Digital Commons Network^™

Vaccine Uptake In The Era Of Covid-19: Associations Between Willingness To Receive The Influenza And Covid-19 Vaccines, Mutaz Alkalbani, Ritsa Frousios, Matilda Francis, Yousef Beidas, Jennifer Ryal, Brynn Sheehan

Virginia Journal of Public Health

Background/purpose. Despite efforts to increase flu vaccine uptake, the rate of vaccination remains below target. Additionally, many Virginians remain unvaccinated or have not maintained a booster schedule in line with recommendations. The current study investigated willingness to receive the flu and COVID-19 vaccines during the COVID-19 pandemic, associations between the likelihood of receiving the two vaccines, and differences in uptake by racial group and insurance status. Methods. Participants were adult patients seen for appointments at an ambulatory clinic in Southeast, VA. Participants completed a questionnaire assessing vaccination history and future vaccination intentions. Results. Results revealed significant associations between having received …

Lessons Learned: Covid-19 In Post-Corrections Secured Behavioral Rehabilitation, Jennifer G. Jones, Maria Devalpine, Erica J. Lewis

Virginia Journal of Public Health

Background: The COVID-19 case rate on June 5, 2020, for prisoners in the United States (US) was 5.5 times higher than the US population case rate (Saloner et al., 2020). Secure facilities were challenged to mitigate the spread of COVID-19. One secure behavioral rehabilitation facility made many changes to facility and program protocols to meet this challenge.

Methods: The purpose of this program evaluation was to assess newly implemented infection control measures at a secure behavioral rehabilitation facility and to inform policy and procedure recommendations for the mitigation of COVID-19 transmission in congregate living facilities in the future. Case rates, …

A Mixed Methods Investigation Of How Young Adults In Virginia Received, Evaluated, And Responded To Covid-19 Public Health Messaging, Natalie Cook, Sophie G. Wenzel, Rachel Silverman, Danielle Short, Kristina Jiles, Teace Markwalter, Mary Ann Friesen

Virginia Journal of Public Health

The purpose of this study was to investigate how young adults in Virginia received, evaluated, and responded to messages related to the coronavirus/COVID-19, a major disruptor of our time, and to understand how and when these messages influenced behavior. This was a sequential explanatory mixed methods study, including an online survey (quantitative) and virtual focus groups (qualitative). We surveyed a convenience sample of 3,694 Virginia residents by distributing a link to complete the survey online. Only data from18-24 year old adults (n=207) were included in the analysis for this study. Focus group participants were recruited from the survey participants as …

Evaluation Of Recruitment Strategies On Inclusiveness Of Populations At Risk For Health Disparities In The Statewide Remote Online Covidsmart Registry, Marilyn M. Bartholmae, Amira A. Roess, Keith D. Renshaw, Brian L. Levy, Matvey V. Karpov, Joshua M. Sill, Sunita Dodani

Virginia Journal of Public Health

Background

The COVID-19 pandemic affected health research practices. The large-scale impacts of COVID-19 and restrictions on face-to-face interaction led to increased use of remote online data collection methods. However, it is unclear if such efforts led to the representation of populations at risk for health disparities. We evaluated whether multiple recruitment strategies would capture a representative sample of individuals at risk for health disparities.

Methods

The COVIDsmart registry collected clinical, social, economic, and behavioral data in the state of Virginia from March to November, 2021. Seven hundred eighty-two adult participants were enrolled. We compared the representation of COVIDsmart participants at …

The Association Between Loneliness With Increased Mental Health Problems And Substance Use During The Covid-19 Pandemic In Richmond, Virginia, Angela C. Liu, Connor Cox, Mariam Sankoh, James Clifford, Courtney T. Blondino, Chanel Bea, Chimere Miles, Kim Young, Sherika Gillison-Chew, John Richardson-Lauve, Candice Turner, Elizabeth Prom-Wormley

Virginia Journal of Public Health

Background. The COVID-19 pandemic caused significant psychological distress among U.S. adults leading to increased rates of adverse mental health symptoms and substance use. This study aims to evaluate the consistency of the association between loneliness and increased mental health problems and substance use in Richmond, VA during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Methods. Data were collected in two phases: 1) internet-based surveys from August 2020 to March 2021 (N=327) and 2) paper-pencil surveys from May to October 2021 (N=225). Logistic regression was used to test the association between loneliness and increased mental health and substance use, while adjusting for sociodemographic factors and …

Learning Modalities And Mental Health During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Literature Review, Abubakarr Jalloh, Annie D. Morgan

Virginia Journal of Public Health

Purpose: The study’s purpose was to explore how students were learning during the COVID-19 pandemic and the potential mental health outcome(s) that different classroom learning modalities may have on kindergarten-12^th grade school (i.e., K-12) students given that some of them were learning remotely or in-person, while others were doing some form of hybrid.

Methods: This study performed an extensive review of the literature, including health and educational sources from two government agencies, and three school districts in southwest Virginia. The target population for the literature review was K-12 students in the United States, with a focus on the Commonwealth …

Using Age-Adjusted And Crude Rates For Assessing Covid-19 Cases, Priyadarshini Pattah Phd, Mph, Rexford Anson-Dwamena Mph

Virginia Journal of Public Health

Purpose: To assess the difference in crude rates and age-adjusted rates in COVID-19 cases.

Methods: COVID-19 cases in Virginia were obtained from the publicly available dataset as of June 21, 2020. Crude rates of COVID -19 cases were calculated and estimates for the total population of Virginia were age-adjusted to the U.S. Census 2000 population using the direct method.

Results: There was a wide difference between the crude rate and the age-adjusted rate in the different age-groups. The crude rate was highest for the over 80 age group, 1063.93 per 100,000 population. However, the age-adjusted rate was highest in the …