SORT BY:

Sigma Small Grants

Maan Isabella Cajita, PhD, BSN (Alpha Lambda Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Health Literacy-Based Heart Failure Self-Care Intervention (H2Lit)
The long-term goal of the proposed study is to empower people with heart failure (HF) to effectively perform HF self-care. As a first step to achieving this long-term goal, the proposed study will explore the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a health literacy-based HF self-care intervention (H2Lit). 

Andrew Corley, MSN/MPH, BSN (Nu Beta at-Large Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Examining the Relationship Between Parents' Endorsed Gender Norms and Their Early Adolescents' Psychosocial Health, Educational Engagement, and Nutrition in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo 
The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between parent-endorsed gender norms and their early adolescent's mental health, educational engagement, and nutrition in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Melissa Dollings, MSN, BSN (Gamma Omega Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Splanchnic Oxygenation and Feeding Intolerance in the Very Low Birthweight Infant 
The goal of this research is to examine the relationships between splanchnic oxygenation, feeding intolerance (FI) and an intestinal dysfunction scoring tool, NeoNeeds, in premature infants and to explore the use of splanchnic oxygenation and NeoNeeds as an objective measure of FI that may be used by nurses at the bedside to help guide practice related to enteral feeding management.

Summer Haddad, MSN, BScN (Lambda Pi at-Large Chapter, Canada)

Title of Project: Sleep and Factors Affecting Sleep for Parents of Preterm Infants Compared to Parents of Healthy Term Infants: The After-Baby Comparison (ABC) Parent Sleep Study
The purpose of the ABC Parent Sleep Study is to characterize sleep and factors affecting sleep for parents of preterm infants during hospitalization and following discharge, and make comparisons to parents of healthy, term infants. 

Claire Jungyoun Han, PhD, MSN, BSN (Psi at-Large Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Symptom Experience and Correlation with Fecal microbiota In Colorectal Cancer Survivors 
The purpose of this descriptive study with a cross-sectional study design is to explore the differences in symptom experience and features of fecal microbiota among three groups (CRC survivors before cancer treatments, CRC survivors post-cancer treatments, and healthy controls [HCs]) and to explore if there are specific microbiota profiles (primary focus = immune- and inflammation- related microbiota) associated with symptoms in CRC survivors.

Kimberly Rapp Hartson, PhD, MSN, BSN (Iota Zeta Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: A Feasibility Study of a Web-based Physical Activity Program for University Students
The purpose of this study is to evaluate the feasibility of a web-based physical activity intervention based on the Multi-Process Action Control (M-PAC) framework among young adult university students.

Fernanda R.E. Gimenes, PhD, MSN, BSN (Rho Upsilon Chapter, Brazil)

Title of Project: Nasogastric/nasoenteric tube-related incidents in hospitalized patients: a multicenter prospective cohort study
The objective of this study is to evaluate the NGT/NET-related incidents in hospitalized patients and associated factors.
Gimenes 2019 
“The results may encourage the use of evidence effectively to influence the scientific foundation for clinical practice and the development of evidence-based policies that will prevent, manage and eliminate adverse events caused by NGT/NET-related incidents, and improve the quality and safety of care provided to hospitalized patients.”
— Fernanda R.E. Gimenes, PhD, MSN, BSN
University of Sao Paulo at Ribeirao Preto College of Nursing

Anne Joubert, MN, BN (South Africa)

Title of Project: Person-Centred Caring Towards Improvement of Diabetic Foot Care Compliance in Rural Primary Health Care, Kwazulu-Natal  
The aim of the study is to identify how person-centered caring can improve diabetic foot care compliance in rural primary health care clinics in a district of northern KwaZulu-Natal.

