles In Following Prescribed Medication Regimens In Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus, Cristina Sarro

Doctor of Nursing Practice

Background. Type 2 diabetes is the ninth leading cause of death in the United States. Micro/macro vascular complications are common in diabetes. Purpose. To implement an evidence-based protocol addressing obstacles for patients with type 2 diabetes in following their prescribed medication regimens to reduce glycosylated hemoglobin levels. Evidence. Failure to follow treatment plans increases diabetes complications. Perceptions and complexities of treatment plans, side effects of therapies, and cost contribute to patients not taking their medications as prescribed. Goals. To increase the number of patients with type 2 diabetes who follow their prescribed medication regimen and reach their targeted glycosylated hemoglobin. …

Exploring Parent Adverse Childhood Event Influence On Offspring Weight And Development, Angela Wurzer

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

Background: The purpose of this literature review is to explore the impact of parental adverse childhood events on weight and development in their offspring. This includes occurrences of offspring obesity, delays in social and cognitive development, and secondary factors that could have affected development or weight in childhood. Purpose: To support a more holistic and trauma-informed approach to nursing care, a systematic review was conducted examining the relationship between parent ACEs and offspring development and health status. Method: A literature review was conducted over 20 peer reviewed articles found on CINAHL Complete, PubMed and MEDLINE (Ebsco) databases. Results: A summary …

Assessment Of Veteran Satisfaction With Telehealth Services During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Rhonda Kay Howard

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Abstract

With the advent of the COVID-19 public health emergency in the United States, many U.S. veterans were unable to maintain their usual office visits due to safe access concerns. Patients were strongly encouraged to maintain their healthcare needs at home by utilizing online technology resources like telehealth services with their healthcare providers. Providing excellent healthcare services for veterans during COVID-19 became a challenge for primary care providers at many veteran healthcare organizations. Since little was known about the satisfaction of veteran clients with healthcare management using virtual care during the pandemic, this formative program evaluation was designed to survey …

Blind Spot: Implicit Bias In Health Care And Its Awareness Among Nursing Students At The University Of Southern Mississippi, Debora Skaliks

Doctoral Projects

While prejudice and bias are eminent topics in our society, implicit bias or unconscious bias is not as easily detected. Even though implicit bias may be a familiar concept to many, numerous healthcare workers frequently do not recognize the extent of harm such biases can impose on patients' health and outcomes. The Blind Spot DNP project exposed in this research paper explores the relentless question of the correlation between implicit bias awareness, implicit bias education, and its impact on health care. This Doctor of Nursing Project (DNP) project aimed to analyze whether implicit bias education and testing could increase unconscious …

Optimizing Diabetes Self-Management Using Continuous Glucose Monitoring And Improving The Transition Of Care For Adult Patients Discharged From The Hospital, Nikki Rose Angeles

Doctor of Nursing Practice

Background: Diabetes mellitus is a chronic medical condition that affects more than 34 million Americans (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 2020). The financial impact of diabetes is significant. Americans spend $327 billion on direct medical costs to treat the disease and its associated complications (American Diabetes Association, 2018). The management of diabetes requires a multidisciplinary approach that involves healthcare providers, diabetes self-management support resources, and a high level of commitment from the patient. Patients with diabetes discharged from the hospital often receive fragmented and inconsistent information about managing their health issues. As they transition from hospital to home, their …