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Marsha Fonteyn

Publications and source records attributed to Marsha Fonteyn.

8 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2006

The use of qualitative data analysis software (QDAS) to manage and support the analysis of think aloud (TA) data.

This methodological paper describes how qualitative data analysis software (QDAS) is being used to manage and support a three-step protocol analysis (PA) of think aloud (TA) data in a study examining emergency nurses' reasoning during triage. The authors believe that QDAS program QRS NVivo will greatly facilitate the PA and will allow them to identify and describe the information that triage nurses concentrate on during triage, and how they structure this information to make a triage decision. These findings could assist in designing and creating decision support systems to guide nurses' triaging. Additionally, details about how to use QRS NVivo for PA of TA data may assist and guide future informatics research using similar methodology are presented here. This innovative use of QDAS holds great promise for future nursing informatics research.

Decision Support Systems, Clinical↗
PubMed2005

Using qualitative evaluation in a feasibility study to improve and refine a complementary therapy intervention prior to subsequent research.

Feasibility studies of complementary therapies are useful and important not only to test and evaluate the potential effectiveness of an intervention but also to refine and improve it prior to a subsequent study. A series of guided interviews were conducted with patients (n=19) undergoing stem cell/autologous bone marrow transplant (SC/ABMT) who were participating in a feasibility study of a mindfulness meditation (MM) intervention. Audiotapes of these interview sessions were transcribed and then used to create a project in the QRS NVivo software program to manage the data from the interview questions. Responses about what the participants liked and disliked and their suggestions for improving the effectiveness of the MM intervention were identified and grouped. Subsequently, the MM intervention has been refined based on this information, and additional testing in a randomized, controlled trial is planned. The cost is high to implement complementary therapies and to rigorously test them. Preliminary work using qualitative evaluation methods can provide rich and detailed information that will save time and money in the long run.

Bone Marrow Transplantation↗
PubMed2005

Development and implementation of a clinical survey for cancer-related fatigue assessment.

In recent years, fatigue has been recognized as a prevalent and often debilitating symptom for patients with cancer. Despite the increased recognition of cancer-related fatigue (CRF), it often is not assessed adequately in the clinical setting. This article reports the results of a feasibility test to evaluate the utility and relevance of the Quick Fatigue Assessment Survey (QFAS), a brief fatigue assessment technique for determining the onset, intensity, and duration of fatigue and for identifying known factors that contribute to the experience and severity of fatigue. Patients from four outpatient oncology clinics, with a variety of cancer diagnoses, participated in the test of the QFAS. The overwhelming majority (96%) of patients who completed the QFAS reported experiencing CRF. The nurses who administered the survey subsequently evaluated its utility in clinical practice. Ninety-six percent of the nurses found the QFAS helpful in providing a quick assessment of patient fatigue. The majority (92%) also believed that the QFAS helped identify contributing factors associated with CRF, and 74% responded that the QFAS assisted them in planning for interventions to minimize CRF. A fatigue assessment technique that is relevant and useful in the clinical setting may be a helpful first step in addressing the problem of CRF.

Adult↗
PubMed2003

Clinical reasoning in experienced nurses.

As an essential component of nursing practice, clinical reasoning is used to assimilate information, analyze data, and make decisions regarding patient care. Little is known about the reasoning strategies of experienced nurses who are not yet experts. This qualitative descriptive study explored the cognitive strategies used by experienced nurses as they considered assessment findings of assigned patients. To date, few studies of nurses' clinical reasoning have been conducted in a practice setting during actual patient care. A small group research design was employed using the think-aloud (TA) method with protocol analysis. A total of 15 experienced nurses were asked to "think aloud" about patient assessment findings. Data were audiotaped, transcribed, and analyzed using the three steps of protocol analysis. The results suggest that experienced nurses used a conceptual language to reason about assessment findings and used heuristics to reason more quickly and efficiently.

Adult↗