Jong-Min Park, PhD, MSN , BSN (South Korea)

Title of Project: Effect of a Tailored Technology-Enhanced Home-Based Exercise Program on DNA Methylation Change among Cancer Survivors with Multiple Chronic Conditions 
The ultimate goal of this study is to develop an effective self-management program to reduce symptoms reported by cancer survivors living with multiple chronic conditions. 
Park 
“DNA methylation is a novel measure of intervention impact in nursing. It may be a more sensitive measure to assess intervention effectiveness rather than a self-report questionnaire. DNA methylation may improve our understanding of the underlying mechanisms of nursing interventions such as home-based exercises and may serve as a biomarker to advance precision health in nursing research.”
— Jong-Min Park, PhD, MSN, BSN
Kyung Hee University

Rosemary Berkel Crisp Research Award

Jiepin Cao, MS, BSN (Beta Epsilon Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Understanding Intimate Partner Violence Among Chinese Women through the Lens of Social Determinants of Health and Intersectionality
This study will establish the empirical foundation for health providers and policy makers to prioritize the allocation of the limited resources and to develop tailored intervention and prevention resources for Chinese women. 
Cao 
“This study will be the first one to examine Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in Chinese women through the lens of social determinants of health and intersectionality, contributing to a holistic understanding of the complexity and dynamics of IPV within the Chinese social context..”
— Jiepin Cao, MS, BSN
Duke University

Doris Bloch Research Award

Tongyao Wang, BSN (Alpha Mu Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Development and Validation: A Pictographic Educational Handout on Tracheostomy Care
The purpose of the study is to develop and validate a pictograph-enhanced patient education material on tracheostomy care for patients with head and neck cancers and their family caregivers. 

Joan K. Stout, RN, Research Grant

>Natalie Murphy, PhD, MSN, BSN (Nu Chi Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Evaluating the Effects of an LGBTQ Educational Program on the Attitudes and Knowledge of Undergraduate Nursing Students
The purpose of this research study is to determine if knowledge and attitudes of undergraduate nursing students toward the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) population change after participation in an interactive six hour long learning module.

Sigma Global Nursing Research Grant

Brittney van de Water, PhD, MSN, BSN (Beta Epsilon Chapter, USA)
Karl W le Roux, MBChB (South Africa)
Mercedes Becerra, ScD, ScM (USA)

Title of Project: Reach, Implementation, and Effectiveness of a Tuberculosis Preventive Therapy Intervention in Rural South Africa 

The study will assess the reach, implementation, and effectiveness of a nurse-led home based intervention designed to deliver tuberculosis (TB) preventive therapy.

Sigma/Alpha Eta Collaborative Research Grant

Nickcy Mbuthia, PhD, MAN, BScN (Tau Lambda at-Large Chapter, Kenya)

Title of Project: Clinical Deterioration Recognition and Response by General Ward Nurses in Coastal Kenya
The study aims to understand the knowledge, practice and experiences of the nurses in caring for the acutely ill in the general wards, their ability to recognize, respond, and escalate patient deterioration, and the factors that influence this role.

Sigma/American Nurses Foundation Grant

Linda Kim, PhD, MSN, BSN (Gamma Tau at-Large Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Association Between Burnout, DNA Methylation, and Work Environment Among Interprofessional Clinical and Non-Clinical Staff
The purpose of this study is to assess the feasibility of using DNA methylation (DNAm) as a biomarker of burnout and to identify work conditions associated with burnout.

Sigma/American Nurses Credentialing Center Evidence-Based Practice Implementation Grant Program

Christine Mullins, DNP, BSN, (Epsilon Sigma at-Large Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Implementation of an Evidence-based Suicide Prevention Program for a Primary Care Network of Clinics in Rural Appalachia
The purpose of this project is to implement an evidence-based (EB) suicide prevention (SP) resource guide with a suicide-prevention point-of-care (SP POC) contact for PCPs and nurses in rural Appalachia to enhance assessment and referral process.

Sigma/Association of Nurses in AIDS Care Grant

Karen Geiger, BSN (USA)

Title of Project: The Effects of MDR-TB Treatment on HIV Viral Suppression in MDR-TB/HIV Co-infected Patients in South Africa
The purpose of this study is to investigate the clinical impact of treatment for MDR-TB on HIV viral suppression in MDR-TB/HIV co-infected patients in South Africa.

