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Last summer, four undergraduate Bachelor of Science in Nursing (BSN) Honors students, Mia Murphy, Melina Connell, Taylor Monturo, and Mary Grace Vavruska, participated in nursing research with Dr. Jo Dowell in the College of Nursing as part of the 5X���� Summer Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) program. Sponsored by the Division of Research and Sponsored Programs, Office of the President, and other individuals, departments, colleges, and institutes, the SURE program provides an invaluable opportunity for students to develop research skills and experience through direct work with and mentorship by a 5X���� faculty member. Stipends and on-campus housing are provided for eight weeks to support undergraduate researchers.

All four students assisted Dr. Jo Dowell, Ph.D., APRN, CNP, PNP, FNP-BC, CFNE, Associate Professor and Co-Director of the Ph.D. Program for the College of Nursing. According to a recent Ohio Department of Health report, nearly 190,000 children in Ohio suffer from asthma, leading to decreased overall health and quality of life and increased healthcare costs. To improve asthma symptom management for children, Dr. Dowell investigates the relationship between children with asthma, their caregivers, and healthcare providers in the context of cultural competency. Students helped Dr. Dowell with her current research study, Asthma Metered-Dose Inhaler (MDI) Spacers: Decreasing the Risk for Loss and Cost, assisting with prototype development, participant recruitment, survey analysis, and future design enhancements.

Effective management of childhood asthma depends on the timely and reliable delivery of asthma medication using a metered-dose inhaler (MDI) attached to a mouthpiece or mask. When taking corticosteroid medicine, children typically require the use of a spacer, or aerosol-holding chamber, attached to the MDI to slow delivery of the medication and ensure that it reaches the lungs instead of the mouth and throat. However, spacers may be easily misplaced and are not highly portable, leading to decreased use and less effective asthma treatment and management.

To allow for easier access to MDI spacers, Dr. Dowell and her four SURE program students engaged in an intervention study to create, test, and analyze a Chee Sleeve prototype. Comprised of a stretchable material that fits snugly around the MDI spacer, the Chee Sleeve includes a key ring for easy attachment to a keychain, handbag, or tote to allow for improved accessibility of the device. Monaghan Medical Corporation provided free spacers for the project, and Unifi, Inc. donated fabric for the Chee Sleeve. In addition to mentorship by Dr. Dowell, the SURE students had the opportunity to work collaboratively on the design prototype with Linda Öhrn-McDaniel, Professor of Fashion Design and Merchandising for the 5X���� School of Fashion who also serves as the school’s Design Program Coordinator and Creative Practice Coordinator.

Mia Murphy, currently a junior in the College of Nursing, gravitated toward this program of research early in her college career and continued to assist Dr. Dowell as a SURE program student. She explains, “The program was designed so Honors students could get that first introduction to the world of nursing research. I chose Dr. Dowell due to my history with childhood asthma and my love of helping people, especially children.” Mia has enjoyed working on the Chee Sleeve to help alleviate barriers to effective asthma management and plans to continue research in this area to complete her honors thesis. She reports that the research team is still testing the product, gathering and analyzing user feedback, and perfecting the prototype for widespread distribution. Reflecting on the benefits of participating in the summer SURE program, she notes, “The program gave me and my group the chance to dive deeper into the research and planning process. During the school year, there is little time for extra projects and research ideas when juggling classes, clinicals, and studying. I believe the program gave me a chance to really get involved in research.”

Fellow SURE student Melina Connell, also a junior at the College of Nursing, reports similar advantages to her participation in the program during the summer of 2022. With a passion for helping people and an interest in the medical field, nursing provided an ideal educational and career pathway. To assist Dr. Dowell, Melina helped with recruiting and educating study participants, obtaining their consent, sending out informational project packets with the Chee Sleeve prototype, following up with a modified version of the National Institutes of Health (NIH) usability survey, and receiving and analyzing results, as well as discussing next steps for the research project. Melina’s summer SURE experience proved to be a positive one in terms of gaining practical research experience and solidifying future academic goals. She notes that “The SURE program helped me gain a better understanding of research, expanded my mind to think about higher-level things, and gave me a good look into what my future could look like if I decide to pursue a master’s degree.”

SURE, program participant Taylor Monturo decided to pursue nursing education and a career in the healthcare field after feeling inspired by early and positive experiences with nurses providing care. Taylor is currently a junior in the College of Nursing with plans to graduate in May of 2024 and pursue graduate education to become a certified registered nurse anesthetist (CRNA). With other members of the team, Taylor worked with Dr. Dowell to research and create the Chee Sleeve prototype with the goals of increasing accessibility of MDI spacers and reducing expenses incurred by their loss. She also helped to send out the prototype sleeve to ten participating families to test for two weeks and evaluate post-test NIH usability survey responses to make improvements to the prototype. Taylor hopes to continue assisting Dr. Dowell with this research project, stating that “The SURE program was a great way to introduce myself to the research process and what all is involved with it.”

Like other SURE program students assisting with Dr. Dowell’s research project, College of Nursing junior Mary Grace Vavruska was drawn to the healthcare field at an early age. She explains, “I wanted to use my love of the sciences to help take care of people.” Mary Grace gained experience with many facets of the research process, including analyzing participant feedback for the Chee Sleeve and using these suggestions to improve the prototype. “We looked at what they would change about the prototype, what they thought was good, and if they would use the prototype again among other questions to test the prototype’s usability,” she notes. Mary Grace plans to continue working with Dr. Dowell and complete an honors thesis focused on this area of research. Working with Dr. Dowell and the research team helped clarify both her short- and long-term goals. She affirms, “The SURE program helped me get a better understanding of research and what it takes to complete a usability study. In terms of my future goals, the program has better prepared me for my post-graduate plans of getting a master’s after graduation and spending time working in the hospital.”

As part of their initial experience with this research project, all four SURE students delivered the presentation, MDI Spacer Chee Sleeve: A Prototype to Decrease the Risk for Misplacement, for the 5X���� Undergraduate Research Symposium for Research, Scholarship and Creative Endeavors last Spring with plans to present their collective work at a SURE program event later in the year. Dr. Dowell believes that her students gained valuable insights and experience through their participation as student researchers funded by the SURE program. “The SURE program provides an exciting research opportunity for our students to learn what is involved in the research process,” she notes. “It has been a pleasure to work with students and watch them grow. The students participate in all parts of the research process.”

Learn about the 2023 SURE program.

(Pictured from left: Mary Grace Vavruska, Melina Connell, Taylor Monturo, and Mia Murphy)