The modified slash Lindley-Weibull distribution with applications to nutrition data.

This work presents an extension of the slash Lindley-Weibull distribution, of which it can be considered a modification. The new family is obtained by using the quotient of two independent random variables: a two-parameter Lindley-Weibull distribution divided by a power of the exponential distribution with parameter equal to 2. We present the pdf and cdf of the new distribution, analyzing their risk functions.

Perspectives, experiences, and opinions precepting advanced practice registered nurse students.

Background: Significant growth in advanced practice registered nurse (APRN) student placements for clinical practicums have forced APRN preceptors, hospitals, and clinics to restrict the volume of APRN students they can accommodate.

Purpose: Describe the experiences and opinions of APRNs regarding their precepting experiences of APRN students in three main areas; placement antecedents, placement postcedents, and preceptor incentives.

Methods: Quality improvement study conducted via electronic survey that contained quantitative short answer and a qualitative open-ended question of APRNs licensed in the State of REDACTED in June, 2019.

Scope of Practice Barriers for Advanced Practice Registered Nurses: A State Task Force to Minimize Barriers.

Collegial relationships, administrative champions, and persistence are key components to breaking down barriers to advanced practice RN (APRN) practice. This article addresses how Iowa APRNs in a state-sanctioned task force identified barriers for practicing at the top of their licensure in a full practice authority state including defending the right to control the scope of nursing practice in court.

Factors Influencing Diabetes Self-Management Among Medically Underserved Patients With Type II Diabetes.

In this study, researchers compare and contrast issues regarding diabetes self-management between persons in good versus poor glycemic control. The sample comprises low-income racially diverse adults with diabetes from four mid-western community health centers; 44 patients participated in eight focus groups divided by control status (HbA1c of > 9 [uncontrolled] or < 7 [controlled]). Themes common to both groups included the impact of dietary restrictions on social interactions, food cravings, the impact of mental health on self-management, and the importance of formal and informal (friends and family) support.

The cancer pain practice index: a measure of evidence-based practice adherence for cancer pain management in older adults in hospice care.

Various clinical practice guidelines addressing pain assessment and management have been available for several years that pertain, at least to some extent, to older patients with cancer. Nonetheless, systematic evaluations or methodologically sound studies of adherence to pain management practice guidelines within Medicare-certified hospice programs are lacking. As part of a larger translating-research-into-practice pain improvement study involving older patients with cancer in hospice programs, we recognized the need to create a valid and reliable tool that can facilitate critical evaluation of hospice medical records for nurse and physician adherence to pain management guidelines to create a consolidated score for comparative and quality improvement purposes.

Determining Community Provider Practices in Hospices: The Challenges of Documentation.

Documentation is a key factor in supporting consistency and quality of patient care in the hospice setting, however variation among program provider practices, including documentation, were observed during the initial data collection phase of our National Cancer Institute (NCI) funded study, Cancer Pain in Elders: Promoting Evidence-Based Practices (EBPs) in Hospices. The study is a randomized trial to test a multifaceted intervention to promote adoption and maintenance of EBPs for cancer pain management involving 16 Midwestern hospices of varied size and structure. In the face of such variance, and especially in the absence of uniformly adopted outcome measures and documentation standards, quality improvement initiatives in this important and growing healthcare sector will be difficult to manage.

Implementing evidence-based practices: considerations for the hospice setting.

With increased regulation and scrutiny of outcomes, hospice programs are being challenged to consider the implementation of evidence-based practices (EBPs). This study reports findings from hospice director interviews and staff focus groups, which occurred following the completion of a multifaceted translating research into practice (TRIP) intervention designed to promote evidence-based pain management practices. The purpose of this article is to provide background on the use of EBPs, to report facilitators and barriers to overall implementation of pain management EBPs in hospice, and to provide recommendations for hospices interested in increasing the use of EBPs.