Sigma/Association of Perioperative Registered Nurses Grant

Ellen Rich, PhD, RN, FNP, FAANP ( USA)

Title of Project: The Lived Experience of Perioperative and Ambulatory Registered Nurses
Displaced to Acute Care Settings During the COVID-19 Pandemic at an Urban Specialty Hospital: A Phenomenological Study.
The purpose of this study is to describe perioperative and ambulatory registered nurses’ experiences caring for medical patients on acute care units in an orthopedic specialty hospital that had been converted to accommodate the surge of COVID-19 positive patients at an academic medical center in New York City..

Sigma/ATI Educational Assessment Nursing Research Grant

Julie Fitzwater, MNE, BSN (Xi Mu Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Using Simulation to Develop Clinical Teaching Competencies in Nurse Educators
The purpose of this pilot study is to determine if simulation is an effective method to increase teaching competencies in novice clinical nurse educators by examining behaviors to provide constructive formative feedback.

Sigma/Canadian Nurses Foundation Grant

Pamela Baxter, PhD, MSN, BSN (Lambda Pi at-Large Chapter, Canada)

Title of Project: Nurse leaders in LTC: Preventing, Identifying, Managing and Reporting Resident-to-Resident Aggression 
The purpose of this study is to understand nurse leaders’ (Directors of Care, unit managers, facility administrators) experiences with, and responses to, resident-to-resident aggression (RRA) in long-term care (LTC) homes in Ontario, Canada.
Baxter 
“Data gathered from the current study will be useful in designing, implementing and evaluating interventions aimed at developing nurse leaders in the area of RRA prevention and management.”
— Pamela Baxter, PhD, MSN, BSN
McMaster University

Sigma/Chamberlain College of Nursing Education Research Grants

Elizabeth Van Horn, PhD, MSN, BSN (Gamma Zeta Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Exploration of Competence in New Graduate Nurses 
The purposes of this study are to: 1) explore the concept of competence in new graduate nurses, including its definition and evaluation in the hospital setting; and 2) provide foundational data to design and conduct a larger study of nursing education programs and their evaluation of end-of-program competence in nursing students.

Yolanda VanRiel, PhD, MSN, BSN (Gamma Zeta Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Exploration of RN to BSN Students Intent for Faculty Role
The purpose of this study is to explore RN to BSN students' intent to pursue a faculty role.

Vanriel headshot
“The study findings will provide numbers of RN to BSN students who may pursue faculty positions and the strategies that may increase or enable that pursuit. This will be one of the first studies to provide this information to impact the faculty shortage.”
— Yolanda VanRiel, PhD, MSN, MBA, BSN
University of North Carolina at Greensboro

Sigma/Council for Advancement of Nursing Science Grant

Laura Beth Ann Kalvas, MSN, BSN (Epsilon, USA)

Title of Project: Sleep Disruption and Delirium in Critically Ill Children 
The purpose of this observational, repeated measures dissertation study is to develop a measurement framework that illustrates the relationship between selected modifiable characteristics of the pediatric critical care environment (i.e., light and sound exposure, care giving frequency), sleep disruption, and delirium in a sample of 20 critically ill children 0 to 2 years of age.

Sigma/Emergency Nurses Association Foundation Grant

Pamela Bourg, PhD, RN, TCRN, FAEN (Alpha Kappa at-Large, USA)

Title of Project: Frailty Scores/O2 Reduction Potential in Acutely Injured Trauma Patients.
The goal of this study will be to determine if new plasma biomarker of oxidative reduction potential (ORP) continues to correlate with frailty scale measured at the time of trauma admission remains predictive and to determine what the outcomes of patients who are admitted to trauma and correlation of the frailty score to the patient outcome.

