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Evaluation and revision of a nursing discharge instruction tool for total knee and hip replacement patients
No full textByington, Kathleen
Nearly a quarter million Americans who are functionally disabled by arthritis choose total knee or hip replacements to improve mobility and comfort. The average length of stay for total joint replacements has gone from 9.4 days in 1990 to 3.6 days in 2009. Patients are going home just as they are beginning to recover. As a result, health care professionals have considerably less time to inform patients about the important self-care steps they need to follow after discharge. Nursing discharge instructions need to be easy to read, informative, complete, and accurate. If patients are unable to read or understand these instructions then complication can occur. Health literacy is a significant problem. Ninety million people have difficulty understanding and using health information. For this Practice-based inquiry project a nonexperimental, descriptive design was used to examine the readability and appropriateness of the nursing discharge instruction tool used for patients that have undergone a total knee or hip replacement. Interviews were conducted with nurses who use this tool when discharging total knee or hip replacement patients. The nursing discharge instruction tool was then analyzed with the AMA guidelines for written patient education material. While the focus of this project was to examine the nursing discharge instruction tool, the broader goal was to identify health literacy guidelines for written patient education material. Data were collected from the interviews conducted with the nursing staff. Information obtained from the interviews were reviewed and analyzed. Characteristics of the nursing discharge instruction tool were compared with AMA health literacy standards. The findings concluded that the nursing discharge instruction tool for total knee or hip replacement patients saves the nurses time and is easy to use, but when compared with the AMA guidelines the nursing discharge instruction tool did not meet the guidelines for written education material. The key recommendation from this project included: revision of the nursing discharge instruction tool that meets health literacy guidelines, implementation of health literacy guidelines at the Midwest academic medical center, initiate a trial program of the new nursing discharge instruction tool and health literacy education for nurses
Evaluating the effectiveness of preventing infections in an intensive care unit using a central line bundle
No full textBay, Linda
The purpose of this study was to determine if implementation of a Central Line Bundle (CLB) in an intensive care unit (ICU) decreased the incidence of catheter related blood stream infections (CRBSI) in the ICU population. Using aggregate data for CRBSIs and CLB compliance rates, a quasi-experimental design with a single interrupted timed series was employed.
This inquiry used an Evidence Based Practice (EBP) model built upon PIRO, a framework for understanding sepsis, to study infections that lead to sepsis in ICU patients. The model was instrumental in understanding how a continuous performance improvement process promotes the reduction of infections. Findings of the study revealed that use of a CLB did not significantly reduce CRBSI rates; however, the relationship between compliance of staff and the CLB components was reviewed to determine how it may have impacted results
Introverts as silent leaders: Indefensible or indomitable?
No full textRichards-Wilson, Stephani
This article examines the power of silence and the leadership potential of introverts. It highlights the author's experience at a group relations conference using the Tavistok method. Her research demonstrates the effectiveness of introverted individuals and the strategic contributions they can make using silence as a tool. Their indominable leadership shows itself in many ways
An analysis of the benefits of an MBA degree as reported by a diverse graduate population of a Southwestern university
No full textRichards-Wilson, Stephani
Although numerous studies have attempted to measure the value of a Master of Business Administration (MBA) degree, most of these studies have concentrated on the extrinsic benefits of the degree, such as compensation and career progression. Furthermore, the majority of these studies have focused on students at elite MBA programs, which have traditionally served a different class of individuals than most MBA programs throughout the country. In an effort to broaden the literature in this area, this study examined both the extrinsic and intrinsic benefits of an MBA degree as self-reported by 638 MBA graduates from the University of San Diego who received their degree between 1975 and 2002. Survey results suggest that this particular graduate population benefited more intrinsically from their degree than extrinsically. Specifically, the three ways that students benefited the most - personal development, increased self-confidence, and enhanced credibility - were all intrinsic benefits, while the top extrinsic benefit - gaining more career options - was a distant fourth among the sixteen benefits measured. In addition, the hierarchical multiple regression analysis revealed that demographic, program-related, and employment variables were all significant determinants of both intrinsic and extrinsic benefits, with program variables explaining the most variation in the set of dependent variables. In terms of the effects of individual variables, Asian, Black, Hispanic, and White MBA graduates, as well those who graduated with Marketing, Supply Chain Management, and Real Estate emphases or from the MBA/MSN program, were more likely to benefit from the degree, while graduates from the MBA/JD program, graduates with more work experience, and graduates now working in government or research and development were less likely to benefit. Taken together, these findings demonstrate the importance of measuring both the intrinsic and extrinsic benefits of an MBA degree in today’s business world. Recommendations for future research include expanding the set of independent variables to include interpersonal relationships in the workplace and at home, extending this work to other non-elite MB A-granting institutions, and finally, testing the robustness of these findings to different (and more favorable) economic climates
Angel at war
No full textRichards-Wilson, Stephani
The General chuckled and kindly replied, "Commander, the gender of your baby is irrelevant. The evils you mentioned earlier are venomous to both. Your son or daughter could attend the Naval Academy, join the Coast Guard, or fly combat aircraft for a living. Mary wants this child more than anything in this world, and she should have the honor of telling you what you want to know. A killjoy, I'm not!"
