Georgia College & State University

About: Georgia College & State University is a education organization based out in Milledgeville, Georgia, United States. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Population & Higher education. The organization has 950 authors who have published 1591 publications receiving 37027 citations.

A Program Using Environmental Manipulation, Music Therapy Activities, and the Somatron© Vibroacoustic Chair To Reduce Agitation Behaviors of Nursing Home Residents with Psychiatric Disorders

Abstract: Agitation is a behavior frequently associated with residents of nursing home facilities, especially persons with diagnoses of dementia or associated brain disorders. Agitated behaviors can affect the entire facility and have the potential to impact overall quality of life. Finding positive, non-pharmaceutical, interventions to control agitation is a challenge for health care professionals. This study describes a program using multiple interventions of environmental noise reduction, controlled background music, individualized receptive and active music therapy, and vibroacoustic sessions with the Somatron. The program was implemented for 6 months and included 2 interventions. The first intervention was to manipulate the facility environment. The second intervention was to identify residents not responding to the environmental manipulation and refer them to music therapy. Three residents were referred during the intervention period. An original assessment instrument Somatron Placement Matrix was developed to assign residents to individualized music therapy sessions, Somatron sessions, or a combination of the two. Results indicated a reduction of 82% in accidents/incidents, 91% reduction of PRN medication, 36% reduction in STAT orders by physicians, and a reduction of unplanned staff absences of 44% during the intervention period. Case study information (n = 1) of individualized music therapy sessions resulted in a 100% decrease of 2 identified agitation behaviors, 71% decrease in one identified behavior, and 11% decrease in one behavior. Case study information of the Somatron sessions (n = 2) resulted in none of the baseline agitation behaviors being present and an increase in positive behaviors of closing eyes during sessions, coherent verbalizations during sessions, and an increase in positive verbalizations. Introduction Agitation behaviors are easily observed when entering a nursing home, especially a facility in which residents have psychiatric disorders. Behaviors associated with agitation may include muscle tension, irritability, aggression, repetitive body movements, restlessness, and inappropriate verbalizations (Cohen-Mansfield, Marx, & Rosenthal, 1989). Identifying precipitators of agitation and finding positive, non-pharmaceutical, interventions to reduce agitation will benefit individual residents and can create a calm, relaxing milieu that enhances quality of life. Causes for agitation stem from a variety of factors and usually have multiple influences. The individual's personality before hospitalization, level of cognitive functioning, medication, and degree of disorientation and confusion may all play a role in exhibiting behaviors (Giacino, 2003). The nursing home setting consists of heterogeneous placements, large numbers of persons residing in close proximity, and regimens that are necessary for medical treatment. These factors can produce a stressful environment. Agitation may be related to this potentially stressful environment and even is a means for patients to communicate displeasure at their surroundings (Ragneskog, Kihigren, Gerdner, & Josefsson, 1998). Environmental noise levels have also been frequently cited as a contributing factor in agitation behaviors. McClaugherty, Valibhai, Womack, and Desai (2003) evaluated the effects of noise on patients and staff in 13 nursing homes. Typical noises were intercom systems, telephones, cleaning equipment, and televisions. Behaviors reported by staff in response to high noise levels were irritability, anxiety, difficulty concentrating, and increases in errors. It is a rational assumption that patients will have similar responses to the same stimuli. Patients, however, may not have the communication or coping skills necessary to tolerate the noise. Even more importantly, patients have limited control over the situation and cannot remove themselves from the stimuli. Using background music to mask environmental noises in conjunction with lowering the actual noise levels has been shown to reduce episodes of agitation among patients. …

Non-linear noise excitation for some space-time fractional stochastic equations in bounded domains

