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Reclaiming Data: A Participatory Action Research Study to Empower Educators
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Currently, the day-to-day data collection and analysis work of teachers is often only deemed valuable if it is easily observed and quantitatively recorded. Teachers are asked to produce results with an incomplete set of tools and are then personally blamed — instead of blame being placed on the structural system — when the desired results don’t manifest. This participatory action research (PAR) study challenged the status quo by asking: What if teachers were empowered to expand their definition of data to include the rich, qualitative data at their fingertips, and what if teachers’ experience and intuition were valued instead of dismissed in making sense of data and determining action steps? Within the PAR structure, the participants (five high school English teachers) acted as co-researchers alongside me to investigate our qualitative data practices over the course of a year. In analyzing the data using thematic coding, we found that our definition of data grew over the course of the study to include more qualitative sources; we also found that we had established tools, processes, and systems for using qualitative data sources for data-driven decision-making (DDDM). By purposefully complicating the popular deficit narrative and highlighting often-ignored or devalued evidence, a different story about student and teacher performance emerged, one that speaks to a need for radical dreaming and symmetry between teacher and student experiences in school. As we engaged in the process, the benefits of PAR to develop our adaptive expertise and data literacy became evident. The implications include professional learning (PL) considerations for educators, such as supporting the expansion of teachers’ definition of data to include qualitative data sources, honoring teachers’ intuition and experience in data sensemaking processes, and using a PAR structure in designing PL
Aromatherapy to Decrease Anxiety in Adults with a Substance Use Disorder in an Intensive Outpatient Program
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Problem: Anxiety is one of the most common mental health diagnoses that often coexists with patients who have a substance use disorder. A gap exists in the literature regarding the use of aromatherapy in specific populations. However, several studies expressed that patients with a substance use disorder would be interested in utilizing complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) options, such as aromatherapy, as another treatment option to aid in decreasing anxiety.
Methods: This research study utilized a descriptive and cross-sectional design. Aromatherapy, using lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) essential oil, was administered for inhalation over one minute after completing a pre-Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale. One hour later, a post-Hamilton Anxiety Rating Scale was conducted. The Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 Item was also utilized at the initial and final intensive outpatient program sessions. The data collected was focused on anxiety levels in response to the inhalation of lavender (Lavandula angustifolia) essential oil.
Results: After six weeks of data collection, there were eight participants enrolled in the study (n = 8). After the inhalation of lavender essential oil, there was a statistically significant decrease in anxiety levels, based on the comparison of the mean pre-HAM-A scores and the mean post-HAM-A scores. The initial and final GAD-7 assessments did not have an equal number of participants, which resulted in a non-statistically significant decrease in anxiety levels.
Implications for Practice: The use of CAM therapies that are easy to implement, cost-effective, and evidence-based can help reduce anxiety in various settings and populations when there is a greater need for mental health support
Navigating the Challenges of Psychosociological and Spiritual Distress of Oncology Patients
No full textAbstract
Problem: The impact of a cancer diagnosis is multifaceted, affecting all aspects of the patient\u27s social, financial, physical, and psychological well-being. Related literature states that the cancer experience can decrease mental well-being, spark new-onset mental health conditions, and increase mortality rates. Cancer patients often experience distress that goes underreported. This quality improvement project aims to educate, implement, and use best practice guidelines for distress management to perform and evaluate the impact of initiating routine distress screening using the National Comprehensive Cancer Network (NCCN) Distress Thermometer on adult oncology patients with hematological cancer diagnoses.
Methods: This quality improvement project utilized a descriptive and cross-sectional design with retrospective chart reviews. The electronic health record was searched for patients who matched the study criteria for follow-up office visits three months prior to the implementation of the intervention to assess a baseline understanding of screening and referral practices within the clinic. Following the intervention of routine distress screenings utilizing the NCCN Distress Thermometer, a secondary chart review was conducted to assess the impact of both routine screenings and interdisciplinary referral practices. A data collection tool was developed and utilized to collect all further demographic data.
Results: The initial chart review, conducted prior to implementation, involved 120 participants (n = 120), revealed that 10% of these patients had been screened using the NCCN Distress Thermometer, and no interdisciplinary referrals were made. The secondary chart review status post-intervention consisted of 145 participants (n = 145), and revealed that 53.1% of this sample was screened. This quality improvement project resulted in a 431% increase in distress screening. However, no interdisciplinary referrals were made.