"But, wait!" the Commander implored.
"Good-bye," said the General. "I have to get ready for the next millennium, but I'll always be with you. Don't give up the ship!
<a href="https://www.immigrantentrepreneurship.org/entries/german-social-entrepreneurs-and-the-first-kindergartens-in-nineteenth-century-america/" target="_blank" title="German social entrepreneurs and the first kindergartens in nineteenth century America" rel="noreferrer noopener">German social entrepreneurs and the first kindergartens in nineteenth century America</a>
No full textRichards-Wilson, Stephani
Two German women, Caroline Louisa Frankenberg and Margarethe Meyer Schurz, are credited with bringing the kindergarten movement to the nineteenth-century United States by opening kindergartens that served children of German immigrants. They conducted classes in the German language and were social entrepreneurs in that they made an innovative, long-term, social impact on the American educational system. Their primary interest was not personal financial gain, but rather the humanistic, social, and educational development of children. As word spread of their efforts, Anglo-American educators took note and grew the movement, establishing English-language kindergartens and kindergarten training schools for teachers. The creation of kindergartens fundamentally changed how Americans thought about the ideal environment for beginning a child’s education.To access this material, please use the URL below
<a href="https://www.immigrantentrepreneurship.org/entries/mathilde-franziska-anneke-neacutee-giesler/" target="_blank" title="Mathilde Franziska Anneke (née Giesler)" rel="noreferrer noopener">Mathilde Franziska Anneke (née Giesler)</a>
No full textRichards-Wilson, Stephani
Mathilde Franziska Anneke was an entrepreneur, lecturer, educator, journalist, writer, and a newspaper editor. She was well educated and a free and independent thinker, interested in political and social reform on behalf of women in both the German lands and the United States.To access this material, please use the URL below
Systematic review of communicating music therapy frameworks : a dialogue about adopting and utilizing theory
No full textCole, Melissa M.
Background: Ideally, music therapists are guided in their work by a framework and they communicate their way of doing music therapy with clarity through a framework. A framework is a theoretical structure found in literature that a therapist uses to make decisions regarding clients, music, and relationships. Underpinnings are the theories that are outside of music therapy that support the framework.
Objective: This systematic review appraised if and how music therapists refer to a framework when describing their work with autistic clients. Key concepts are additionally clarified, primarily: framework and underpinnings, secondarily: lens, integration, and eclecticism.
Methods: A literature search for “music therapy, autism” between 2021-June of 2023 gave 90 initial results. Inclusion criteria were music therapists directly working with autistic clients. Three sorting categories were defined as explicit (framework clearly named, defined, and examples in practice given), implicit (framework unnamed, but clues indicate likely framework) and ambiguous (framework unclear). The explicit and implicit categories met the final inclusion criterion to be studied for themes and examples of framework communication.
Results and Conclusions: In the past 2 years, in 26 articles qualifying for this review of music therapists working with autistic individuals, only 9 articles included reporting of their framework. Roughly 2/3 of publications describing clinical work in this review do not name a framework. The music therapy profession has emerging tendencies in regard to communicating theoretical frameworks for supporting practice. Recommendations for growth in this area are discussed