Nurse Residency

This is a collection of work created by members of the New Graduate Nurse Residency Program of MaineHealth. This program serves as an adjunct to the traditional clinical orientation experience of one-on-one with a registered nurse preceptor.

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The Impact of Implementing a Nurse Residency Program

Lexus Freeman

Does a nurse residency program enhance retention among new graduate nurses compared to immediately entering practice?
Time Reduction or Waste Production?

Katryna Smith, Brittany Grannell, and Cheri Geurtin

PICOT Question: In adult patients arriving at the Emergency Department, does proactively conducting standard laboratory tests prior to provider assessment, as opposed to waiting for provider instructions, lead to a reduction in the overall length of stay during a single visit?
Turning Patients, Saving Skin

Anna Atkins

PICOT Question: Do Turn Teams Beat Standard Nursing Care?
What Sucks the Best? The DuCanto!

Gabe Gunning

Background: Airway management is a defining skill that demands mastery by emergency physicians. Airway emergencies pose considerable morbidity and mortality risks. Familiarity with, and mastery of, a variety of airway management approaches and equipment can prove invaluable for management of anatomically and physiologically difficult airways.
Burns: A Standardized Approach for Resuscitation of Burn Patients in the Critical Care Setting

Joshua Cole RN BSN, Marcus Leo RN ADN, Kyle Jacques RN BSN, and Lauren Miller RN BSN

PICOT Question: In adult major burn patients (Burns greater than 15% body surface area), how does a burn critical care bay with visual cues and intervention specific carts, compare to standard critical care bays affect patient outcomes over the course of their hospital stay?
Complementary Therapies for Chemotherapy Induced Side Effects in Oncology Patients

Alyssa Gravel RN and Tori Welch RN

PICOT Question: In oncological patients undergoing conventional treatment, what is the effectiveness of non-pharmacological interventions in treating side effects of chemotherapy and radiation?
Dedicated Turn Teams Make the Difference

Madeline Gill RN BSN, McKenzie Kelly RN BSN, and Phaelan Mead RN BSN

PICOT Question: Are patients with impaired bed mobility admitted to hospitals with rotating turn teams at decreased risk of developing pressure wounds compared to patients admitted to hospitals without assigned turn teams during their hospitalization?
Delirium Prevention Strategies in Hospitalized Patients

Julia Couture

In hospitalized patients do pharmacological interventions targeted to prevent or treat delirium reduce the incidence, severity or duration of delirium compared to non-pharmacological interventions during hospitalization?
Delirium Protocols and the Impact on Patient's Extended Stays and Care

Devin Cheetham-Wilmot RN, Aislinn Murphy RN, Bronson Kieltyka RN, and Molly Dall RN

PICOT Question: In patients with stays over 3 days, how does a delirium protocol and interventions improve their stay and symptoms compared to the current standard of practices to shorten length of stay and improvement in care quality within a 6-month experience?
Differences in Outcomes in Patients with Treatment-resistant Depression (TRD) Receiving Electroconvulsive Therapy (ECT) vs. Ketamine Infusion Therapy

Kimberly Crowley

In patients with treatment-resistant depression, how does ketamine infusion therapy compare to electroconvulsive therapy (ECT) in its impact on depressive symptoms and remission rates?
Early Mobilization in Mechanically Ventilated ICU Patients

Garrett LaFrance BSN RN, Jasmine Olshin BSN RN, Olivia Powers BSN RN, and Lauren Baecher BSN RN

PICOT Question: In mechanically ventilated ICU patients, does early mobilization decrease length of ICU stay in comparison with patients on strict bedrest?
Evaluating the Effectiveness of Silicone Foam Dressing in Preventing Pressure Ulcers in Intensive Care Settings

Farah Ibrahim RN BSN

PICOT Question: For critically ill patients and high-risk aged care residents, does the use of multi-layer silicone foam dressing reduce the future risk of developing pressure injuries compared with those who receive the standard pressure injury preventions without the application of the dressing on their sacrum and heels?
Fall Reduction: Using Exercise Interventions to Reduce the Number of Falls Among People with Parkinson's Disease

