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Eyeon Ethics: New Technology Standards for Social Work: Ethical Implications
No full textSocial workers are well aware that technological innovations, especially digital technology, have changed the nature of social work practice. When Bill Gates and Paul Allen founded Microsoft in 1975, social work was more than three-quarters of a century old, yet no one practicing then could have forecast the profound impact that computer software and related technology would have on the profession during the ensuing decades
Examination of a MIDI Wind Controller for use in wind performance research
Get PDFMIDI wind controllers (MWCs) have existed for over 20 years, but their use as a tool in wind instrument research has received little attention. The purpose of this investigation was to examine the validity and practicality of using an MWC in wind performance research. Validity was examined by determining the consistency between performances on an MWC and on a clarinet or saxophone. Practicality was assessed by determining the duration of practice time by single reed players on an MWC. Following a pilot study involving four clarinettists and two saxophonists, nine participants practised and performed warm‐ups, scales, and a melodic excerpt on an MWC for four days. Performances were analysed for warm‐up time, practice time, pitch accuracy, and duration. Warm‐up and practice times were reasonable relative to total study session durations. Results indicated MWCs are a practical and valid proxy in research for saxophonists. For clarinettists without saxophone experience, appropriate musical tasks are limited to playing passages in the key of C. Areas of research that could benefit from the use of MWCs are dynamics, micro‐timing, and music‐ motor learnin
Commencement Program 2015
Get PDFThis commencement program is for baccalaureate and advanced degrees.https://digitalcommons.ric.edu/commencement_programs/1127/thumbnail.jp
A Comparrison of Two Emergency Departments
Get PDFUrosepsis accounts for approximately 25% of all cases of sepsis in the developed world. The mortality from urosepsis is high and the financial burden is exorbitant. Research has established that a patient’s survivability from sepsis is inversely proportional to time to antibiotic administration. The initial care of patients with urosepsis often occurs in the chaotic setting of the Emergency Department and obtaining a urine specimen is a key element of patient care. The purpose of the project was to compare two emergency departments door-to-urine time with a focus on urine procurement technique. Urine procurement may occur by straight catheterization, Quik ®catheterization, indwelling urinary catheterization, or mid stream clean catch collection. One department has access to Quik ®catheterization technology that is unavailable to the other department. Exclusion criteria are patients already diagnosed with UTI and patients taking antibiotics on arrival to the emergency room. A retrospective chart review was conducted on 60 records. Data collected included gender, age, chief concern, method of urine procurement, door-to-urine collection time, door-to antibiotic administration time and urinalysis results. Results showed that catheterization was not always faster than midstream clean catch collection. There were an insufficient number of Quik ®catheterizations performed during the time frame of the study to establish a link between the technology and expedited urine collection or antibiotic administration. The study does suggest that greater awareness and more research is needed concerning care of the uroseptic patient in the ED
Moral Distress
Get PDFMoral distress is a common but frequently overlooked concept in the nursing profession, though not exclusive to nursing. Many professionals experience this distress, but nurses encounter this phenomenon more often than other professions. Moral distress can cause many physical and emotional symptoms that affect how a person perceives satisfaction in his/her profession. These include anxiety, fear, frustration, feeling of powerlessness, poor sense of safety and security, nursing turnover, and nursing professionals leaving the profession. This project targeted medical-surgical nurses and aimed to provide them with education to identify moral distress as well as appropriate coping skills that may be used to deal with the moral situation. The AACN Rise Above Moral Distress education plan, which uses the 4 A’s of Ask, Affirm, Assess and Act, was utilized for the staff education sessions. Nurses on the unit believed that they knew how to define moral distress, identify moral distress situations, have institutional support services, and are able to be a support resource to co-workers to help identify moral distress situations Comparison of pre-post surveys showed a 40% increase in knowledge, a 30% increase in moral distress confidence and a 15% increase in co-worker support confidence. Institutions often lack required employee education for identifying ethical and moral distress situations or the appropriate coping skills to be utilized. Training on dealing with ethical situations and development of uniform coping skills are needed. Recommendation from this study focused on the need for increased training on moral distress in specific areas
Neuroscience Nurses\u27 Perceptions of the Barriers to Identifying and Treating Pain in Acutely Brain-Injured Adult Patients
