<p> The aging population coupled with the complexity of the older adult patient has presented a significant challenge for the healthcare industry. The literature has shown that the elderly are the major consumers of healthcare expenditures in the United States. Caring for this population in the realm of healthcare reform will require new strategies to improve the health status of the older adult patient. The objective of this study was to complete a comprehensive literature review of geriatric care models and create a business plan applying the Nurses Improving Care for Healthsystem Elders (NICHE) program. </p><p> NICHE is a national nurse-driven geriatric program that provides the necessary resources and tools to assist healthcare organizations in enacting system-level changes, which will impact the care of the older adult patient. </p>

<p> The focus of this quasi-experimental pre-post study with mixed methods was to assess the effect of an experiential learning activity on freshmen and sophomore nursing students' cognitive and affective knowledge of sensory changes that occur in older adults as part of the aging process. Based on Kolb's Experiential Learning Theory, the students took part in an interactive learning experience using low fidelity simulation which included a Sensory Kit, a Power Point^&copy; Presentation and Unfair Hearing Test&copy;. Participants were guided through reflective observation, abstract conceptualization, active experimentation and concrete experience during the study. An overall increase in cognitive knowledge was found to have occurred in all subgroups which included those who have either worked or lived with older adults or have had previous training in a geriatric sensitivity training program as well as those who have not in the aforementioned categories. The total sample (N=72) had a pre-test Mean&plusmn;SD of 58.06&plusmn;12.29 and post-test Mean&plusmn;SD of 80.97&plusmn;9.06 with a <i>p</i> &lt; 0.0001. Affective knowledge was analyzed using the coding method in which the written data was organized into four themes: Student Experience; Anticipated Feelings of Older Adults as Experienced by the Students; Changes in Participants' Feelings towards Older Adults after the Experience and Influence on Participants for Future Practice with Older Adults. The subjects reported an overall sense of empathy along with anticipated feelings of frustration and anger, gaining a greater sense of respect and admiration for older adults as well as special safety concerns to address in their plans of care.</p>

<p> A move toward care of residents in nursing homes where they are respected and heard is finally emerging. Common strategies used in nursing homes to improve quality of care for residents are integration of person-centered care and assessing care using satisfaction surveys. Although approaches of integrating person-centered care and satisfaction surveys have been valuable in improving nursing home quality, strategies of care that include things that matter from residents' perspectives while living in nursing homes need investigation. The purpose of this qualitative descriptive study was to describe things that residents age 65 and older state matter to them while living in the long-term care sections of nursing homes. A qualitative mode of inquiry using purposeful sampling led to a natural unfolding of data that revealed things that mattered to residents. Content analysis was used to reduce the data in a manner that kept the data close to the context yet moved the data toward new ideas about including things that mattered to residents in nursing care. The findings revealed residents' positive and negative experiences and addressed the question: How can nurses manage residents' positive and negative aspects of care in nursing homes? This study substantiated the importance of developing nursing care strategies derived from residents' descriptions of care. Finding ways to promote nurses' investment in attitudes about a person-centered care philosophy is essential for successful person-centered care implementation. Enhancing nurses' knowledge, skills, and attitudes with an investment in person-centeredness will be more likely to put nurses in a position to role-model care that is person-centered from residents' perspectives.</p>

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, San Francisco, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-11, Section: B, page: 7245. Adviser: Jeanie S. Kayser-Jones.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, San Francisco, 2008. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-02, Section: B, page: 0940. Adviser: Jeanie Kayser-Jones.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, San Francisco, 2008. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 69-02, Section: B, page: 0937. Adviser: Jeanie Kayser-Jones.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, San Francisco, 2007. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 68-04, Section: B, page: 2248. Adviser: Robert J. Newcomer.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, San Francisco, 2006. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 67-05, Section: B, page: 2476. Advisers: Jeanie Kayser-Jones; Erika Sivarajan Froelicher.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, San Francisco, 2005. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 66-12, Section: B, page: 6527. Chairperson: Jeanie S. Kayser-Jones.

Thesis (Ph.D.)--University of California, San Francisco, 2005. / Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 66-12, Section: B, page: 6528. Chairperson: Marion Gillen.