Digital Commons Network^™

Private And Federated Deep Learning: System, Theory, And Applications For Social Good, Han Hu

Dissertations

During the past decade, drug abuse continues to accelerate towards becoming the most severe public health problem in the United States. The ability to detect drug­abuse risk behavior at a population scale, such as among the population of Twitter users, can help to monitor the trend of drug­abuse incidents. However, traditional methods do not effectively detect drug­abuse risk behavior in tweets, mainly due to the sparsity of such tweets and the noisy nature of tweets. In the first part of this dissertation work, the task of classifying tweets as containing drug­abuse risk behavior or not, is studied. Millions of public …

Hydrophobically Modified Isosorbide Dimethacrylates As Biomaterials For Bisphenol A Free Dental Fillings, Bilal Marie

Dissertations

Amalgam and Bisphenol A glycerolate dimethacrylate (BisGMA) are the main dental filling materials in use today. Because of the negative perception of amalgam and its lower esthetic appeal, as well as the desire to replace the endocrine disruptor Bisphenol A, which is the building block of BisGMA, there has been a critical need to search for safer alternatives to these dental filling materials.

Isosorbide is a sugar-based molecule generally recognized as safe. It has been extensively studied as a replacement to the Bisphenol A core in various materials. However, isosorbide is extremely hygroscopic, and water uptake in dental fillings causes …

Psychological Distress During The Covid-19 Pandemic In Nursing Students: A Mixed Methods Study, Mayantoinette Watson

Dissertations

During such an unprecedented time of the largest public health crisis, the COVID-19 pandemic, nursing students are of the utmost concern regarding their psychological and physical well-being. Questions are emerging and circulating about what will happen to the nursing students and the long-term effects of the pandemic, especially now that hospitals are being overwhelmed with COVID-19 cases and patients as well as a significant need for nursing staff (Jividen, 2020). Expectations, demands, change, and the fear of the unknown during this unprecedented time can only contribute to the many stressors that accompany nursing students through laborious clinical and didactic courses …

Parametric Characteristics Of The B6omsi-Re, Sarahelizabeth Janemarie Baguhn

Dissertations

Orientation and mobility specialists for young children who are blind or visually impaired have relied on informal assessments or commercially available tools designed for sighted children to track developmental progress. When Bradley-Johnson (1994) literally wrote the book on assessment in blindness, the sharing and refinement of common tools led to professionals working in teams to sift and winnow the checklists, and move the best available tools into wider circulation. This has led to the evolution of the practitioner made tools becoming the published tools, although they have not yet had statistical evidence to support their efficacy. This three-paper dissertation aims …

The Role Of Youth Characteristics, Home Ecology, And Child Maltreatment In The Severity Of Problematic Sexual Behaviors And Conduct Problems, Ariel K. Berman

Dissertations

A multitude of individual, familial, and environmental variables have previously been identified as contributing to the development of problematic sexual behaviors (PSB) and general conduct problems (CP) in youth. The majority of these studies have focused either on individual youth characteristics or parenting behaviors such as child maltreatment. Although researchers examining contributions to PSB and CP generally acknowledge the importance of the impact of the home environment on youth behavior, few researchers have included family characteristics of both parents and siblings in their analyses. Additionally, some factors that have been identified as having great importance in general juvenile delinquency, such …

Mental Health Treatment In Juvenile Correctional Facilities: Utilizing Assessment To Inform Treatment, Sarah Riccio

Dissertations

Youth in juvenile correctional facilities face a wide range of mental health difficulties. Over the years, the juvenile justice system has prioritized the need for providing appropriate and effective treatment services to youth throughout their detainment. Despite these ongoing efforts, treatment practices in juvenile correctional facilities continue to fall short. This study will first focus on assessment practices within these facilities and the impact current practices have on diagnosis and subsequent treatment. Emphasis will be placed on the importance of comprehensive evaluations for informing diagnosis and determining the individual treatment needs of detained youth. An integrated approach to assessment will …

