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Restoring, Protecting, And Expanding Abortion Access In The United States: Seeking Consensus Through The Delphi Method, Sarah Pickering

Dissertations and Theses

Background: The Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization Supreme Court decision exacerbated inequitable access to abortion in the US. Agreement is needed on which strategies should be prioritized to restore, protect, and expand abortion access.

Methods: We convened a multidisciplinary, geographically diverse Delphi panel of clinical, research, policy, legal, and advocacy experts to reach consensus (i.e., agreement >67%) on recommended actions. Using feedback from three rounds of surveys, and input from a select expert advisory group (N=10), we iteratively refined the statements and recommendations.

Results: The panel (N=85) developed 25 consensus statements and 32 recommendations for action by advocates, funders, …

Application Of Methods To Population-Based Surveys To Reduce Bias In Estimates Of Sars-Cov-2 Infection Burden In The Population, Saba Qasmieh

Dissertations and Theses

BACKGROUND: Population-based surveys designed to randomly sample the population can be a critical and complementary tool to traditional surveillance approaches. Probability-based surveys enable the measurement of SARS-CoV-2 testing and outcomes that avoid issues around self-selection into testing, making them an effective approach to address ascertainment bias in passive surveillance. For surveys to be a useful and reliable surveillance tool for understanding the burden and distribution of SARS-CoV-2 infection, they need to capture prevalence estimates that are both valid and reliable to be optimally informative for public health measures. The dissertation was undertaken to address three main gaps that have implications …

Factors Associated With Racial And Ethnic Disparities In Cesarean Delivery Among Women With Low-Risk Pregnancies At New York City Hospitals, 2012-2017, Ellen Brazier

Dissertations and Theses

BACKGROUND: While Cesarean delivery is a life-saving procedure when certain complications arise, it is associated with increased risks of maternal mortality and morbidity, as well as neonatal and childhood morbidities, and increased risks for women during subsequent pregnancies. Stark and persistent racial/ethnic disparities in Cesarean delivery that are not explained by clinical risks raise concerns about overuse of the procedure, as well as the contribution of potentially avoidable Cesareans to disparities in maternal mortality and morbidity. Understanding the extent to which disparities in Cesarean delivery may be attributable to differences in care during labor is critical for addressing these disparities. …

The Role Of Strategic Governance In Reducing Infant Mortality Under Crisis Conditions, Lynn Christine Finley

Dissertations and Theses

The infant mortality rate (IMR) in some developing countries has decreased faster than the global average even though these countries lack strong economic growth, good governance, and democracy (often acknowledged precursors to improved health outcomes). What accounts for the improvement of the IMR in the absence of these traditional pathways to health gains? Some scholars suggest that the concept of "strategic governance" might help direct attention to intermediary factors that reduce neonatal deaths in countries that experience crisis conditions. The main objective of this dissertation is to investigate the set of governance practices that have reduced IMR in two such …

Burdern Of Chronic Health Conditions And Healthcare Utilization Among Mobile Populations In Sub-Saharan Africa, Elizabeth M. Ortiz

Dissertations and Theses

Background: Much of public health research in sub-Saharan Africa on mobile occupations, such as truck drivers and sex workers, has focused on HIV risk. However, evidence is emerging to suggest that the HIV epidemic among these groups is coupled with a high prevalence of chronic health conditions (CHC), specifically hypertension, diabetes, and obesity. For people living with HIV, increased risk of CHC may also be linked to HIV-related chronic inflammatory cascade. In Africa, there has been little research on CHC risk factors or patterns of healthcare utilization among mobile populations. Therefore, the objectives of this study are to examine the …

Fungal Endophytes In A Seed-Free Host: New Species That Demonstrate Unique Community Dynamics, Brett Steven Younginger

Dissertations and Theses

Fungal endophytes are highly diverse, cryptic plant endosymbionts that form asymptomatic infections within host tissue. They represent a large fraction of the millions of undescribed fungal taxa on our planet with some demonstrating mutualistic benefits to their hosts including herbivore and pathogen defense and abiotic stress tolerance. Other endophytes are latent saprotrophs or pathogens, awaiting host plant senescence to begin alternative stages of their life cycles. Most, however, are likely plant commensals with no observable benefits to their hosts while under study. Yet, when considering the context-dependence that may determine plant resistance to pathogen attack, the consortium of endophytes present …

Incorporating Place And Space: A Hierarchical Spatial Approach To Exploring Preventable Congestive Heart Failure Hospitalizations In New York City, Rachael Weiss Riley

Dissertations and Theses

Background: Faced with rising medical care costs, increasing prevalence, and widening health disparities, preventing congestive heart failure (CHF) hospitalizations is a central public health concern. Despite evidence of geographical clustering in preventable CHF admissions, there is a lack of research designed to examine spatial patterning of CHF and the local area neighborhood determinants that contribute to this variability. This study sought to assess and evaluate the importance of both space and place in analyzing preventable CHF hospitalizations and readmissions by applying appropriate statistical techniques, clarifying the assumption inherent in each method, and interpreting the findings within the context of existing …

Pharmaceutical Contaminants As Stressors On Rocky Intertidal And Estuarine Organisms: A Case Study Of Fluoxetine, Joseph Richard Peters

Dissertations and Theses

Contaminants such as pharmaceuticals are of increasing concern due to their ubiquitous use and persistence in surface waters worldwide. Limited attention has been paid to the effects of pharmaceuticals on marine life, despite widespread detection of these contaminants in the marine environment. Of the existing studies, the majority assess the negative effects of pharmaceuticals over an exposure period of 30 days or less and focus on cellular and subcellular biomarkers. Longer studies are required to determine if chronic contaminant exposure poses risks to marine life at environmentally relevant concentrations. Also scarce in the literature is examination of whole organism effects …