Occupational and Environmental Health Nursing Commons^™

Hidden Heroes: Tales From Caregivers, Part 4, Singapore Management University

Social Space

As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to unleash its effects on a global scale, most of us are glued to the news and social media for updates, and bracing ourselves for the impact of the coronavirus on our countries, communities and families. In the face of such uncertainty, it's only normal to feel anxious and afraid. However, if you're holed up at home letting your worries and fears get the better of you, it may be time to slow down and steer yourself into a calmer headspace.

Increasing Healthy Lifestyle Behaviors In Cargo Drivers, Ronda L. Bell

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this project was to examine the extent to which lifestyle behaviors of transportation drivers in North Texas can be improved with health education. This research study was conducted to examine the health behaviors of transportation drivers as a result of an educational partnership between nursing and the transportation industry. The goal was to improve healthy lifestyles through education to decrease chronic illness and comorbid conditions of a significantly at-risk occupational population. The impact of this education was immediate and verified with quantitative measurement and statistical analysis. Results demonstrated that after nurse-led health education, transportation drivers reported significant …

New Nurse Graduate Mentoring: An Early Implementation Program, Stacy Inman

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

Mentoring of new nurse graduates is an opportunity for our future nurses to grow and evolve. This concept is growing in popularity and has proven effective in retention of new nurses as well as improved staff satisfaction. Many mentoring programs for new nurse graduates begin at one year of employment, which leaves open the crucial turning point of transitioning from academia to professional practice. New nurse graduates are vulnerable at this stage of transition and an effective mentoring relationship can help the new graduate gain confidence in the profession of nursing.

Gratitude Journaling As Intervention To Combat Nurse Burnout In Cardiac Surgery Intensive Care Nurses, Melinda Simpson

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

As a practicing registered nurse in the intensive care setting, this researcher witnessed an episode of burnout characterized by a public meltdown, crying, and yelling. This sparked an interest in an intervention to combat nurse burnout. Literature was found on gratitude which has been found to increase resiliency. An increase in resiliency, in various populations, has been found to decrease perceived stress and feelings of burnout. This researcher investigated the use of gratitude journaling for 21 days as means to decrease perceived stress and feelings of burnout while increasing gratitude and resiliency. The PSS, GQ, BRS, & BBI tools were …

Correlational Impact Of Workload, Teamwork And Retention Rate For Clinical Nursing Units, Phillip J. Nutter

Master of Science in Nursing Theses and Projects

Healthcare organizations face an impending shortage of over one million nurses. Staff turnover adds costs to healthcare and decreases the morale of the unit. Teamwork has been shown to be related to engagement as engagement has been shown to be related to retention. Understanding how teamwork mitigates increasing workload at the unit level is critical to reducing turnover at the nursing unit level. This research explored relationships between teamwork and productivity and teamwork and retention rates for nurses. The Neuman Systems Model was used as the framework to guide this retrospective correlational analysis with teamwork as a flexible line of …

Nurse Migration And The Effect On Source Country, Taylor Lane

Student Research Poster Presentations 2020

Even though there are some positive effects on source country of nurse migration, nurse migration has led to a severe shortage of nurses in source country which has led to decreased health and wellness in the source country.

Biopsychosocial Variables Associated With The Development Of Chronic Low Back Pain In Healthcare Workers, Jena Pauli

Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Purpose: Worldwide the incidence and prevalence of acute low back injury with pain (ALBIP) is increasing in healthcare workers (HCW). Approximately 27% of ALBIP result in chronic low back pain (CLBP). The primary aim of this study was to identify biopsychosocial factors that contribute to the development of CLBP. A secondary aim was to examine the predictive value of reliable and valid screening instruments to identify individuals at highest risk for CLBP.