Lxr Acts As A Differentiator In The Regulation Of Fas And G6pdh Gene Expression Under Insulin Resistant Conditions, Jaafar Hachem

Dissertations

Diabetes is a chronic disease that effects 10 percent of the world’s population and causes more than 1.5 million deaths a year and billions of dollars in associated health care cost. It can lead to very serious complications such as renal failure, liver cirrhosis, heart attack, and vision loss. The most common type of diabetes is type 2 diabetes. Type 2 diabetes arises when blood glucose levels remain chronically high due to insulin resistance. The reason for this elevation is due to the failure of insulin to allow tissues to uptake glucose causing problems in subsequent metabolic pathways. Over the …

Informing Cognitive Screening In The Young Adult Population, Samantha L. Mcdaniel

Dissertations

The clock drawing test (CDT) is a cognitive screening measure with sound psychometric properties which has been well researched over the past century. The CDT is a popular tool for many healthcare professionals to administer independently or as part of a more thorough cognitive evaluation. Given the drastic technological and social developments over the years since the CDT was developed as well as the persistent research focus on older adult populations, a gap in the CDT literature presented for young adults, who may have difficulty drawing an analog clock. Identifying cognitive impairment can improve health outcomes. The young adult population …

Blood Pressure Management And Factors Affecting Adherence To Antihypertensive Medications In The United Arab Emirates, Akshaya Srikanth Bhagavathula

Dissertations

Hypertension is a significant public health problem worldwide and is a major modifiable risk factor for cardiovascular disease. The dynamics of guidelines-recommended blood pressure (BP) control and adherence to antihypertensive medications in incident hypertensives remain unclear. This dissertation aims to assess guidelines-recommended BP management, adherence to antihypertensive medications, and factors associated with poor BP control among newly diagnosed hypertensive patients in the UAE. A retrospective chart review of 5308 newly treated hypertensives across the emirate of Abu Dhabi, UAE, in 2017 was conducted. These patients were diagnosed by the treating physician according to ambulatory (ABPM), or home-based BP monitoring (HBPM) …

Evaluation Of Lifestyle Modification Program For Polycystic Ovary Syndrome In Infertile Women, Kelly Batton

Dissertations

Abstract

Problem: Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) affects a large proportion of the female population worldwide. PCOS can have a wide variety of health implications for the woman including difficulty achieving pregnancy.

Methods: A retrospective chart review of 368 patient records were assessed for inclusion criteria yielding 163 patients with PCOS suffering from infertility. Demographic and health data were gathered for each patient to provide a baseline comparison between the first two quarters of 2019 and the first two quarters of 2020.

Results: The results of the study were mixed. Patients who lost weight did have a higher positive pregnancy rate. …

Resuscitation Quality Improvement Mortality Rates, Jordan Priest

Dissertations

This paper explores and answers the question: What is the impact of Resuscitation Quality Improvement on survival at discharge rates after suffering an IHCA when compared to every two-year BLS/ACLS training? Articles are explored that identify positive patients’ outcomes when resuscitation training is repetitively learned. The design consists of a BLS/ACLS and RQI evaluation of quarterly survival to discharge rates prior to the initiation of the new RQI program and after the initiation of the new RQI program. The setting of the study is the east region of a midwestern faith-based health care system, that includes four hospitals in one …

Standardized Screening For Peripheral Artery Disease In Primary Setting, Tamara Tomlin

Dissertations

Problem: Peripheral artery disease (PAD) affects eight million Americans and is the third leading cause of death in the U.S. in people 60-85 years of age. Veterans are at a 45% greater risk to develop PAD than non-veterans. Left untreated, PAD can progress to hospitalization for revascularization, amputation, or death. The American Heart Association (AHA) recommends using a standardized screening tool for the diagnosis of PAD; however, a lack of standardized screening is problematic in veterans receiving proper intervention.

Methods: This quality improvement (QI) project utilized a descriptive, observational design. The American Heart Association (AHA) screening tool was administered by …

Leadership Engagement For Military Hospitals: A Case Study Of The Effects Of Executive Leader Engagement In Military Hospitals That Have Become High Reliability Organizations, Russell Phillips

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this qualitative case study was to explore and explain the leadership strategies that military hospital executive leaders used to engage hospital staff in implementing the six principles of High Reliability Organizations (HROs).

