Assessing Student Empathy for Hemodialysis Patients

Hemodialysis is a treatment process utilized by kidney patients to filter their blood. These patients are required to undergo an intensive regimen including hemodialysis treatments multiple times per week lasting 3-5 hours each. As a result of hemodialysis, patients experience decreased autonomy, freedom, and independence. An estimated 50% of these patients do not adhere to their treatment regimen. Patients on hemodialysis may be more compliant to their treatment if they are satisfied with the level of care and empathy they perceive from their healthcare providers. Currently there is no literature measuring empathy levels of healthcare professionals or students towards patients on hemodialysis. Examining student empathy levels toward this patient population provides a good representation of future healthcare professional empathy levels. Attitudes developed during school impact the future of patient-focused healthcare and ultimately, patient outcomes. The objectives of this study include: to determine the factors influencing medical, nursing, and pharmacy students; to determine empathy levels for medical, nursing, and pharmacy students; and to design and implement an intervention based on determined factors to increase student empathy in pharmacy students. This study will be conducted in two phases. The first phase involves contacting different medical, nursing, and pharmacy schools in Ohio. We will assess medical, nursing, and pharmacy student’s empathy towards patients on hemodialysis. A survey will be created consisting of the Kiersma Chen Empathy Scale (KCES) to assess empathy and questions addressing factors influencing student empathy. An educational intervention will then be developed in the second phase based on phase one results. The intervention will be implemented in Cedarville University’s School of Pharmacy second year professional students. A pre-post test will be administered to these pharmacy students in order to evaluate the effectiveness of intervention in increasing their empathy levels. Data from phase one will be exported from Qualtrics software to IBM SPSS 22® for statistical analysis. Analysis will be performed to determine possible factors influencing student empathy and compare difference between students in medical, nursing, and pharmacy health professions

Survey of Community Pharmacy Customers’ Medication Storage and Disposal Methods

Many people store medications in bathrooms, which provide a moist, humid environment that speeds up the breakdown process of medications. The proper way to store medicines is in a cool, dry place out of the reach of children. Every year medications are also disposed of improperly presenting a risk to both humans and the environment. About one-third of all sold medications are unused. The most common ways patients dispose of medications in the United States are flushing down the toilet or sink, and throwing them away. Because of this pharmaceuticals have been found in groundwater, and drinking water proving hazardous to both humans and ecosystems. In Congress today, both the Drug Free Water Act and the Safe Drug Disposal Act have been proposed to limit the disposal of pharmaceuticals in sewage systems, and provide the means of controlled substance disposal through take-back programs. In February 2007 the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy (ONDCP) established guidelines for the disposal of prescription medications. ONDCP guidelines are: take unused, unneeded or expired medications out of the original container, mix with an undesirable substance (such as coffee grounds), securely seal in impermeable containers, such as sealable bags, and throw into the trash. ONDCP recommends only flushing if the label or patient information specifies to do so. Taking advantage of community pharmaceutical take-back programs is highly encouraged

Laura Farleman

https://digitalcommons.cedarville.edu/white_coat_ceremony_gallery_2014/1102/thumbnail.jp