Significance: Low back pain is the second most commonly reported pain condition in the United States, one of the leading causes of sick leave and …

Residential Radon Exposure, Its Contribution To Lung Cancer, And Social Determinants Of Radon Testing, Stacy Stanifer

Theses and Dissertations--Nursing

Lung cancer is a highly preventable form of cancer. Cigarette smoking is the leading cause of lung cancer followed by radon gas exposure and exposure to secondhand smoke. Kentucky leads the nation in both incidence and mortality from lung cancer. Tobacco use in Kentucky continues to be a major public health concern as nearly one-quarter of adults report current tobacco use and just over one-third of Kentucky homes with children lack rules which prohibit smoking in the home. Radon, a colorless, odorless radioactive gas, occurs naturally from the decay of uranium found in rocks and soil and is harmful when …

Intention To Stay Among Nurses In Ministry Of Public Health, Thailand: A Cross-Sectional Survey, Rata Srisa-Art

Chulalongkorn University Theses and Dissertations (Chula ETD)

A cross-sectional survey designed to investigate intention to stay (ITS) of nurses (RNs) in public hospitals under the Ministry of Public Health (MOPH) and to compare the intention to stay among nurses in various hospital types of care delivery of organizational characteristics, nurse characteristics, managerial characteristics, and work characteristics. The multi-stage sampling technique was used to recruit 1,524 nurses from in-patient units of 59 public hospitals under MOPH. Four instruments were used, namely: Nurse Characteristics and Socio-Demographic Data Form; Management Factors Questionnaire; Job Diagnostic Survey; and Intention to Stay Scales. All instruments were examined for content validity and reliability. The …

Evaluation Of The Impact Of An Educational Intervention Aimed At Improving Tuberculosis Infection Control Knowledge Among Health Care Workers In A Military Treatment Facility: A Quality Improvement Project, Allen C. Potter

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports (ETD)

Background: Florida (FL) is one of the top five states in the nation for Tuberculosis (TB) infections. A majority of new infections can be found in the minority populations which represents 78% of all TB infections in the state. A combination of TB rates in FL, Orlando located 60 miles away and a transient population who frequently deploys worldwide to austere locations may result in an increased risk of acquiring TB. Literature suggests Health Care Providers (HCPs) obtain training regarding TB Infection Control (TB-IC). The Patrick AFB Military Treatment Facility (MTF) lacked a TB Infection Control (TB-IC) plan. Objective: The …

Compounding Effects Of Reducing Nurse Burnout And How It Can Produce An Increase In Patient Safety And Satisfaction, Alexander Mua

Master's Projects and Capstones

The reduction of nurse burnout has shown to have an increase in patient satisfaction and quality of care. It also has shown a decrease in patient-related or sentinel events. Accordingly, with the reduction of nurse burnout, there has also been a reduction of compassion fatigue. This project has illuminated the benefits of acuity-based caseload at the micro-level, including the cost-effective nature of overtime pay, including HCHAPS benefit score. The method of obtaining, planning, and implementing was based on the Plan, Do, Study, Act (PDSA), which required collaboration amongst multiple disciplines, groups, departments, and executives. The process and goals concluded to …

Burnout, Depression And Suicide Prevention For Nursing Staff In High-Intensity Settings, April Ritchie

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Nurses working in high-intensity settings experience burnout at higher rates than in other nursing areas. Burnout in healthcare is a problem estimated as high as 70% by the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality. Burnout can lead to depressive symptoms, which can lead to suicidal ideation in affected healthcare providers, which makes early identification and treatment of utmost importance to the mental and physical wellbeing of these nurses.

The purpose of this project is to examine burnout in nursing staff working in high-intensity areas of the hospital in order to help identify burnout and/or depressive symptoms before they lead to …

Coaching Nurse Leaders In Conflict Management And Team Building To Improve Retention, Jeanette Black

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

Abstract

Problem: Retention of assistant nurse managers (ANMs) was identified as a concern from interviews with executive leadership and ANMs employed at a large hospital within a Northern California integrated health system. The nurse leader orientation training was reviewed, with gaps identified in conflict management and team building.

Context: The attrition rate of U.S. nurse managers in 2010 was 8.3%, higher than executive nurse leaders, with replacement costs equal to 75% - 125% of a nurse manager’s salary (Loveridge, 2017). Employee turnover and dissatisfaction due to conflict can have detrimental effects on retention, productivity, morale, and quality of patient care. …

Evaluating Controlled Substance Documentation In An Electronic Medical Record, Delora Brooks

