Minority mental health patients face many health inequities and inequalities that may stem from implicit bias and a lack of cultural awareness from their healthcare providers. I analyzed the current literature evaluating implicit bias among healthcare providers and culturally specific life traumas that Latinos and African Americans face that can impact their mental health. Additionally, I researched a current mental health assessments tool, the Child and Adolescent Trauma Survey (CATS), and evaluated it for the use on Latino and African American patients. Face-to-face interviews with two healthcare providers were also used to analyze the CATS for its’ applicability to Latino and African American patients. Results showed that these assessments were not sufficient in capturing culturally specific life traumas of minority patients. Based on the literature review and analysis of the interviews with healthcare providers, a novel assessment tool, the Culturally Traumatic Events Questionnaire (CTEQ), was created to address the gaps that currently make up other mental health assessment tools used on minority patients.

In this creative project, I created arrangements for string quartet of two very common pop songs that are frequently requested at wedding gigs, "Perfect" by Ed Sheeran and "Purpose" by Justin Bieber. However, to meet the demands of the dynamic gigging environment and context for string musicians, I created string quartet arrangements that could be adapted and condensed into string trio or duo by eliminating one or two parts from the full quartet arrangement. As such, this project not only shares the adaptable arrangements I created, but also shares the tips and tricks I gathered throughout the course of the project, both from engaging in the creative aspect of the arranging process and also through my own personal experience.

Nursing burnout is a predominant issue for the modern nurse and must be more fully addressed for the health and success of the field and the individuals who make it up. Mindfulness exhibits efficacy in multiple studies as an intervention for burnout and should thus be considered as an option for treatment and prevention of this issue. The creation of the included mindfulness workbook allows nurses to assess and address their specific level of burnout in a cost-effective manner.