Abstract: In this paper we study non-linear noise excitation for the following class of space-time fractional stochastic equations in bounded domains: $$\partial^\beta_tu_t(x)=- u(-\Delta)^{\alpha/2} u_t(x)+I^{1-\beta}_t[\lambda \sigma(u)\stackrel{\cdot}{F}(t,x)]$$ in $(d+1)$ dimensions, where $ u>0, \beta\in (0,1)$, $\alpha\in (0,2]$. The operator $\partial^\beta_t$ is the Caputo fractional derivative, $-(-\Delta)^{\alpha/2} $ is the generator of an isotropic stable process and $I^{1-\beta}_t$ is the fractional integral operator. The forcing noise denoted by $\stackrel{\cdot}{F}(t,x)$ is a Gaussian noise. The multiplicative non-linearity $\sigma:\RR{R}\to\RR{R}$ is assumed to be globally Lipschitz continuous. These equations were recently introduced by Mijena and Nane(J. Mijena and E. Nane. Space time fractional stochastic partial differential equations. Stochastic Process Appl. 125 (2015), no. 9, 3301--3326). We first study the existence and uniqueness of the solution of these equations {and} under suitable conditions on the initial function, we {also} study the asymptotic behavior of the solution with respect to the parameter $\lambda$. In particular, our results are significant extensions of those in Foondun et al (M. Foondun, K. Tian and W. Liu. On some properties of a class of fractional stochastic equations. Preprint available at arxiv.org 1404.6791v1.), Foondun and Khoshnevisan (M. Foondun and D. Khoshnevisan. Intermittence and nonlinear parabolic stochastic partial differential equations, Electron. J. Probab. 14 (2009), no. 21, 548--568.), Nane and Mijena (J. Mijena and E. Nane. Space time fractional stochastic partial differential equations. Stochastic Process Appl. 125 (2015), no. 9, 3301--3326; J. B. Mijena, and E.Nane. Intermittence and time fractional partial differential equations. Submitted. 2014).

Discovery of X-ray Pulsations from the INTEGRAL Source IGR J11014-6103

Abstract: We report the discovery of PSR J1101-6101, a 62.8 ms pulsar in IGR J11014-6103, a hard X-ray source with a jet and a cometary tail that strongly suggests it is moving away from the center of the supernova remnant (SNR) MSH 11-61A at v>1000 km/s. Two XMM-Newton observations were obtained with the EPIC pn in small window mode, resulting in the measurement of its spin-down luminosity E_dot = 1.36e36 erg/s, characteristic age Tau_c = 116 kyr, and surface magnetic field strength B_s = 7.4e11 G. In comparison to Tau_c, the 10-30 kyr age estimated for MSH 11-61A suggests that the pulsar was born in the SNR with initial period in the range 54 < P_0 < 60 ms. PSR J1101-6101 is the least energetic of the 15 rotation-powered pulsars detected by INTEGRAL, and has a high efficiency of hard X-ray radiation and jet power. We examine the shape of the cometary nebula in a Chandra image, which is roughly consistent with a bow shock at the velocity inferred from the SNR age and the pulsar's E-dot. However, its structure differs in detail from the classic bow shock, and we explore possible reasons for this.

Using the READ Scale for Staffing Strategies: The Georgia College and State University Experience

Abstract: I n the spring of 2007, Georgia College and State University (GCSU) participated in a national study to test the READ (Reference Effort Assessment Data) Scale. The READ Scale is a six-point scale tool developed by Bella Karr Gerlich for recording vital supplemental qualitative statistics gathered when reference librarians assist users with their inquiries or research-related activities by placing an emphasis on recording the skills, knowledge, techniques, and tools utilized by the librarian during a reference transaction (see figure 1). The purpose of the national study, a collaborative effort between GCSU Library and Instructional Technology Center and Carnegie Mellon University Libraries, was to test the validity of the READ Scale as an additional tool for gathering reference statistics and record the valueadded services, effort, knowledge, and skills used during the reference transaction. This article demonstrates how GCSU used the READ Scale study data gathered at their institution to record user behavior and to reconfigure their service hours to best utilize staff at the reference desk at peak times for improved services and utilizing faculty and staff talent during critical need.