Implications for Practice: Further research and future endeavors should be explored to promote a more accurate understanding of routine distress screenings and the related impact of interdisciplinary referrals. After the systematic barriers have been addressed, recommendations include employing in-depth clinical education, an electronic screening process, and sitewide implementation to increase the generalizability of future studies
What Factors Impact Teachers’ Beliefs about the Likelihood to Which Their Students with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Can Live on Campus
Full text linkAfter the Higher Education Opportunity Act was passed in 2008, inclusive postsecondary programs for students with intellectual disability (ID) have grown on campuses across the United States. These programs were designed to eliminate barriers that prevent students with intellectual disability from attending college in order to achieve positive employment outcomes and skills to increase independent living. While programs may be designed for those with intellectual disability, individuals may have multiple diagnoses, including intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). The relationship between a student and their secondary teachers can positively impact their future or present a barrier. Using the data from the Higher Education Needs Assessment Survey, which examines the views of special education teachers on inclusive postsecondary programs, this study aims to examine the relationship between specific perceptions of special educators and on-campus housing for students with ID. This study can shed light on the professional development needs of educators
Reimagining Discipline: Elementary School Counselors’ Experiences Implementing and Advocating for Restorative Practices as an Alternative to Exclusionary Discipline
Full text linkSchool counselors are positioned as leaders and advocates within their school communities, playing a critical role in promoting equitable practices and systemic change. Despite decades of research indicating the harmful effects of exclusionary discipline, this approach continues to be implemented in schools across the United States. Emerging literature has indicated restorative practices as an alternative discipline approach that promotes equity, reduces disproportionality in school discipline, and fosters a positive school climate. This research focused on the experience of elementary school counselors advocating for and implementing restorative practices as an alternative to exclusionary discipline. Through a hermeneutic phenomenological and social constructivist framework, 11 elementary school counselors engaged in semi-structured interviews sharing their unique experiences in advocating for and implementing restorative practices. Thematic analysis yielded three overarching themes: (1) Elementary School Counselor Readiness to Implement Restorative Practices, (2) The Elementary School Counselor’s Critical Role in Implementing Restorative Practices: Navigating Barriers Through Action and Advocacy, and (3) The Benefits of Restorative Practices Speak for Themselves. Findings of this study contribute to scholarship by identifying elementary school counselors as leaders in the implementation and advocacy of restorative practices, providing critical context for their role in promoting equitable discipline practices. Implications of this study provide valuable strategies and techniques for school counselors to effectively advocate for and implement restorative practices within their school communities, as well as, for counselor educators training future school counselors
St. Louis, Missouri’s Gayborhood and Washington, DC’s Black Lives Matter Plaza: Revealing the Healing Potential of Resistance Stories that are Grounded in Place
Full text linkOppressed people resist, even when facing severe consequences for doing so. At the core of systemic oppression—genocide, slavery, racism, and sexism—is a drive to control and dehumanize. Resistance, however, can serve as a powerful act of rehumanization. From enslaved individuals fleeing plantations to LGBTQ+ individuals risking arrest to gather in mid-20th-century bars, resistance reclaims power and autonomy under oppressive regimes. This study applies South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) “four truths” framework—comprising forensic, personal, social, and healing truths—to the interpretation of contested heritage sites. We argue that sites commemorating resistance hold transformative potential for individual and community healing. Using qualitative methods, our research team analyzed interviews, observations, documents, and artifacts through reflexive thematic analysis. We highlight two case sites: a historically LGBTQ+ “gayborhood” in St. Louis, MO, and Black Lives Matter Plaza in Washington, DC. Our findings reveal (a) a framework for interpreting sites of resistance and their healing potential; (b) the value of storytelling that honors complex, painful histories; and (c) a call to shift interpretive practices toward vulnerable, inclusive truth-telling. This work is presented through both a scholarly article and a creative nonfiction disquisition. By centering the voices of those with lived experiences of oppression and resistance, we underscore the importance of acknowledging painful pasts in heritage interpretation. In doing so, we advocate for interpretive strategies that reclaim humanity, foster healing, and honor the resilience of marginalized communities
Nanoporous Gold Nanoparticles and Model Membrane Systems Applied to the Study of Lipopolysaccharide (LPS)
Full text linkLipopolysaccharide (LPS), a key structural component of Gram-negative bacteria, is a major trigger of sepsis and septic shock, the systemic inflammatory conditions responsible for millions of deaths annually. Even at concentrations as low as 1 ng/mL, LPS can activate the immune system and initiate inflammatory cascades. According to the Global Burden of Disease Study 2017, sepsis accounted for 48.9 million cases globally, with 11 million deaths, emphasizing the urgent need for improved diagnostic and therapeutic strategies.
