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Donna L Algase

Publications and source records attributed to Donna L Algase.

10 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2005

An ontological view of advanced practice nursing.

Identifying, developing, and incorporating nursing's unique ontological and epistemological perspective into advanced practice nursing practice places priority on delivering care based on research-derived knowledge. Without a clear distinction of our metatheoretical space, we risk blindly adopting the practice values of other disciplines, which may not necessarily reflect those of nursing. A lack of focus may lead current advanced practice nursing curricula and emerging doctorate of nursing practice programs to mirror the logical positivist paradigm and perspective of medicine. This article presents an ontological perspective for advanced practice nursing education, practice, and research.

Education, Nursing, Graduate↗
PubMed2004

The interrelatedness of wandering and wayfinding in a community sample of persons with dementia.

The aim of this study was to evaluate the relationship of wandering and wayfinding and validate the Revised Algase Wandering Scale - Community Version (RAWS-CV) using a community sample of persons with dementia. Adult caregivers (n = 266) completed the RAWS-CV and the Wayfinding Effectiveness Scale (WES). Four aspects of wandering were confirmed (persistent walking, repetitive walking, spatial disorientation, eloping behavior), and two new aspects were also validated (negative outcomes, mealtime impulsivity). The spatial disorientation subscale of the RAWS-CV had significant (p < 0.01) negative correlations with all WES subscales. The global strategies and simple wayfinding goals subscales of the WES correlated significantly with all RAWS-CV subscales except repetitive walking and mealtime impulsivity. ANOVAs comparing wayfinding at 4 levels of wandering revealed differences only for the simple wayfinding goals subscale. Studies examining the relationship of wandering and wayfinding at various levels of cognitive impairment are suggested to further understand these phenomena.

Adult↗
PubMed2004

Attitudes toward the elderly among nursing students in Korea.

PURPOSE: The primary purpose of this study was to reexamine underlying dimensions of attitudes toward the elderly held by undergraduate nursing students. A secondary purpose was to investigate characteristics of nursing students associated with attitudes toward elders. METHODS: A survey was performed using self-report questionnaire completed by nursing students from a total of 10 nursing schools or departments each selected randomly from one province of Korea. Students' responses (N=366) were analyzed using factor analysis, correlation coefficients, t-test, and ANOVA. RESULTS: Three attitudinal dimensions explaining 35.29% of the variance were extracted: vitality, generosity and flexibility. From a neutral point of 4.0 in the range of 1 to 7, only generosity (4.47) was evaluated positively, whereas vitality (3.31) and flexibility (2.91) were evaluated negatively. The mean scores of the vitality and generosity dimensions were significantly different by students' level of communication with the elderly, experience living with the elderly, and interest in elders or in issues related to elders. Interest in elders/elder issues was the only characteristic affecting significant mean score difference in flexibility. CONCLUSION: Educational process should increase students' exposure to healthy elderly to modify negative attitudes toward the elderly among nursing students.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2003

Comparison of U.S., Canadian, and Australian participants' performance on the Algase Wandering Scale-Version 2 (AWS-V2).

Although wandering in dementia is seen in various cultures, cross-cultural comparisons have not been reported. We examined wandering in residents of long-term care settings (LTCs) in three English-speaking countries (n = 96, America; n = 42, Canada; n = 13, Australia) using the Algase Wandering Scale-Version 2 (AWS-V2). Participants differed by country on age and medical diagnosis. The Americans were significantly older; the Canadians had a greater rate of Alzheimer's disease (AD). In one-way ANOVAs, AWS-V2 ratings from nurse aides revealed significant differences in the AWS-V2 and three subscales (spatial disorientation, attention shifting, eloping behavior), but not for two others (persistent walking, shadowing). Where significant, Canadians had consistently lower ratings than others. Post-hoc analyses by age of participants failed to reveal significant differences. However, participants with AD had significantly lower AWS-V2 scores than those with mixed-type dementia. Lower MMSE score predicted higher AWS-V2, spatial disorientation, and eloping behavior. Post-hoc analyses of respondent characteristics revealed no significant differences on AWS-V2 or subscales by frequency of attending dementia classes and level of experience with dementia. Thus the nature of wandering in these three countries is not substantially different. However, variations in care environments may contribute to differences in attention shifting. Further, limited sample size, particularly among Australians and Canadians, make findings tentative.

Age Factors↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Enriching geropsychiatric nursing in advanced practice nursing programs.

The need for advanced practice nurses with knowledge and skills in geropsychiatric nursing is real and looming larger than ever. By 2030, the number of older adults with major psychiatric illnesses is predicted to reach 15 million. Preparing advanced practice nurses with mental health and geropsychiatric nursing expertise is essential. This paper describes three innovative curricular models for addressing geropsychiatric nursing in graduate advanced practice nursing programs. These models can be implemented with vision, planning, modest resources, and the cooperation of the faculty.

Arkansas↗
PubMedDate not supplied

Biomechanical activity devices to index wandering behavior in dementia.

Valid and reliable measures of wandering are needed to study this troubling behavior. Although researchers have used various perspectives, definitions, and approaches to study wandering, spontaneous ambulation is a key characteristic across all views. Biomechanical activity devices for capturing movement provide one way to index wandering. This study examined four devices with ambulatory nursing home residents with dementia (N = 178) who wore devices simultaneously during four observations. Among the Actillume, StepWatch, Step Sensor, and TriTrac-R3D, the StepWatch yielded data from the highest proportion of observations, explained the most variance (63.9 percent) among all instruments, and was acceptable to nursing staff. Although the Step Sensor was the staff's preferred device, its performance was least acceptable for research purposes. Results support use of the StepWatch in future studies of wandering.

Aged↗