Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Interactive Health Literacy And Self-Management Of Lung Cancer Symptoms, Julie Kieffer Campbell

Theses and Dissertations

Patients with lung cancer experience multiple symptoms requiring self-management. Health literacy skills are necessary for obtaining and processing information related to symptom self-management. Interactive health literacy involves communicating with healthcare providers regarding health-related information, but the role of interactive health literacy in self-management is not clear. This study used a critical realist approach to address these specific aims: 1) explore interactive health literacy and how it relates to symptom self-management for patients with lung cancer; and 2) describe patients’ experiences of interactive with healthcare providers regarding symptom self-management for lung cancer. The study was conducted using a cross-sectional mixed methods …

Primary Caregivers Caring For A Child At End Of Life In Saudi Arabia, Shahad Amr Hafez

Theses and Dissertations

Background/ Significance: Caring for children at end of life (EOL) can be devastating for primary caregivers who are providing the physical, social, and emotional needs of their dying child. Limited information was found on resources in Saudi Arabia to manage the impact on primary caregivers from caring for a child receiving end of life care (EOLC).

Purpose: Explore the experiences of primary caregivers caring for a child at EOL in Saudi Arabia.

Conceptual framework: The conceptual framework for this investigation was comprised of concepts related to EOLC including holistic health, support system and religion.

Method: A phenomenological investigation was conducted …

Health Literacy And Alcohol Use Behaviors In High School Students, Rebecca Parizek

Theses and Dissertations

Limited health literacy and alcohol use increase adolescents’ risk for preventable disease burden and adverse outcomes. The Framework for Studying Adolescent Health Literacy (Manganello, 2008) guided this cross-sectional study focused on relationships between high school students’ health literacy and alcohol use. The aims were to describe health literacy in a sample of high school students, explore relationships between health literacy and individual traits, and examine relationships between health literacy and alcohol use. Health literacy was assessed with the Newest Vital Sign. Alcohol use was assessed with questions from the Youth Risk Behavior Survey. An electronic survey was used to collect …

Establishing Content And Face Validity Of An Assessment To Evaluate The Attitudes, Self-Efficacy, And Knowledge Of Pre-Professional Students Related To Assistive Technology For Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder (Asd), Cynthia Amy Ruedinger

Theses and Dissertations

OBJECTIVE. The purpose of the study was to create an online assessment in order to better understand the knowledge, attitudes, and self-efficacy that pre-professional students have in the fields of assistive technology and ASD and establish content and face validity for this assessment.METHOD. 12 content experts, both professors and practitioners, within the fields of occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech language pathology, and special education, as well as experts in autism spectrum disorder and assistive technology, participated in the content validation process. A total of 16 students within these disciplines completed the assessment with pilot data gathered and provided feedback on …

The Contributing Factors To Student Nurse Medication Administration Errors And Near Misses In The Clinical Setting As Identified By Clinical Instructors, Kristen M. Selig

Theses and Dissertations

The report, To Err is Human, by the Institutes of Medicine (IOM, 2000) brought attention to medication safety in the United States healthcare system. While advances have been made in patient safety, including electronic medication dispensing systems, electronic medication administration records, and scanning systems, it is estimated that 7,000 to 9,000 people die each year due to medication errors (Tariq et al., 2019). The medication administration process involves steps from prescribing to administration. However, nurses administering the medications are the final check point. James Reasons’ Swiss Cheese Model of Accident Causation illustrates the role that systems play in medical errors. …

Estimating Covid-19 Survival Rate And Inferring Case Severity With Respect To Milwaukee County Policy Change Using Logistic Regression, Geoff M. Chappelle

Theses and Dissertations

Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a global issue, and it is affecting 170 countries in very different ways. In the United States, a lot of efforts have been made nationally and by individual states to curb the spread and severity of COVID-19. Policy changes and recommendations have been met with variable success across the country. There is a wealth of information on where COVID-19 infection and death are prevalent, and there are several articles discussing disparities in those outcomes among different populations. However, those findings are not necessarily tied to a policy change or, in the weeks that follow a …

Designing A Health Consumer-Friendly Radiology Report Using A Patient-Centered Approach, Mohammad Alarifi

Theses and Dissertations

In this dissertation, we needed to do four studies to reach the main objective of this dissertation. The fifth goal, which is the main one, is to reach a patient-friendly radiology report that can be easily understood.