Sigma/Hospice and Palliative Nurses Foundation End of Life Nursing Care Research Grant

Carrie Henry, MSN, BSN (Alpha Epsilon Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Relationships Among Strong Black Womanhood Belief, Coping Behaviors, Social Support, and Psychological Distress for Black Mothers After Stillbirth 
The purpose of the study is to describe the coping behaviors and psychological distress symptoms of Black mothers who experience a stillbirth and to examine the mechanisms by which the Black mothers adoption of the Strong Black Womanhood imperative promotes or hinders positive coping. 

Sigma/Jonas Philanthropies Collaborative Research Grant

Jean Davis, PhD, DNP, EdD, MSN, BSN (Theta Epsilon Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Exercise Habits for Veterans 
The purpose of the study is to pilot test the innovative VetPA4Life physical activity (PA) habit formation program for veterans.

Kayla Herbell, PhD, RN (Alpha Iota Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Determining the Influence of Parent Mental Health on Two-Generation Outcomes in Families with Children in Residential Treatment
The purpose of the study is to test relationships among contextual factors (parent, child, RT), parents, mental health symptoms (depression, anxiety, PTSD, perceived stress), and two-generation outcomes (positive parenting practices, children's MEB symptoms).

Kelly Wierenga, PhD, MSN, BSN (Alpha Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Emotion regulation intervention to sustain physical activity in rural-dwelling women and men after myocardial infractions
This proposed 2-group, randomized, controlled pilot study is to evaluate preliminary efficacy of a nurse led, theoretically based emotion regulation intervention (POWER) remotely to improve MVPA among a vulnerable group of survivors of MI living in rural areas of southern Indiana.

Sigma/Midwest Nursing Research Society Research Grant

Wan-chin Kuo, PhD, BSN (Beta Eta Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Gender Differences in Behavioral and Cardiometabolic Responses under Financial Stress: A Longitudinal Analysis Using the Health and Retirement Study
The purpose of this study is to understand the behavioral and cardiometabolic responses under chronic stress (e.g., perceived stress, financial stress, and life events), and its gender differences in adults transitioning from middle-age to older age. 

Sigma/National Association of Hispanic Nurses Research Grant

Karen Fowler, PhD, MSN, BSN (Delta Kappa Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: Trauma in Hispanic Nursing Students: Is Resilience and Learning Impeded?
The purpose of the study is to investigate how the trauma experiences of Hispanic Nursing Students influence their resilience and academic learning. 

Sigma/Oncology Nursing Society Grant

Rachel K. Walker, PhD, RN (USA)

Title of Project: At Home Detection of Antineoplastic Drugs and Hazardous Metabolites in Body Fluids
The long-term goal of this projects is to improve patients' and caregivers' ability to self-manage exposure risks by developing a low-cost device for home use that can detect antineoplastic agents and their hazardous metabolites in body fluids such as urine, semen and vaginal fluid and breastmilk.

Sigma/Southern Nursing Research Society Grant

Eunju Choi, PhD, MSN, BSN (Epsilon Theta Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: The Use of Social Media to Explore the Unmet Needs of Adolescents and Young Adults with Cancer
The study will be rooted in the works of Adler, who initiated the idea that understanding human beings requires a holistic view of each individual and will utilize the Supportive Care Framework for Cancer Care  including seven domains (physical, psychosocial, social, spiritual, emotional, practical, and informational).

Sigma/Western Institute of Nursing Research Grant

Sharon Ruyak, PhD, MSN, RN (Gamma Sigma Chapter, USA)

Title of Project: The Effect of Prenatal Opioid and Alcohol Exposure on Key Placental Immune and Serotonin Factors influenced by TLR4 Signaling Pathways
This proposal will be highly innovative addressing the growing public health crisis of opioid use/misuse in pregnant women and children.
Ruyak
“This proposal is highly innovative addressing the growing public health crisis of opioid use/misuse in pregnant women and children. Infants with neonatal opioid withdrawal syndrome (NOWS) experience increased rates of respiratory and feeding difficulties, low birth weight, and seizures increasing hospital length of stay and placing an estimated US $1.5 billion/year burden on the US healthcare system.”

—Sharon Ruyak, PhD, MSN, RN
University of New Mexico