Accurate and rapid detection of LPS is vital for early intervention and improved clinical outcomes. While traditional detection methods are still widely used, modern biosensing technologies, particularly those employing nanomaterials, offer significant advantages in sensitivity and selectivity. Among these, nanoporous gold nanoparticles (np-AuNPs) are especially promising due to their high surface area, chemical stability, biocompatibility, and ease of surface modification. In this study, we report a simple, solution-phase synthesis of colloidal np-AuNPs via a wet chemical approach. These nanostructures were subsequently utilized to construct a biosensing platform capable of detecting LPS with high sensitivity.
Beyond diagnostics, LPS research plays a crucial role in understanding immune system activation, inflammation, and bacterial pathogenesis. It is also implicated in various conditions, including autoimmune diseases and infections caused by Escherichia coli and Salmonella species. Furthermore, LPS contributes to antimicrobial resistance by acting as a permeability barrier in the outer membrane of Gram-negative bacteria, limiting antibiotic access. By examining how LPS structure and modifications (e.g., lipid additions or protein changes) affect drug resistance, researchers can identify new targets to overcome these defenses. Understanding LPS’s role in resistance mechanisms could help develop strategies to make bacteria more susceptible to existing antibiotics, improving treatment options and combating multidrug-resistant infections.
To investigate biophysical interactions of LPS at the molecular level, we employed model membrane systems, such as monolayers, which simulate biological membranes in a controlled setting. These platforms enabled detailed analysis of how LPS and potential LPS-antagonists engage with membrane lipids and proteins. In particular, we explored the interactions of LPS with various membrane-associated components and a potential LPS-antagonist, AM-12, offering insights into their interactions
Implementing a Turn Team Process to Reduce Hospital-Acquired Pressure Injuries on a Telemetry Unit at a Hospital in the Midwest
Full text linkProblem: Pressure injuries (PI) are localized wounds to the skin and soft tissues that typically result from sustained pressure on specific areas of the body (Zaidi & Sharma, 2024). Hospital-acquired pressure injury (HAPI) refers to pressure injuries that develop while a patient is in the hospital (Rondinelli et al., 2018). PI can cause patients to experience pain, decreased feelings of dignity, increased feelings of depression and anxiety, reduced levels of social activity, difficulty sleeping, and impaired cognitive function (Roussou et al., 2023). The Advanced Cardiac Care Unit (ACCU) at Missouri Baptist Medical Center experienced an increase in HAPI cases: 4 in 2022, 12 in 2023, and 16 in 2024.
Method: This quality improvement project utilized a descriptive, observational design. A turn team process was implemented over an eight-week period. To enhance compliance with the two RN skin assessment, the assessment process was integrated into the turn team program. Additionally, satisfaction surveys were distributed to staff before and after the eight-week implementation to evaluate staff satisfaction with the unit’s previous process for completing every two hour turns and the turn team process. Education on PI were also provided to staff. Data were collected through retrospective chart review.
Results: The pre-implementation phase had a total of four PIs and the post-implementation phase had two acquired PIs. Staff compliance with patient turning increased from 85.25% to 100% and wedge utilization increased from 11.5% to 37.5%. Compliance with completing two RN skin assessment decreased from 96.72% to 95.83%. Survey results showed significant improvements in overall satisfaction, feeling of ease of use, and a feeling of positive contribution to team work with the turn team process
Increasing Access to Asthma Education through Digital Technology and Surveying Preferences of Children and Families
Full text linkAbstract
Asthma is a chronic respiratory condition impacting approximately 4.6 million children, with high rates of uncontrolled cases in Missouri. This quality improvement project aimed to explore the use of a digital media system to provide asthma education to children and families receiving care in a rural pediatric pulmonology clinic aged 6 months- 21 years of age; and to assess preferred media format, priority topics, and knowledge gained from exposure to digital educational materials. Utilizing a prospective cohort design, families completed a pre-survey to identify educational preferences and tailored digital asthma education through the use of Patient Education Genius (PEG). A post-survey measured knowledge retention and satisfaction.
Over the 20-week period, 37 families expressed interest in digital asthma education, 13 completed the pre-survey, and one completed the post-survey. Although statistical analysis was not feasible due to insufficient data, initial data showed strong interest in digital education. Families prioritized areas of learning such as emergency care, trigger identification, and medication administration. Non-cartoon and cartoon media were rated as equally beneficial for learning purposes.
Multiple limitations were observed over the course of this quality improvement study. However, this project indicates digital tools may enhance asthma education. Future research is encouraged with utilization of a large sample size and robust study design to combat observed limitations and evaluate digital media’s true impact on asthma education and disease management within the pediatric population