Study one: Full Radiology Report through Patient Web Portal: A Literature ReviewAlarifi, M., Patrick, T., Jabour, A., Wu, M., & Luo, J. (2020). Full Radiology Report through Patient Web Portal: A Literature Review. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 17(10), 3673.

The aim of this study discusses the gap between the patient web portal and providing a full radiology report. A …

Upper Extremity Kinematics And Pain Outcomes During Activities Of Daily Living In Pediatric Hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome, Olivia Yanez Wilwert

Theses and Dissertations

Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (EDS) is a group of heritable connective tissue disorders, consisting of thirteen different subtypes. Among the thirteen, Hypermobile Ehlers Danlos Syndrome (hEDS) is the most common. Individuals with this condition present with frequent joint instability that results in ongoing subluxations and dislocations. Secondary diagnoses of this condition include chronic pain, Myalgic Encephalomyelitis/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS), Major Depressive Disorder (MDD), and Generalized Anxiety Disorder (GAD). The diagnostic process of hEDS is convoluted by the lack of a genetic identifier (Malfait et al., 2017). Individuals with hEDS are often not diagnosed until later in adulthood, leaving their adolescent life full …

Parent-Child Sexual Communication And Sexual Risk: A Meta-Analytic Review, Brittnie Star Peck

Theses and Dissertations

This meta-analysis examines the effect of parent-child sexual communication (PCSC) on sexual risk behaviors and outcomes during adolescence. Results confirm that PCSC increases risk prevention strategies and reduces sexually risky behaviors with corresponding reductions in unplanned pregnancy and sexually transmitted infections (STI). Moderating variables include extent of communication, the content of PCSC interactions, operationalization of risk, timing of the interaction, biological sex of the adolescent, the dyadic composition of the parent-child interaction (e.g., mother-daughter, father-son), and the racial or ethnic makeup of the sample. The frequency, depth, and breadth of PCSC interactions, and inclusion of descriptive/instructional and contraception/risk information are …

Unmet Medical Home Needs And Educational Services Access In Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder, Sabrin Rizk

Theses and Dissertations

One in 54 children is diagnosed with an autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in the U.S. The American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) is a primary care model defined as accessible, continuous, comprehensive, family-centered, coordinated, compassionate, and culturally-effective care for children with ASD, jointly with educational services. Children with ASD use educational services for cognitive, social, and behavioral needs. Educational services include early intervention (EI) through EI plans or school services under special education plans in public schools. Linking health and educational services reduces fragmented care and collaboratively addresses the needs of children with ASD. Although the AAP has asserted efforts to …

Biomechanical Analysis Of Stroke Patterns And Functional Outcomes In Pediatric Manual Wheelchair Users, Paige Louise Aschenbrener

Theses and Dissertations

Approximately 88,0000 manual wheelchair (MWC) users are under the age of 21 in the United States (Kaye, LaPlante, & Kang, 2000). More than half of pediatric MWC users with spinal cord injury (SCI) report shoulder pain later in life and are at higher risk for developing upper extremity (UE) overuse injuries (Vogel & Zebracki, 2015). During MWC propulsion, a stroke pattern is the path the hand follows with respect to the pushrim (Boninger et al., 2002). Current clinical guidelines for adults recommend sole use of the semicircular stroke pattern as best practices because a MWC user is able to spend …

Comparing Sensory Accessibility Needs In Deaf And Low Vision Populations: An Explorative Study, Anna Bruckbauer

Theses and Dissertations

Objective. The objective of the study is to compare hypothesized similar sensory accessibility needs of Lighting, Acoustics, Openness, Color/Contrast, and Services/communication for the hard of hearing and low vision population. Background. The Americans with Disability Act – Architectural Barriers Act Design Guidelines (ADA-ABA, 2004, 2015) provides guidelines to increase accessibility of public buildings for individuals covered by the ADA (1990). However, these guidelines often fall short of providing functional and practical guidelines to be accessible for all. Extant building rating tools fail to attend to the overlap of functional needs for the hard of hearing and/or low vision populations. Thus, …