Methodology: A qualitative case study approach was selected for this study. Interviews were conducted with three executive leaders describing their experiences with initiating and managing the change development of HRO. The participants in this study were executive leaders of military hospitals across the Puget Sound Military Health System. All participants had direct experience with the implementation of HRO. Interview transcripts were analyzed and reviewed …

The Alexander House Apostolate Marital Relationship Education Results: A Quantitative Study, Angel Estrada

Dissertations

According to existing literature, 27 components contribute to the concept of couple’s relationship satisfaction. Some of these components are included in non-religious and religious marital relationship education (MRE) programs. Research on nonreligious MREs spans decades; however, research on Catholic MRE programs is limited and not widely published. The purpose of this research was to evaluate the effectiveness of one Catholic, faith-based, couples’ MRE on impacting relationship satisfaction, and determine if specific religious and behavioral practices contributed to relationship satisfaction. The study was conducted with archival data collected from a population of mostly Catholic Latino and White couples in south central …

How Domestic Violence Counselors With Personal Histories Of Trauma Experience Their Clients Who Were Victims Of Domestic Violence: A Heuristic Study, Janis Edralin

Dissertations

The heuristic inquiry-based phenomenological approach values focusing on a question or problem that has been a personal challenge in one’s quest to understand oneself and the phenomenon. Previous research has shown that counselors with a personal history of trauma who provide services to victims with a similar history report a range of negative consequences. The researcher utilized a heuristic research design to answer the following question: How do domestic violence counselors who have personal histories of trauma experience their clients who were victims of domestic violence? The methodology involved interviewing eight counselors, from whom four themes were identified: awareness of …

Characterization Of The Lining Epithelium Of Normal And Precancerous Uterine Cervix In Mice, Reem Mamoun Shouk

Dissertations

Despite the fact that cervical cancer is a common health issue among women worldwide, little is known regarding the epithelial lining of the uterine cervix where cancer originates. Cancer development involves alterations in carbohydrate expression and changes in the dynamics of cellular proliferation and differentiation. Therefore, the aim of this study was to define carbohydrate moieties and cellular dynamics of the epithelial lining of the uterine cervix in normal mice and then in mice developing cervical precancerous lesions. Since the uterus undergoes cyclic changes, mice in each of the four stages of the estrus cycle were first identified using both …

Molecular Mechanism Of Action Of The Natural Polyphenolic Compound And The P300 Inhibitor “Carnosol” Against The Triple Negative Breast Cance, Halima Ali Mohammed Salem Alsamri

Dissertations

Carnosol, a naturally occurring Phyto polyphenol found in sage, oregano, and rosemary, has been extensively studied by our laboratory for its anticancer effects in various types of cancer. In human Triple-Negative Breast Cancer (TNBC), carnosol was shown to inhibit cellular viability, colony growth, induced cell cycle arrest, autophagy, and apoptosis. Nonetheless, very little is known about the molecular mechanism of action. In the current study, the ability of carnosol to inhibit metastasis and tumour growth was examined. Wound healing and invasion assays revealed that carnosol inhibited migration and invasion at non-cytotoxic concentrations of MDA-MB-231 cells. Also, carnosol was found to …

Role Of Ebv In Neuroinflammation: Implications For Multiple Sclerosis Pathogenesis, Asma Hassani

Dissertations

Multiple sclerosis (MS) is a demyelinating disease of the CNS with unknown cause. Individuals who are genetically predisposed and exposed to specific environmental factors have an increased risk of developing MS. Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) infection is linked to MS development, according to a large body of seroepidemiological and pathological evidence. EBV is a ubiquitous human herpesvirus that typically produces silent infection but can also cause a wide range of illnesses. A large cohort of MS and non-MS control cases has been previously examined and revealed the prevalent presence of EBV in MS. However, the role of the virus in the …

