Community Health and Preventive Medicine Commons^™

Child Obesity And The Interaction Of Family And Neighborhood Socioeconomic Context, Ashley W. Kranjac, Justin T. Denney, Rachel T. Kimbro, Brady S. Moffett, Keila N. Lopez

Sociology Faculty Articles and Research

The literature on neighborhoods and child obesity links contextual conditions to risk, assuming that if place matters, it matters in a similar way for everyone in those places. We explore the extent to which distinctive neighborhood types give rise to social patterning that produces variation in the odds of child obesity. We leverage geocoded electronic medical records for a diverse sample of over 135,000 children aged 2 to 12 and latent profile modeling to characterize places into distinctive neighborhood contexts. Multilevel models with cross-level interactions between neighborhood type and family socioeconomic standing (SES) reveal that children with different SES, but …

A Public Health Argument Against Arming Teachers, David I. Swedler

Health Behavior Research

The peer-reviewed scientific literature does not support the idea that arming teachers will prevent school shootings. In this commentary, I draw on the criminal justice, injury prevention, and firearm safety literature to demonstrate how arming teachers will do more harm than good.

The Critical Need For Mental Health Education To Be Mandated In New Mexico's Public Schools, Bonnie L. Murphy

Shared Knowledge Conference

Based on a review of research and best practices in mental health awareness and skills, this inquiry project argues for state legislative policies that would require mental health awareness and skills in the K-12 curriculum. Mental health affects individual accomplishments in every stage of people’s lives beginning in early childhood and throughout the life cycle. Prevention and treatment of mental illness plays a key role in the ability of an individual to cope with loss and develop resiliency and perseverance in challenging times and to make better decisions that improve the individual’s life and the lives of those around them. …

School‐Level Body Mass Index Shapes Children's Weight Trajectories, Ashley W. Kranjac

Sociology Faculty Articles and Research

BACKGROUND

Embedded within children's weight trajectories are complex environmental contexts that influence obesity risk. As such, the normative environment of body mass index (BMI) within schools may influence children's weight trajectories as they age from kindergarten to fifth grade.

METHODS

I use 5 waves of the ECLS‐K—Kindergarten Class 1998‐1999 data and a series of multilevel growth models to examine whether attending schools with higher overall BMI influences children's weight status over time.

RESULTS

Results show that, net of child, family, and school sociodemographic characteristics, children who attend schools with higher rates of obesity have increased weight compared to children who …

Disease Prevalence And Politics- A Study Of Chagas Disease In Bolivia, Rebecca Dickson

Access*: Interdisciplinary Journal of Student Research and Scholarship

Reducing disease prevalence within South America is critical for reaching global health goals and increasing life expectancy of vulnerable populations. Chagas disease, often referred to the “the New HIV/AIDS of the Americas,” is a prevalent cause of disability and death within Bolivia (Hotez et al. 1). The Plurinational State of Bolivia, a large South American nation-state, is a crucial player in promoting global health outcomes. However, intra-state political turmoil and historical tensions often affect its healthcare systems, which in turn affect individual health outcomes. This paper traces these connections within the Bolivian healthcare system- first by identifying political and cultural …

Promoting Community And Population Health In Public Health And Medicine: A Stepwise Guide To Initiating And Conducting Community-Engaged Research, Scott D. Rhodes, Amanda E. Tanner, Lilli Mann-Jackson, Jorge Alonzo, Florence Siman, Eunyoung Y. Song, Jonathan Bell, Megan B. Irby, Aaron T. Vissman, Robert E. Aronson

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Various methods, approaches, and strategies designed to understand and reduce health disparities, increase health equity, and promote community and population health have emerged within public health and medicine. One such approach is community-engaged research. While the literature describing the theory, principles, and rationale underlying community engagement is broad, few models or frameworks exist to guide its implementation. We abstracted, analyzed, and interpreted data from existing project documentation including proposal documents, project-specific logic models, research team and partnership meeting notes, and other materials from 24 funded community-engaged research projects conducted over the past 17 years. We developed a 15-step process designed …

Lifetime Economic Burden Of Intimate Partner Violence Among U.S. Adults, Cora Peterson, Megan C. Kearns, Wendy Likamwa Mcintosh, Lianne Fuino Estefen, Christina Nicolaidis, Kathryn E. Mccollister, Amy Gordon, Curtis Florence

School of Social Work Faculty Publications and Presentations

Introduction: This study estimated the U.S. lifetime per-victim cost and economic burden of intimate partner violence.

