Davis Scholars target risky teen behaviors and nutrition in elders receiving home care
This summer, research is once again being conducted by the College of Nursing鈥檚 Davis Undergraduate Summer Nursing Scholars. Senior Catherine DeLuca, mentored by Professor Elizabeth Dowdell, PhD, RN, FAAN, and Junior Carolyn Astrup, working with Professor Melissa O鈥機onnor, PhD, MBA, RN, COS-C, are targeting their scholarly interests through the generosity of Hugh M. Davis 鈥�83 MS, 鈥�85 PhD; his wife, Pamela S. Davis; and their daughter, Olivia M. Davis 鈥�13 BSN, who have established funds for undergraduate participation in faculty guided research.
Catherine鈥檚 qualitative study, 鈥淗igh School Students and Risk Taking Behaviors: Is there a Relationship between Health Risks and Online Risks鈥� aims to expand nursing knowledge on the risky behaviors associated with high school students who send or receive sexting messages on their cell phones. Catherine notes the clinical impact, 鈥淣ursing assessment should reflect advancing technology and a rapidly changing social climate. To do this the nurse must understand common trends in today鈥檚 world and how these trends pertain to health and wellbeing of the modern patient. Understanding and applying the nursing process to Internet risk taking behaviors has significant clinical implications.鈥�
Carolyn鈥檚 review of the literature, 鈥淔uel for Life: A Literature Review of Nutrition among Older Adults Receiving Home Health鈥� relates to the nutritional assessment and education for older adults receiving home health using a systematic search and critique of the literature. She describes her work in this way:
鈥淭here is a gap in knowledge when it comes to older adult鈥檚 nutrition in home health care, as the standard home health assessment does not contain information about a home health patient鈥檚 nutritional status. In the popular and empirical literature there is a plethora of knowledge on what older adults should be eating, and what health care professionals should do to help them do so, but it is unknown whether or not this information is being shared with older adults who are receiving home health, and whether or not older adults are truly getting the support they need to be consuming a nutritionally sufficient diet.鈥