Benzodiazepine Reduction Program In A Psychiatric Mental Health Setting, Tracy Pacini

Dissertations

Benzodiazepine Reduction Program in a Psychiatric Mental Health Setting

The purpose of this pilot project was to reduce side effects and adverse effects of long-term benzodiazepines (BZDs) use in a non-profit community health center. This was a quality improvement project. The evidence-based practice (EBP) framework identified for the project was from the Institute for Healthcare Improvement (IHI) Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) framework to decrease BZD use in a non-profit community health center. This model is focused on four stages: 1) gathering a proactive healthcare team to examine and identify solutions to reduce BZD usage, 2) testing the pilot program that the team …

Implementing The Richmond Agitation-Sedation Scale To Assess Delirium In A Pediatric Icu, Leigh Paridy

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this quality improvement project was to establish early identification of delirium in the intensive care setting to reduce the impact of long-term patient outcomes. Description of project: A retrospective-prospective medical chart review was completed. The retrospective chart review looked at fifty-two patients admitted to the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU) between October 1, 2020 and December 1, 2020 for patient demographics and State Behavior Scale (SBS) and the Cornell Assessment for Pediatric Delirium (CAPD) charting compliance especially with children with developmental delay and those with a high susceptibility to delirium. The prospective chart review looked at …

Detection Of Breast Cancer In African American Women Using Walk-In Mammography, Munachi Nwosu

Dissertations

Abstract

Problem: Breast cancer is a life-threatening condition, in which the prognosis could potentially worsen with a delay in the detection and commencement of treatment. Scheduling patients for mammograms continues to allow for long wait times that exist in screening mammography. Lower rates of participation in scheduled screening mammograms contributes to the increased rate of advanced breast cancer diagnosis that exit in African American women and threatens their health outcomes. The purpose of this project was to implement walk-in mammography to increase participation for early breast cancer detection.

Methods: An observational descriptive design with a retrospective chart review. A PDSA …

Impact Of Counselor Wellness On Positive And Negative Consequences Of Covid-19 Shared Trauma, Monique Rahman

Dissertations

This study sought to explore how the shared trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted Texan counselors both positively and negatively, as well as the mediating or moderating effect of counselor wellness. Negative consequences of stress such as secondary traumatic stress, burnout and compassion fatigue were explored, but also positive consequences such as compassion satisfaction and post-traumatic growth. Measures such as the Five Factor Wellness Inventory (FFWEL), the Shared traumatic and Professional Posttraumatic Growth Inventory (STPPGI), and the Professional Quality of Life Measure (ProQOL) will be utilized in addition to demographic questions and COVID-19 stress related questions mirroring Park et …

Telework Intensity, Work-Family Conflict, And Work-Family Balance, During The Covid-19 Pandemic, Timir Jayesh Bharucha

Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic has led to increased popularity, application, and utilization of telework. To vastly reduce the spread of COVID-19, governmental agencies worldwide have implemented lockdowns and emphasized businesses and corporations should implement telework wherever possible (Anderson & Kelliher, 2020; Belzunegui- Eraso & Erro-Garces, 2020; Buomprisco et al., 2021; Chong et al., 2020; Contreras et al., 2020; Mouratidis & Papagiannakis, 2021; Nguyen, 2021; Oz & Crooks, 2020; Raišienė et al., 2020; Tavares et al., 2020). States of emergency can disturb employees’ workflow and lead to financial difficulties; thus, telework presents an option to reduce that disruption. In such unprecedented times, …

Evaluating Loneliness In An Older Adult Population, Kelli Rowland

Dissertations

Problem: Loneliness and social isolation are severe burdens on global public health and can impair overall health outcomes. Unfortunately, both loneliness and social isolation are prevalent in the older adult population. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to evaluate loneliness in older adults enrolled in a weekly socialization program and its impact on loneliness.