Michael D. Healy RN

PICOT Question: In geriatric patients with Parkinson's, what is the effectiveness of lower extremity strength training combined with medication management for the reduction of unplanned falls?
Impact of Sleep Comfort Measures on Patient Experience

Elizabeth Cotsifas RN, Lydia Gordon RN, Lillian Renier RN BSN, and Emily Schade RN

PICOT Question: For hospitalized patients, how does the utilization of sleep comfort measures, or lack of, affect patient quality of sleep from admission to discharge?
Impacts of Fluid Restriction in Heart Failure Patients

Monica Lopez RN, Jacob Maxwell-Couch RN, Jennifer Perry RN, and Barbara Shea RN

PICOT Question: In hospitalized patients with heart failure does a fluid restriction versus liberalized fluid intake lead to improvement of heart failure symptoms?
Intermittent Auscultation vs Electronic Fetal Monitoring in Laboring Patients

Nichole Plummer and Jennifer Kellerman

In healthy laboring women, how does the use of Intermittent auscultation, compared to continuous monitoring, affect fetal and maternal outcomes?
Interventions to Improve Mental Health in New Graduate Nurses

Katherine Lewis RN BSN, Cordelia Inman RN BSN, Hannah LeClair, and Caroline Spencer RN BSN

PICOT Question: In new graduate nurses (CN1), how does mental health support groups compared to no specific mental health support affect new nurses within the first year of hire?
Low vs. High Patient Ratio Effects on Medical Errors

Katelynn Watkins RN, Chris Strong RN, and Najmo Ali RN

PICOT Question: This evidence-based practice project aimed to analyze; in acute-care settings how do variations in nurse-to-patient ratios when comparing low and high ratios, influence medical errors, patient outcomes and nurse outcomes?
Newborn Bathing Within 24 Hours

Julie Sirois

Does delayed bathing in newborns decline negative patient complications compared to those who received a bath prior to 24 hours of birth?
Postoperative Atrial Fibrillation

Ryan Thurlow RN BSN, Olya Tucci RN BSN, and Lily Williams RN BSN

What is the more effective treatment metoprolol or amiodarone for best patient outcomes?
Reducing Implicit Bias in Nursing to Decrease Maternal Racial Health Disparities and Improve Patient Outcomes

Robin Illian BSN and Julianne Andreades BSN

PICOT Question: For Black birthing patients, how does receiving nursing care from nurses trained in implicit bias and racial health disparities impact maternal morbidity, mortality, and patient satisfaction, compared to those receiving current standard current nursing care?
The Benefits of Self-Care and Wellness

Tara Nau

Among practicing nurses, does participation in health-promoting self-care and lifestyle interventions improve their health behaviors and well-being compared to those who do not engage in such interventions?
The Effects of Care Handoffs and Hospital-Wide Flow

Abbey Siulinski BSN, Kaitlyn Leavitt RN, Ryan Pullen BSN, and Katie Schmid BSN

PICOT Question: In admitted patients, do timely nurse to nurse reports vs delays in care handoff negatively affect patient care and outcomes?
The Importance of Early Mobilization in the Inpatient Setting

Amanda Brawn

For hospital patients, how do early mobility interventions, compared to current practice (no intervention), affect their length of hospital stay and readmission rate?
Trans and Non-Binary Patient Satisfaction in Relation to Practitioner Education

Kristen Goodale

In trans and non-binary patients, how does the use of mandatory education modules compared to no specific mandatory education modules impact patients’ satisfaction, safety, and trust in the care they receive in the emergency department?
Treatment Protocol for Withdrawal of Alcohol

Kendra Bishop, Simone Lauture, Benita Ehomo, and Andrey Popov

PICOT Question: In patients experiencing or at risk for alcohol withdrawal, how does Phenobarbital protocol compared to standard protocol (use of Benzodiazepines) affect patient detox experience and outcome within their hospitalization?
Virtual Reality in Pain Management and its Role in Replacing Traditional Pharmacological Therapies

Jessica Dupler RN BSN and Morgen Allain RN BSN

PICOT Question: In the adult inpatient population does engaging in virtual reality manage pain in a significant way?
Labor & Delivery EBP Project: Reducing Implicit Bias in Nursing as a Way to Decrease Maternal Racial Health Disparities and Improve Outcomes

Julianne Andreades and Robin Illian

Introduction/Background:

• Maternal mortality for Black birthing people in the United States is 3X higher than it is for white birthing people (CDC, 2022).