Modelling Of Internet Of Things (Iot) For Healthcare, Swapna Kolarkar

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: Information technology benefits the world, and it’s required for health care system, such as electronic medical records (EMR). We have proposed systematic model to study hoe IoT with 5g network has potential to benefit various healthcare services. For example, telemedicine may have some usage restrictions in rural areas and physicians may find it difficult to provide continuous monitoring to patients from such area. There are higher chances that the calls or video conferences getting significantly affected by poor networks and signals as well as non-compatible devices and patient may not get the treatment on time. 5G networking with IoT …

Machine-Learning-Based Prediction Of Sepsis Events From Vertical Clinical Trial Data: A Naïve Approach, Tyler Michael Gaddis

Theses and Dissertations

Sepsis is a potentially life-threatening condition characterized by a dysregulated, disproportionate immune response to infection by which the afflicted body attacks its own tissues, sometimes to the point of organ failure, and in the worst cases, death. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) Sepsis is reported to kill upwards of 270,000 Americans annually, though this figure may be greater given certain ambiguities in the current accepted diagnostic framework of the disease.

This study attempted to first establish an understanding of past definitions of sepsis, and to then recommend use of machine learning as integral in an …

Maternal-Fetal Relationship In Pregnancy After Perinatal Loss Among African American Women, Jeri M. Antilla

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: Explore perceptions of chronic stressors of African American women before, during and after a perinatal loss and during a subsequent pregnancy to a loss. Explore the perceptions of stress and loss and its association with establishing a positive maternal-fetal relationship early in subsequent pregnancies to a perinatal loss.

Design: Qualitative study using thematic analysis was conducted.

Setting: Participants were recruited from clinics where women receive care, perinatal loss support groups, community centers, churches, hair salons, and social media throughout the United States.

Participants: African American women (n=22), who reported a history of pregnancy loss at >14 weeks gestation or …

A Mixed Methods Evaluation Of An Intersectional Bystander Program Against Sexual Violence Using The Integrated Model Of Behavioral Prediction Within A Cluster Randomized Control Trial, Rose Hennessy

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Sexual violence is a critical public health problem that is particularly salient on college campuses. Bystander intervention is a prevention approach that teaches students who are not directly affected by a situation to take action to help others. Research is needed to understand the relationship between bystander training and changes in behavior to intervene against sexual violence, racism, and unhealthy alcohol outcomes.

Methods: A cluster randomized waitlist control trial was used to evaluate the bystander program Our School TAKES ACTION. Upper-level undergraduate students were randomized by housing floor from buildings of a private, midwestern university. Data was collected in …

Substance Use Disorder: Experiences Of Affected Family Members Social Support, Eileen Kane

Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

Substance Use Disorder: Experiences of Affected Family Members Social Support

by

Eileen Kane

The University of Wisconsin- Milwaukee, 2020

Under the Supervision of Dr. Julia Snethen

Background: Social support is a factor in the health and well-being of all populations (WHO, 2018). Having a loved one with SUD negatively affects family members. Affected Family Members (AFM) providing support for the individual with ISUD, are at risk of losing their social support network. Losing social support negatively influences AFMs health and well-being. The purpose of this study was to explore the affected family member (AFM) of an individual with a …

The Process Of Identity Management In Individuals Living With Systemic Scleroderma, Donald David Miller

Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

The Process of Identity Management in Individuals Living with Systemic Scleroderma

Background: People with chronic illnesses may struggle to adapt psychologically to the illness experience and have feelings of identity loss, self-diminishment, and biographical disruption. This, in turn, may limit people’s ability to engage in optimal self-management. Systemic scleroderma is a debilitating, stigmatizing, and life limiting progressive chronic illness with significant disfiguring effects. Little is known about the identity management process in people with scleroderma. The purpose of this study was to generate a grounded theory of the identity management process in people with systemic scleroderma.