Dissertations

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) directives issued in 2016 gave guidelines for safely prescribing opiates; however, primary source discussions about methods used for documenting opioid and controlled substance monitoring within an electronic medical record (EMR) are limited (Hussain, Nelson, Polston & Zheng, 2019). This leaves individual providers to determine the appropriate way to document. Inconsistent documentation may not protect providers or organizations from regulatory, civil or criminal liability. As stated by Raveesh, Nayak & Kumbar (2016), “The best way to handle medico-legal issues is by preventing them”. Even with the advent and widespread use of EMRs, documentation …

Implementation Of A Self-Care And Wellness Educational Program Addressing Job Stress Among Child Protective Service Workers, Natonya Murray

Doctoral Projects

Job stress attributed to secondary exposure to trauma and the high work demands put child protective service workers at high risk of developing physical and psychological health problems. The purpose of the project was to develop and implement a self-care and wellness educational program addressing job stress among child protective service workers (CPS) guided by Substance Abuse and Mental Health Science Administration’s (SAMSHA, n.d.b) educational toolkit, Promoting Staff Wellness and Preventing Vicarious Trauma and other Work Force Concerns, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s (CDC, 2019c) section on Adverse Childhood Experiences, and the National Council for Community Behavioral …

Reducing The Number Of Falls In On Lok Participants By Enhancing Homecare Services, En Zhu

Nursing and Health Professions Faculty Research and Publications

Falls in elderly are one of the major health concerns in the US. They comprise up to 80% of the key risk factors for injuries in the elderly in the US (Spears, Roth, Miake-Lye, Saliba, Shekelle, & Ganz, 2013). The project aims at reduction of falls among the elderly participants in On Lok program. Based on the findings of the literature review and observations conducted, the proposed intervention to address the practice gap will involve emphasizing the need for carrying the mobility devices, such as canes or walkers, along with clearing the participants’ home environment from hazards. The anticipated measure …

Getting To Zero: Creating An Infrastructure To Support Fall Prevention In A Medical–Surgical Unit, Krys Elgarico

Master's Projects and Capstones

Problem: Hospital falls are a growing national patient safety concern that cause anxiety, pain, distress, serious injuries, and increased health care utilization. Despite the presence of a well-developed falls prevention protocol since 2017. Internal data from an inpatient medical-surgical telemetry (MST) unit indicate the largest number of fall-related events among the hospital’s departments.

Context: Practice improvement project was initiated in a 217-bed community hospital to determine barriers and potential success factors. This MST is a dynamic, 48-bed unit providing care to mainly geriatric patients who require continuous telemetry monitoring and complex medical, trauma, and surgical services. Senior leaders in the …

Tuberculosis, Jessica Puri

Nursing Student Class Projects (Formerly MSN)

Tuberculosis (TB) is a curable disease that claims the lives of millions each year. TB is an airborne disease spread by inhaling droplets of the tubercle bacillus. There are two different types of TB related conditions; latent TB infection and active TB disease. During latent TB, an individual inhales droplets of tubercle bacillus but the immune system can fight off this infection. However, once droplets of tubercle bacillus penetrate the alveoli, and colonization of droplets multiply, latent TB transitions into active TB disease (Katanekwa & Dahlback, 2016, p. 9). TB is typically found in the lungs but can also develop …

Just Culture: It's More Than Policy, Linda Ann Paradiso, Nancy Sweeney

Publications and Research

Any healthcare organization’s top priority is effective and safe care. Despite this, medical error is the third-leading cause of death in the US. Hospitals are imperfect systems where nurses have competing demands and are forced to improvise and develop workarounds. Errors rarely occur in a vacuum, rather they’re a sequence of events with multiple opportunities for correction. Clinical nurses can have a significant impact on reducing errors due to their proximity to patients. When errors are identified, the events and impact on safe care need to be shared. Just culture is a safe haven that supports reporting. In a just …

Patient Perception Of Fall Risk And High Fall Risk Screening Scores, Nicole D. Pena

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of the study was to describe the relationship between patient

perception of fall risk and high fall risk screening scores.

Background: Despite mandated government regulations and multiple hospital

interventions, falls are the most prevalent adverse event among hospitalized patients and

are the leading driver of health care costs, amounting to over $30 billion each year with

projections to double by 2030. Recently, perception was identified as a major component

in preventing falls. A dearth of research examines the relationship between a patient’s

perceived risk for falls and standardized fall screening scores.

Methods: A descriptive correlational design with …