• Racism, including implicit bias, is a driver of these disparities (CDC, 2022).

• Research has shown that clinicians' implicit bias, defined as unconscious attitudes and beliefs that impact behaviors, affects treatment decisions and patient outcomes (Groves et al., 2021 and Siden et al., 2022).
The Effects of Care Handoffs and Hospital-Wide Flow

Abbey Siulinski, Kaitlyn Leavitt, Ryan Pullen, and Katie Schmid

Introduction: Observed extended boarding of admitted patients and increased length of stay in the ED due to delay in handoff resulting in decreased ability to provide full extent of care.
Turn and Stay Turned

Whitney Brown

Does the use of specialized positioning tools compared to standard hospital pillows improve the degree of turn achieved and maintained in patients requiring regular turns to offload pressure?
Virtual Reality in Pain Management

Morgen Allain and Jessica Dupler

Problem description:

Pharmacologically managed pain is a substantial component of inpatient, bedside nursing. Many of these drugs have side effects that are counterproductive to health and healing. Technological advancements have made virtual reality available on the consumer market, could they help manage pain without side effects?
Smoke Evacuation in the Operating Room

Meghan Holley and McKenzie Moon

In perioperative staff, does mandating the use of smoke evacuation in the surgical setting compared to no smoke evacuation decrease the amount of exposure to toxic byproducts found in surgical plume for each surgical case?
Evidence-Based Diabetes Exercise Intervention

Laura Smith

Type 2 diabetes mellitus is a chronic, noninfectious disease that affects a large population of adults in the world. Typically, it is associated with obesity, a sedentary lifestyle, and the consumption of undesirable meals (Nakrani et al., 2020/2023). Even with various treatments available for type 2 diabetes, most patients find it challenging to maintain a steady blood glucose level.
Fall Rates in Patient Populations with Remote Video Monitoring Compared to Companions

Alexandra Volpe and Catherine Close

Background: Healthcare facilities are constantly searching for new and improved interventions to minimize injury and fall rates within their units. 1:1 companions, or ‘sitters’, have been used to provide the patient with close monitoring in order to accomplish these goals. However, companions are not always a liable option for facilities due to poor staffing and increased expense in order to staff a ratio of 1 companion to 1 patient. Research has started to develop on the benefits of remote video monitoring, or ‘telesitting’, as an intervention to minimize fall risk and injury.
HELP Programs Impact on Delirium

Abigail Holt

Background: Delirium is a condition that affects 1/3 of patients in the hospital. It is a condition that is preventable and reversible.
How Environment of Care Standards Impact Patient Satisfaction

Taylor Tantingco and Raeven Bilugan

Background: Environment of Care (EOC) are standards of care that revolve around the safety and well-being of both the staff and the patient.

EOC takes into account variables such as a clean environment, basic standards of care (ADLs), and access to resources/materials.
Improving Nurse-Provider Communication

Caitlin Martel-Harrington and Martha Mary Lane

Background: Ineffective communication among healthcare staff has been shown to cause an increase in errors and decrease in patient satisfaction.
Improving the Balance Between Patient Satisfaction and Efficient ED Throughput

Jessica Graham and Izzi Marceau

Background: Patients come into the Emergency Department (ED)when they are having an emergent health concern. One role of the ED nurse is balancing the patient expectations of care with ensuring the flow of the department. The studies reviewed here examine the way that ED nurses can help to coordinate realistic expectations for patients as they are waiting to be seen.
In patients aged 70 and above, male and female, how does the length of stay after treatment compared to early discharge impact the patient's level of orientation?