Get PDFPain management for the critically ill adult can be daunting. Numerous factors contribute to this challenging process including altered level of consciousness (LOC), inability to speak, life support measures, family input, level of sedation, paralyzing agents, restraints, cognitive impairment, and numerous other factors. The current practice related to pain management in the neurologically critically ill adult patient population is limited by inadequate pain scales, altered neurological status, and atypical pain-associated behaviors. Additionally, nurses are challenged by unclear practice guidelines. The critical care nurse is required to assess and manage pain, as well as implement specific interventions based on the patient’s exhibiting characteristics or behaviors. The purpose of this study was to explore the neuroscience nurses’ perception of the barriers to identifying and treating pain in the acutely brain-injured adult patient. Participants were registered nurses working on a Neurocritical Care Unit. The methodology included two short answer questions and 15 Likert format questions rating the frequency of specific barriers. Nurses reported declining neurological status and subjective assessment tools as the most frequently seen barriers to pain assessment and management. Development of pain assessment measures in the brain-injured acutely ill adult patient continues to be important. The need for nurse-driven research to explore alternate measures to identify pain in the neurological patient is indicated. Implications for advanced practice are discussed
A Policy Analysis of the Provisions of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act Related to Access to Primary Care for Older Adults
Get PDFThis paper begins with a comprehensive literature review of health care around the globe, health care in America, and the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (ACA). A problem has emerged from the ACA, in which it is unclear if the health care workforce is prepared to take care of all insured Americans, which now includes a large population of newly insured under the ACA. Primary care and the elderly population are a focus, as primary care is most affected by the ACA, and the aging population is growing and will continue to grow. The ACA policy is analyzed using Russell and Fawcett’s The Conceptual Model of Nursing and Health Policy Revisited (2005) and McLaughlin & McLaughlin’s Policy Analysis Process (2007). Policy recommendations are suggested based on evidence-based research
Antecedents of Career Commitment in Entrepreneurs
Get PDFEntrepreneurship has played a key role and gained much attention during the last decade in the US and world economy. That should not come as a surprise since every business started small and most grew out of nothing to become big players in the business market, whether that was five or one hundred years ago. Many billionaires and millionaires built their fortune through entrepreneurial endeavors, which is motivating young students and professionals to try and fast track their way to financial freedom through entrepreneurship. This study explored the factors behind an entrepreneur’s commitment and examine antecedents that cause career commitment among entrepreneurs. To do so, a survey was conducted that focused on five constructs that were analyzed in terms of Career Commitment, General Self-Efficacy, Career Satisfaction, Career Identity and Career Orientation. To examine these variables, a sample size of 4,508 alumni from a mid-sized university located in the northeast of the USA was used. Findings are presented and discussed
What\u27s the Sense in Nonsense Word Fluency Probes?
Get PDFA major focus of education in the United States has been for “optimal” literacy instruction for all students. To accomplish this goal, major initiatives have centered upon the early identification and prevention of reading difficulties. To this end, professionals in the field are using numerous literacy programs and assessments to promote optimal literacy instruction. One of these assessment programs is the Dynamic Indicators of Basic Early Literacy Skills (DIBELS). Across the United States, over 2,000,000 students are administered the DIBELS Nonsense Word Fluency probe each year. The purpose of this study is to reflect on teacher perceptions and experiences with this commonly utilized yet often-misunderstood assessment.
This study hopes to shed light on whether or not teachers who utilize the NWF probe believe it helps to promote optimal literacy instruction for students in their classrooms. By talking to educators who have experience with this assessment in a semi-structured interview style, I will gain more information and insight on this topic
Overdose Education and Naloxone Distribution: Implementation in the Acute Care Setting
Get PDFThe number of opioid related overdose deaths has increased significantly over the past ten years. In order to combat this problem, many drug treatment programs have implemented Overdose Education and Naloxone Distribution programs as a harm reduction technique. While these programs are fairly new, initial research demonstrated effective reduction in the number of opioid overdose related deaths. The risk of overdose deaths increases when an opioid addicted person is abstinent for a period of time and loses tolerance. Individuals who have been incarcerated, completed inpatient detoxification, or who have been admitted into an acute care setting face the risk of losing tolerance as a result of being opiate-free for a period of time. This decrease in tolerance significantly increases the risk of overdose when they resume using opioids. The purpose of this program was to develop and implement an educational program on the epidemic of opioid overdose and the safe administration of Naloxone by lay people. This program was aimed at Registered Nurses working on an inpatient medical/surgical telemetry unit within a small, academic medical center. A needs assessment was performed and a 20 minute educational program was offered during a scheduled staff meeting. Pre and post surveys based on knowledge content were collected and results were analyzed. Program evaluation was conducted in order to define the strengths and weaknesses of the developed program. Conclusions and implications for APRN practice were presented to the organization’s Nurse Practice Council as well as Rhode Island College