Methods: A descriptive cohort design was utilized to analyze surveys completed three months apart. A convenience sample was used with older adults already enrolled in a weekly socialization program. The Iowa Model of Evidence-Based Practice was applied to evaluate and promote quality …

Multi-Stage Stochastic Optimization And Reinforcement Learning For Forestry Epidemic And Covid-19 Control Planning, Sabah Bushaj

Dissertations

This dissertation focuses on developing new modeling and solution approaches based on multi-stage stochastic programming and reinforcement learning for tackling biological invasions in forests and human populations. Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) is the nemesis of ash trees. This research introduces a multi-stage stochastic mixed-integer programming model to assist forest agencies in managing emerald ash borer insects throughout the U.S. and maximize the public benets of preserving healthy ash trees. This work is then extended to present the first risk-averse multi-stage stochastic mixed-integer program in the invasive species management literature to account for extreme events. Significant computational achievements are obtained using …

Stochastic Programming And Agent-Based Simulation Approaches For Epidemics Control And Logistics Planning, Xuecheng Yin

Dissertations

This dissertation addresses the resource allocation challenges of fighting against infectious disease outbreaks. The goal of this dissertation is to formulate multi-stage stochastic programming and agent-based models to address the limitations of former literature in optimizing resource allocation for preventing and controlling epidemics and pandemics. In the first study, a multi-stage stochastic programming compartmental model is presented to integrate the uncertain disease progression and the logistics of resource allocation to control a highly contagious infectious disease. The proposed multi-stage stochastic program, which involves various disease growth scenarios, optimizes the distribution of treatment centers and resources while minimizing the total expected …

Essays On Health Care Quality: Timeliness, Equity, And Efficiency, Abubakar-Sadiq Bouda Abdulai

Dissertations

According to the National Academy of Medicine (NAM) (formerly called the Institute of Medicine), a quality health care system embodies six attributes: timeliness, equity, safety, efficiency, effectiveness, and patient-centeredness. Timeliness is to avoid unnecessary delays in care delivery for patients and caregivers; equity is to ensure that the quality of care that patients receive does not vary based on their personal characteristics; safety is to ensure that the care that is intended to help patients does not harm them; efficiency is to avoid waste and optimize resource allocation to improve care delivery; effective care is one that relies on sound …

Towards Quality By Design (Qbd) Of Pharmaceutical Oral Films Loaded With Poorly Watersoluble Drugs, Eylul Cetindag

Dissertations

Oral films are an emerging drug delivery dosage form with numerous advantages such as ease of handling, the possibility to circumvent the first-pass metabolism, better patient compliance, capability for continuous manufacturing, and as a platform for personalized medicine. As films are different from other final dosages by their dimensions and their matrix form, further research is required to better understand the impact of excipient and drug on product performance to assure a consistent and good quality product. Therefore, this dissertation aims to contribute towards the processability and manufacturability of films by examining the impact of the materials and processes. First, …

Exploring Fused Deposition Modeling (Fdm) Three-Dimensional Printing Tablet Design Options For Pharmaceutical Dosage Forms, Guluzar Gorkem Buyukgoz

Dissertations

This dissertation examines the use of Fused Deposition Modeling (FDM) based three-dimensional (3D) printing approach for developing patient-specific dosage forms and addressing related technical challenges in such drug delivery systems. The first main objective is to explore pharmaceutical tablet design options using novel FDM 3D printing technology as the drug delivery platform such that drug form and tablet properties are tailored by considering patient age-specific formulations and dissolution control. Of the five different design options, two proposed options meet the main objective of providing similar drug release, whereas the popular option of fixed drug concentration but differing tablet size could …

Veteran Social Network: Peer Support Impact On Mental Health Service Utilization, Stacy A. Harris

Dissertations

Of the 20 million US Veterans, approximately 30% receive health care benefits from the Veterans Affairs system. Research confirms that these Veterans are less likely to seek professional mental health services as a result of a belief that mental illness equates with weakness. Research on peer support with Veterans suggests that Veteran social networks reduce stigma and facilitate help seeking behavior. Most studies on Veteran help seeking for mental health services use subjects who receive health care from the Veterans Health Administration or Department of Defense. The purpose of the current study is to gain an understanding of Veterans who …