Amanda Ames, Caitlin Chasse, and Jamie Beaupre

Background: The length of stay after treatment can put patients’ health and well-being at a disadvantage. Length of stay can not only cause delirium but can also have detrimental impacts on pre-existing comorbidities. By decreasing a patient's length of stay following the completion of treatment, there are lower levels of adverse outcomes that not only benefit the patient but also those around them.
Purewick Versus Foley Catheters

Ashleigh Lunt, Grace Tibbetts, and Tia Hufstader

Background: A Foley catheter is an indwelling urinary drainage device that is placed in a patient's urethra and remains in their bladder, continuously draining urine into a bag. In hospital settings, there are many indications for indwelling catheters such as strict I&O monitoring, incontinence, retention, end of life comfort, surgery, and immobility.
Roommates and Privacy: An Evaluation of Patient Satisfaction with Shared Rooms in Medical-Surgical Units

Michelle Tope and James Wiesen

BACKGROUND: Two patients often share a hospital room on medical-surgical floors. However, this arrangement does not consider the patients’ subjective sense of privacy, comfort, or quality of sleep. When those needs are unmet, patients are less satisfied with their hospital stay. There is some research on patient’s preference for private rooms versus shared rooms.
The Benefits of Simulation-Based Training

Brooke Taylor

Background: Due to COVID-19, many hospitals shut down their in-person classes and simulated trainings. This has had a negative impact on the education of our new graduate nurses.
The Comparison Between Chlorhexidine and Povidone-Iodine Antiseptics in the Operating Room to Prevent Surgical Site Infections

Eleanor Decarolis

Background: Surgical site infections (SSI's) are one of the most common and costly complications from surgery. Chlorhexidine gluconate (CHG) and Povidione-Iodine (PVI) are the most common antiseptics used in surgery. The efficacy and uses of these surgical preps have been studied to determine the most effective in preventing surgical site infections.
The Impact of Prone Ventilation Among Patients Diagnosed with Acute Respiratory Distress Syndrome

Mary Steward and Kimberly Loomis

Background Mechanical ventilation is a commonICU intervention for patients in respiratory distress. Proning is a form of mechanical ventilation that has been recently studied which improves gas exchange and lung perfusion among patients specifically diagnosed with ARDS.
Use of Language-Adapted Resources in the Non-English Speaking Patient Population

Jenny Lansing and Emma Dubois

Background: Across the healthcare field, it is essential that patients and families can both communicate and understand the care they receive. A lack in this can lead to delays in care, missed findings, unnecessary care and costs, and even preventable emergencies. Limited research surrounds the impact that language barriers pose as well as methods to address this.
An Evaluation of Peripheral Nerve Stimulation When Monitoring ICU Patients Requiring Chemical Paralysis

Justin Moscone, Tomas Gibbons, and Anna Walker

In ICU patients receiving infusions of vecuronium or cisatracurium, is a clinical assessment-based titration model compared to a train-of-four titration model more effective when monitoring paralysis?
Burnout in Healthcare

Katie Bernard RN BSN, Kiana Fuller RN ADN, and Ashley Rhoades RN BSN

In a hospital setting, are nurses who practice coping strategies at a lower risk for nurse burnout then nurses who do not?
Comparing the Efficacy of Different Wound Care Modalities (topical solution) in the Prevention of Pseudomonas Aeruginosa growth in Burn Soft Tissue Populations

Suzy Bryan BSN RN, Hajra Chand BSN RN, Brooke Sorbello BSN RN, Kiah Newton BSN RN, and Grace Boisvert BSN RN

The purpose of this project is to gain a deeper understanding of the treatment modalities used on R3, and why certain treatment soaks are more effective methods at promoting wound healing and prevention of Pseudomonas colonization in BST patients.
Constipation in Postoperative Cardiovascular Patients

Jessica Diaz BSN, Samuel Mulunda RN, Jacob Rudolph RN, and Emily Lovejoy RN

Would postoperative cardiovascular patients that receive a preoperative bowel preparation as opposed to those who receive no bowel prep have a shorter ICU stay and less complications postoperatively?
Effect of Stop-Cocks in Reducing Post-Procedure Femoral Access Complications

Alessia Toohey RN, Ross Underwood RN, and Clare Zorena RN

n patients undergoing cardiac procedures requiring femoral artery access, does the use of stop-cocks with figure-8 stitches in femoral access closure compared to standard closure methods without these techniques reduce the incidence of post-procedure complications such as bleeding and hematoma within 24 to 48 hours post procedure?

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