1,653 research outputs found
An Exploratory Study of Patient Falls
Debate continues between the contribution of education level and clinical expertise in the nursing practice environment. Research suggests a link between Baccalaureate of Science in Nursing (BSN) nurses and positive patient outcomes such as lower mortality, decreased falls, and fewer medication errors. Purpose: To examine if there a negative correlation between patient falls and the level of nurse education at an urban hospital located in Midwest Illinois during the years 2010-2014? Methods: A retrospective crosssectional cohort analysis was conducted using data from the National Database of Nursing Quality Indicators (NDNQI) from the years 2010-2014. Sample: Inpatients aged ≥ 18 years who experienced a unintentional sudden descent, with or without injury that resulted in the patient striking the floor or object and occurred on inpatient nursing units. Results: The regression model was constructed with annual patient falls as the dependent variable and formal education and a log transformed variable for percentage of certified nurses as the independent variables. The model overall is a good fit, F (2,22) = 9.014, p = .001, adj. R2 = .40. Conclusion: Annual patient falls will decrease by increasing the number of nurses with baccalaureate degrees and/or certifications from a professional nursing board-governing body
Coarse grained models of stripe forming systems: phase diagrams, anomalies and scaling hypothesis
Two coarse-grained models which capture some universal characteristics of
stripe forming systems are stud- ied. At high temperatures, the structure
factors of both models attain their maxima on a circle in reciprocal space, as
a consequence of generic isotropic competing interactions. Although this is
known to lead to some universal properties, we show that the phase diagrams
have important differences, which are a consequence of the particular k
dependence of the fluctuation spectrum in each model. The phase diagrams are
computed in a mean field approximation and also after inclusion of small
fluctuations, which are shown to modify drastically the mean field behavior.
Observables like the modulation length and magnetization profiles are computed
for the whole temperature range accessible to both models and some important
differences in behavior are observed. A stripe compression modulus is computed,
showing an anomalous behavior with temperature as recently reported in related
models. Also, a recently proposed scaling hypothesis for modulated systems is
tested and found to be valid for both models studied.Comment: 9 pages, 13 figure
Nature of Long-Range Order in Stripe-Forming Systems with Long-Range Repulsive Interactions
We study two dimensional stripe forming systems with competing repulsive
interactions decaying as . We derive an effective Hamiltonian with
a short range part and a generalized dipolar interaction which depends on the
exponent . An approximate map of this model to a known XY model with
dipolar interactions allows us to conclude that, for long range
orientational order of stripes can exist in two dimensions, and establish the
universality class of the models. When no long-range order is
possible, but a phase transition in the KT universality class is still present.
These two different critical scenarios should be observed in experimentally
relevant two dimensional systems like electronic liquids () and
dipolar magnetic films (). Results from Langevin simulations of
Coulomb and dipolar systems give support to the theoretical results.Comment: 5 pages, 2 figures. Supplemental Material include
The nematic phase in stripe forming systems within the self consistent screening approximation
We show that in order to describe the isotropic-nematic transition in stripe
forming systems with isotropic competing interactions of the Brazovskii class
it is necessary to consider the next to leading order in a 1/N approximation
for the effective Hamiltonian. This can be conveniently accomplished within the
self-consistent screening approximation. We solve the relevant equations and
show that the self-energy in this approximation is able to generate the
essential wave vector dependence to account for the anisotropic character of
two-point correlation function characteristic of a nematic phase.Comment: 8 pages, 4 figure
Switching the Conductance of a Molecular Junction using a Proton Transfer Reaction
A novel mechanism for switching a molecular junction based on a proton
transfer reaction triggered by an external electrostatic field is proposed. As
a specific example to demonstrate the feasibility of the mechanism, the
tautomers [2,5-(4-hydroxypyridine)] and {2,5-[4(1H)-pyridone]} are considered.
Employing a combination of first-principles electronic structure calculations
and Landauer transport theory, we show that both tautomers exhibit very
different conductance properties and realize the "on" and "off" states of a
molecular switch. Moreover, we provide a proof of principle that both forms can
be reversibly converted into each other using an external electrostatic field.Comment: 14 pages, 5 figure
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