Defense Date

7-16-2021

Graduation Date

Summer 8-7-2021

Submission Type

Dissertation/Thesis

Degree Name

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP)

Department

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Program

School

School of Nursing

Faculty Mentor

Denise Lucas

Keywords

rural, elderly adults, telemonitoring, hypertension

Abstract

Individuals in rural areas of the U.S. have less healthcare access in large part due to access barriers, and include travel and wait time, distance to a provider, cost, transportation, and social and cultural components. Rural individuals have been found to be in poorer health and have higher rates of being uninsured and having chronic disease. These disparities lead to rural individuals requiring more expensive acute care once they are at the point of receiving care. A significant burden is placed on the individual and health system. The rates of emergency department (ED) use in rural areas increased 70% from 2005 to 2016. In the county where this project will take place the number of hospitalizations was 74.7 per 1,000 population in 2017. In 2019, there were 526 more preventable hospital stays than the State average. The County also has a higher prevalence of cardiovascular disease and diabetes when compared to the State average. This project will use a home telemonitoring system to decrease the acute care utilization rate of rural residents in the county by 10%, as well as evaluate chronic disease maintenance and risk reduction of such a program. The project aims to reduce health disparity gaps in a rural, elderly population.

Language

English

Download
COinS