Methods: Grounded theory …

Hiv Risk And Prevention Needs Among Young Women In Kibra, Kenya, Florine Ndakuya-Fitzgerald

Theses and Dissertations

While HIV infection trends in most groups have been declining, certain population groups including young women globally, and especially those who reside in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), continue to experience increasing HIV risk. In Kenya, young people aged 15-24 years have been reported to have the highest number of new HIV infections, with young women being twice as likely to be infected as their men counterparts. The rate is even higher among young women residing in urban areas.

A review of the literature demonstrates that while studies guided by behavioral theories have yielded results in response to HIV, there is still …

Women's Empowerment Among Women Living With Hiv In The Kasungu District Of Malawi, Victoria Scheer

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Women’s empowerment is recognized as a goal in major development discourses globally. Interventions seeking to empower women are often focused on women living in the Global South. However, the perspectives of women located in the Global South are less represented in literature compared to the dominant narratives of women located in the Global North. This is especially true for women living at the intersections of national and local poverty, racism, and patriarchy, such as is the case for women living with HIV in Malawi. Women in this context stand to gain from empowerment interventions, though there exists a gap …

Communicating About Routine Childhood Vaccines: Meta-Analysis Of Parental Attitudes, Behaviors, & Vaccine Hesitancy, Angela Victor

Theses and Dissertations

As scientific and medical communities research the next generation of vaccines, medical providers and parents observe the current routine vaccination schedules published for children today. And despite the fact protection is available from a number of preventable diseases through the use of safe, reliable, and accessible vaccines, Vaccine Hesitancy VH (delaying or refusing vaccination for reasons other than accessibility) is a growing issue. Using meta-analysis to examine existing research on communication about routine childhood vaccines, the study explores parental attitudes, behaviors, and demographics using the Protection Motivation Theory PMT. The study explores categories influencing VH such as: alternative medicine, safety, …

Dialect Use, Language Abilities, And Emergent Literacy Skills Of Prekindergarten Children Who Speak African American English, Erika Rose Baldwin

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose. The purpose of this study was to gain a better understanding of the complex relationship between spoken language and emergent literacy skills for children who speak African American English (AAE). Therefore, this study examined children’s language proficiency, dialect use, and emergent literacy skills at the beginning of Head Start preschool and throughout the entire academic year.

Methods. This study analyzed scores from a database of 120 preschool children who spoke AAE. Data included narrative retells of the wordless picture book Frog Where Are You? that were transcribed utilizing Systematic Analysis of Language Transcript (SALT) Software. Narrative retells were then …

A Comparison Of Two Devices For Isometric Lingual Strengthening In Healthy Adults, Daniel Laurensio Gutierrez

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to compare tongue pressure measurements recorded by an established device, the Iowa Oral Performance Instrument (IOPI) and a new device, the TongueometerTM.

Eight healthy adults ages 18 to 59 were subjects. Independent variables included device type (IOPI & TongueometerTM) and bulb placement in oral cavity (anterior & posterior). The dependent variable was tongue pressure in kPa. Each subject attempted three trials of maximum tongue pressure at both the anterior and posterior bulb placement location for both devices. The order of device and bulb placement position was counterbalanced to reduce potential carryover effects. Subjects were …

Disparities In Anti-Vaccine Views: Twitter Contents Analysis During World Immunization Week, Saleh Alzughaibi

Theses and Dissertations

The emergence of social media platforms provides an opportunity to exchange health-related information and express opinions on health-related issues. The researchers' adoption of social media contents in the health research domain is attributed to the easy accessibility of a large number of perspectives and views in limited time and less effort. The analysis of social media contents, such as Twitter, allows researchers to examine people’s perceptions about specific crucial topics, such as vaccinations.

