Strategies to Reduce Employee Turnover in Childcare Centers

Organizations across the United States pay billions of dollars annually to combat employee turnover. Organizations may pay over 250% of a departing employee’s salary. As high employee turnover negatively impacts the profitability of organizations, it is vital childcare center directors have strategies to reduce employee turnover. This qualitative multiple case study explored strategies childcare center directors have used to reduce employee turner. The research participants consisted of 4 purposefully selected childcare center directors of nonfranchised childcare centers in Houston, Texas, with more than 5 years of experience who implemented strategies to reduce employee turnover. The conceptual framework for this study was the job embeddedness theory. Data were collected from semistructured interviews and organizational documents. Data were analyzed using thematic analysis that resulted in the emergence of 4 main themes: the importance of compensation, effective managerial communication, a strong organizational culture, and a rewards and recognition program. Implications for positive social change include the potential for improved employment stability and community development. Sustained employment provides employees with a consistent source of income that gives families disposable funds to spend throughout a community. Additionally, when a greater number of people are employed within a community a larger tax base may be created for local municipalities to invest back into initiatives to improve communities

Influence of Provider Characteristics on Opioid Prescribing Behavior Among Idaho Veterinarians

Opioid addiction and misuse have become widespread in the U.S. over the past decade, causing a rise in opioid related mortality. High opioid prescribing rates have led public health agencies to examine provider prescribing practices. Research has identified provider characteristics such as gender, age, and years of experience are predictive of opioid prescribing in human medical providers. Veterinarians are frequently licensed to prescribe opioids, yet less is known about the prescribing practices of veterinarians. From a public health perspective, it is important to explore the potential connection between veterinary medicine and the opioid epidemic. The current study assessed whether variations in provider characteristics have similar patterns of influence on veterinary prescribing behaviors. Survey participants (n=369, response rate 48%) were veterinarians currently practicing and licensed through the Idaho Board of Veterinary Medicine. A hierarchical multiple regression model was employed using the sum score of opioid prescribing frequency as the dependent variable (F(4, 352) = 8.52, p \u3c 0.05, R2 =.09). Four independent variables (gender, age, years of experience, and opioid education received in veterinary school) predicted provider characteristics. Of the characteristics selected for analysis, younger age and female gender significantly predicted higher opioid prescribing rates. When opioid education was included in the model, only gender remained significant. This study suggests that while physician characteristics can predict opioid prescribing behaviors in human healthcare providers, these characteristics do not seem to have the same influence on opioid prescribing in Idaho’s veterinary population

Authentic Narratives of Successful Pathways to Undergraduate Completion for Black Men

This qualitative narrative study examined the authentic lived experiences of eight Black male participants who successfully completed their college undergraduate degree at a private college in the southeast United States. The participants were recruited via LinkedIn, a professional social media, networking site. It explored family, K-12, co-curricular, and community factors that contributed to the academic success of the participants throughout their educational journey. This study drew upon Harper’s (2012) antideficit theory framing the study from the lens of the positive aspects of their academic experiences rather than focusing on the negative aspects of Black men that graduate college at the lowest rate of any subpopulation. This positive lens structured the one main research question, how did they describe their educational experience as a Black man. This question was followed by a series of open ended, semistructured questions to allow the participants to share their authentic stories. The interviews were conducted via Zoom allowing participants to confidentially share their authentic lived experiences. The eight participants disclosed significant influences leading to three categories or themes: Influential, Systemic, and Personal Investment. These themes emerged from their stories through analysis of the data highlighting the intrinsic and extrinsic support. Recommended actions provided to assist K-12 and college-level administrators in designing strategies for preparing and supporting Black men on their pathway to successful college completion

Arthur Gooch : the political, economic, and social influences that led him to the gallows.

