Doctor of Philosophy

dissertationComputerized provider order entry (CPOE) is a component of electronic health records (EHR) that has been touted as a crucial means to support healthcare quality and efficiency. The costs of EHR implementation can be staggeringly high, and little literature exists to verify the hypothesized benefits of CPOE and EHRs. The purpose of this study, based on Coyle and Battle's adaptation of the classic Donabedian quality improvement framework, was to evaluate system-wide outcomes after CPOE implementation in a large academic setting. The specific aims were to describe the association between CPOE implementation and (1) mortality rate and (2) length of stay (LOS), controlling statistically for antecedent, structure, and process variables. The study used hierarchical linear modeling to analyze clinical and administrative data from 2.5 years before and 2.5 years after CPOE implementation. Aim 1 analysis included 104,153 hospital visits and aim 2 analysis included 89,818 visits. Two models were created for each analysis, (a) a model with individual patient care units as the unit of analysis and (b) a model with units aggregated by type. LOS decreased 0.9 days per visit in all models. Mortality decreased 1 to 4 deaths per 1000 visits, depending on the model; or 54 to 216 patient lives saved in the postimplementation period. Significant antecedents were patient demographics, insurance type, and scheduled versus emergency admission; structure variables included patient care unit, private room, and palliative care; and process variables included nursing care iv hours and the number of orders placed. Mortality models were variable by patient care unit, and strongly influenced by confounders such as rapid response team or code activation, suggesting the importance for future studies to account for those influences. CPOE was statistically associated with clinically significant improvements in the system-wide outcomes. Controlling statistically for antecedent, structure, and process variables, the analysis found that after the implementation of CPOE, there was a decrease in mortality and LOS. Future studies need to determine how CPOE implementation impacts nursing performance and how CPOE influences the effect of new physician resident arrival on patient outcomes

2022 - The Third Annual Fall Symposium of Student Scholars

The full program book from the Fall 2022 Symposium of Student Scholars, held on November 17, 2022. Includes abstracts from the presentations and posters.https://digitalcommons.kennesaw.edu/sssprograms/1026/thumbnail.jp

Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses

Compiles peer-reviewed research and literature reviews on issues regarding patient safety and quality of care, ranging from evidence-based practice, patient-centered care, and nurses' working conditions to critical opportunities and tools for improvement

Committed to Safety: Ten Case Studies on Reducing Harm to Patients

Presents case studies of healthcare organizations, clinical teams, and learning collaborations to illustrate successful innovations for improving patient safety nationwide. Includes actions taken, results achieved, lessons learned, and recommendations

Applications and Experiences of Quality Control

The rich palette of topics set out in this book provides a sufficiently broad overview of the developments in the field of quality control. By providing detailed information on various aspects of quality control, this book can serve as a basis for starting interdisciplinary cooperation, which has increasingly become an integral part of scientific and applied research

Models and Analysis of Vocal Emissions for Biomedical Applications

The MAVEBA Workshop proceedings, held on a biannual basis, collect the scientific papers presented both as oral and poster contributions, during the conference. The main subjects are: development of theoretical and mechanical models as an aid to the study of main phonatory dysfunctions, as well as the biomedical engineering methods for the analysis of voice signals and images, as a support to clinical diagnosis and classification of vocal pathologies

Models and Analysis of Vocal Emissions for Biomedical Applications

The International Workshop on Models and Analysis of Vocal Emissions for Biomedical Applications (MAVEBA) came into being in 1999 from the particularly felt need of sharing know-how, objectives and results between areas that until then seemed quite distinct such as bioengineering, medicine and singing. MAVEBA deals with all aspects concerning the study of the human voice with applications ranging from the neonate to the adult and elderly. Over the years the initial issues have grown and spread also in other aspects of research such as occupational voice disorders, neurology, rehabilitation, image and video analysis. MAVEBA takes place every two years always in Firenze, Italy. This edition celebrates twenty years of uninterrupted and succesfully research in the field of voice analysis