The researcher aims to collect and measure data on the current motivations and reasons for opposing vaccination and understand vaccine-skeptics claims against vaccines. This study presents a …

Expectations Of Aging And Goals As Motivation For Type 2 Diabetes Self-Management In Individuals With Early Diagnosis, Lisa M. Blohm

Theses and Dissertations

Type 2 diabetes continues to plague the United States as a major cause of disability, mortality, and healthcare cost. Engagement in self-management before complications develop is the goal for individuals in early stages of the disease. Those newly diagnosed often do not engage in health behaviors to improve their prognosis. Reasons for their lack of engagement vary widely. The purpose of this study was to understand relationships between aging expectations, personal goal setting, perceived quality of life, and self-efficacy on motivation to engage in type 2 diabetes self-management. Social Cognitive Theory provided the framework. Using a cross-sectional design, 99 newly …

Examining Factors Associated With Experiencing Bullying Among Adolescent Subgroups, Terese Blakeslee

Theses and Dissertations

ABSTRACT

EXAMINING FACTORS ASSOCIATED WITH EXPERIENCING BULLYING

AMONG ADOLESCENT SUBGROUPS

by

Terese Blakeslee

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2020

Under the Supervision of Professor Dr. Julia Snethen

Problem/Significance: The prevalence of bullying remains consistently elevated among students in Grade 9 through Grade 12. A closer look at factors with relationships among high school population subsets experiencing bullying brings new insight to this complex issue.

Background: The bullying phenomenon has been associated with behaviors of violence, self-harm, and experiencing bullying.

Purpose: The purpose of this study was to examine relationships over time between adolescent characteristics, experiencing violence, risk for self-harm, and the …

Factors Affecting Blood Pressure Target Outcomes For Veterans Using Home Telehealth, Vincent Boom

Theses and Dissertations

Hypertension is the most common diagnosis among Veterans, contributing to approximately 15,000 veterans hospitalized for stroke every year. The high prevalence of hypertension found in the Veteran population suggests a need to better define the risks and benefits associated with the diagnosis and treatment of hypertension. The U. S. Department of Veteran Affairs (VA) home telehealth program provides chronic care management for hypertension to facilitate Veteran access to care. Existing evidence suggests Veterans’ monitoring of blood pressure at home may selectively assist in managing hypertension. This secondary analysis of data used a self-management lens to assign meaning to traditionally demographic …

Contribution Of Individual, Community, And Health System Factors To Health Outcomes In Inner-City African Americans With Type 2 Diabetes, Jennifer Annette Campbell

Theses and Dissertations

Diabetes is a complex disease that represents a major public health challenge due to its high prevalence, its association with increased morbidity, and early mortality. Inner-city African Americans with diabetes suffer a disproportionate burden of disease due to both economic and social disadvantage that reaches across individual, community, and health system levels of influence. Central to the principles of Public Health is the “pursuit of health equity for the elimination of health disparities, specifically in accordance to the empowerment of disenfranchised community members, aiming to ensure that the basic resources and conditions necessary for health are accessible to all”. To …

A Conceptual Definition Of Quality Of Life For People Living With An Implanted, Destination Therapy Left Ventricular Assist Device, David Dwyer

Theses and Dissertations

BACKGROUND: People with advanced heart failure experience persistently severe symptoms with increasingly impaired capacity and quality of life. Treatment options beyond palliative care are limited to heart transplantation or implantation with a mechanical pump that replaces the weakened heart’s function. The left ventricular assist device (LVAD) serves as a temporary bridge to transplant or bridge to recovery, or a permanent replacement as destination therapy (DT). While DT-LVAD recipients initially accept the device to extend life, there is a gap in understanding how DT-LVAD recipients define a life worth living, and how nursing and the health care team can help reach …

The Impact Of Pre-Visit Contextual Data Collection On Patient Activation: Results From A Randomized Control Trial, Jeana Marie Holt

Theses and Dissertations

Background The majority of health indicators are outside of the healthcare system, and current electronic health records (EHR) do not capture those indicators. There is a compelling opportunity to test consumer informatics tools that integrate patient's life circumstances, goals, supports, risks, and care preferences into their EHR for point-of-care discussions.

Purpose To determine whether the use of a patient-generated contextual data (PCD) tool designed to enhance the capture and sharing of PCD influenced patient activation.

Design, Setting, and Participants A two-armed, non-blind, randomized control trial was conducted between May 2019, and October 2019 at two urban, academically affiliated primary care …