Born in 1908, Arthur Gooch came of age in the prosperous 1920s, but something changed for him and for America in 1930. The socioeconomic depravity and increased media coverage of crimes in the Thirties affected those who lived through them, and, as President Franklin Roosevelt tried to reestablish economic, social, and political balance, Gooch experienced the ills that the Depression had to offer the citizens of Oklahoma. With dust storms destroying parts of the landscape and bandits ruling other regions, Gooch, and others like him, battled against poverty, unemployment, and desperation. Facing a lack of opportunities and constant hunger, many, such as Gooch, turned to a life of crime. In this time of crisis, President Roosevelt, United States (U.S.) Attorney General Homer Cummings, and Bureau of Investigation Director J. Edgar Hoover skillfully used the environment of the Depression and the people's fear of nationwide lawlessness to develop a powerful federal police force, resulting in the expansion of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). One particular unlawful act that influenced the attitudes of the country's citizens was the 1932 kidnapping and death of Charles Lindbergh, Jr., son of the American aviator and hero of the American people. The event horrified the nation and caused congress to pass multiple crime laws, including the Federal Kidnapping Act, popularly known as the Lindbergh Law. Its passage made kidnapping a federal offense. The prosecution and conviction of Bruno Richard Hauptmann, charged with the abduction of the Lindbergh baby, added to the voracity of the government's plans and to Americans' acceptance of federal involvement in state's matters. During this time of burgeoning crime, Arthur Gooch entered the pages of history by abducting two Texas policemen and transporting them into Oklahoma. With this action, Gooch violated the Federal Kidnapping Act and faced a jury and a judge who had the power to sentence him to death. With the amalgamation of the politics of the 1930s, influenced by President Roosevelt and U.S. Attorney General Cummings, and society's view of lawlessness in the aftermath of the Lindbergh baby's kidnapping and the worsening economy prompted the court to conclude that Arthur Gooch was a menace and deserved the ultimate punishment, death. As a result, Gooch became the first person to face the death penalty under the Lindbergh Law. In the wake of the passage of strict crime legislation, Gooch ascended the steps to the gallows, after receiving word that President Roosevelt had refused to grant him clemency. Socioeconomic depravity, restrictive politics, societal demand for reform, and poor personal judgment converged to spell death for Arthur Gooch on June 19, 1936. Consequently, Gooch's five-year-old son, Billy Joe, was left without a father and grew up hiding his true identity; Gooch's extended family struggled to conceal their relationship to him; and his only lasting legacy is one of missed opportunities and crime

The Impact of Nursing Staff Adherence with Chlorhexidine Gluconate Bathing on Intensive Care Unit Patient Outcomes

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to evaluate nursing staff adherence to a chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) bathing protocol in the intensive care unit at Norton Brownsboro Hospital. Methods: This study utilized a single-site, quasi-experimental, retrospective electronic medical record review format. The sample consisted of 200 patient records post CHG bathing protocol initiation from the Norton Brownsboro Hospital Intensive Care Unit during the period of March, 2015 to May, 2017. Results: The sample was divided into adherent and non-adherent groups. No significant differences in age, sex, race, ICU length of stay (LOS), BMI, or mortality scores, presence of indwelling medical device, or surgical procedure performed existed between the adherent and non-adherent groups. Adherence was low with only 61 or 30.5% of patients receiving CHG bathing as prescribed. No statistically significant relationship was identified between CHG bathing adherence and patient variables.Only three HAIs were captured in the sample; all were catheter-associated urinary tract infections (CAUTIs) in the adherent group. Conclusion: Low adherence and lack of statistical significance may indicate a charting discrepancy by ICU nursing staff. It is also reasonable to consider that this study is an actual reflection of the adherence rate. Education, chart audits, and change moles such as Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) should be considered to optimize nursing staff adherence with CHG bathing

Using R to improve rigour and transparency in translational neuroscience-or is it just a rabbit hole?

Our Editor explores the use of R for improving rigour, reproducibility and transparency in translational neuroscience. She also provides an example of how to waste enormous amounts of time playing with data in R instead of doing her day job

Spines, Plasticity, and Cognition in Alzheimer's Model Mice

The pathological hallmarks of Alzheimer's disease (AD)—widespread synaptic and neuronal loss and the pathological accumulation of amyloid-beta peptide (Aβ) in senile plaques, as well as hyperphosphorylated tau in neurofibrillary tangles—have been known for many decades, but the links between AD pathology and dementia and effective therapeutic strategies remain elusive. Transgenic mice have been developed based on rare familial forms of AD and frontotemporal dementia, allowing investigators to test in detail the structural, functional, and behavioral consequences of AD-associated pathology. Here, we review work on transgenic AD models that investigate the degeneration of dendritic spine structure, synaptic function, and cognition. Together, these data support a model of AD pathogenesis in which soluble Aβ initiates synaptic dysfunction and loss, as well as pathological changes in tau, which contribute to both synaptic and neuronal loss. These changes in synapse structure and function as well as frank synapse and neuronal loss contribute to the neural system dysfunction which causes cognitive deficits. Understanding the underpinnings of dementia in AD will be essential to develop and evaluate therapeutic approaches for this widespread and devastating disease

Successful Pathways to Undergraduate Completion

This article explores the critical factors that led to successful college completion for Black men. By focusing on success factors from Black male college graduates\u27 lived experiences, a roadmap to college success for this group may be shared with others to encourage increased degree attainment for this population. The lens for this study drew from Harper’s (2012) antideficit theory, which highlights students’ successes rather than problematic issues. A non-random approach of purposeful sampling from eight Black men from LinkedIn who had completed an undergraduate degree from a private, predominately White college in the southeast United States defined the sample size. Using one-on-one interviews, participants\u27 internal and external experiences leading up to and through college were revealed. The study will address their academic success in achieving undergraduate degree attainment. The first two categories, pre-college socialization and readiness and college achievement are the focus of this study