Methods: Data from previous studies were combined with 2012 U.S. National Intimate Partner and Sexual Violence Survey data in a mathematical model. Intimate partner violence was defined as contact sexual violence, physical violence, or stalking victimization with related impact (e.g., missed work days). Costs included attributable impaired health, lost productivity, and criminal justice costs from the societal perspective. Mean age at first victimization was assessed as 25 years. Future costs were discounted by 3%. The main outcome measures were the mean per-victim (female and …

A Land Not Forgotten: Indigenous Food Security & Land-Based Practices In Northern Ontario By Michael A. Robidoux And Courtney W. Mason, Tonia L. Payne Ph.D.

The Goose

Review of Michael A. Robidoux and Courtney W. Mason's (eds.) A Land Not Forgotten: Indigenous Food Security & Land-Based Practices in Northern Ontario.

Injection Partners, Hcv, And Hiv Status Among Rural Persons Who Inject Drugs In Puerto Rico, Patrick Habecker, Roberto Abadie, Melissa L. Welch-Lazoritz, Juan Carlos Reyes, Bilal Khan, Kirk Dombrowski

Department of Sociology: Faculty Publications

Background—The prevalence of hepatitis C (HCV) and HIV among persons who inject drugs (PWID) and the ability of these diseases to spread through injection networks are well documented in urban areas. However, less is known about injection behaviors in rural areas.

Objectives—This study focuses on the association between the number of self-reported injection partners with the PWID’s self-reported HCV and HIV status. Injection networks provide paths for infection and information to flow, and are important to consider when developing prevention and intervention strategies.

Methods—Respondent driven sampling was used to conduct 315 interviews with PWID in rural Puerto Rico during 2015. …

Barriers To Pregnancy Spacing In Women Living With Hiv: A Series Of Informational Interviews, Rachel K. Scott, Piyapa Praditpan, Patricia Tanjutco, Elizabeth Laidlaw, Regina Zopf, Manon M. Schladen

The Qualitative Report

For reproductive-age women living with HIV, birth spacing allows for optimization of maternal health and viral suppression to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV. We conducted semi-structured informational interviews to explore use of contraception for birth spacing. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed. Audio files were reviewed to capture non-explicit data. We interviewed 18 multiparous HIV positive women. All described experiences with at least one contraceptive method. Six themes emerged: Burden of contraception, Failure of birth control, Impact of youth and lack of life experience, Community beliefs about birth control, Lack of partner cooperation, and Altruism. Women viewed birth spacing favorably. Young …

Policy Of Current Hospital Translation Services And Recommendations For Future Adjustments For Spanish-Speaking Patients, Isidora Rose Beach

Baker Scholar Projects

It is a seldom-discussed fact that English-speakers in America enjoy a quality of health care that is not necessarily afforded to non-native speakers receiving care at the same facilities. Policy regarding what is required of health institutions in terms of translation services is exceedingly vague, and implementation of this policy is inconsistent. This lack of guidance makes it possible for many patients needing interpreters to fall through the cracks. This project will examine current policy guiding interpretive services in the U.S., and will recommend more specific guidelines that would improve quality of care for limited English proficiency individuals. This project …

Policy Of Current Hospital Translation Services And Recommendations For Future Adjustments For Spanish-Speaking Patients, Isidora Rose Beach

Chancellor’s Honors Program Projects

No abstract provided.

The Predictors Of Juvenile Recidivism: Testimonies Of Adult Students 18 Years And Older Exiting From Alternative Education, La Toshia Palmer

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this descriptive, qualitative study was to identify and describe the importance of the predictors of juvenile recidivism and the effectiveness of efforts to prevent/avoid juvenile recidivism as perceived by previously detained, arrested, convicted, and/or incarcerated adult students 18 years of age and older exiting from alternative education in Northern California. A second purpose was to explore the types of support provided by alternative schools and the perceived importance of the support to avoid recidivism according to adult students 18 years of age and older exiting from alternative education.

Methodology: This qualitative, descriptive research design identified …

The Contributing Factors To Adolescent Depression, Josie H. Lee

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Objective: This paper reviews individual, familial, peer, and societal factors influencing adolescent depression in developed countries. Background: Depression usually onsets at adolescence and contributes to high DALYs. Since depression is treatable, efforts should be made to reduce its prevalence and effect. Methods: The research consisted of looking at literature relevant to the topic and age group and conducting interviews with experts who know about and have worked with adolescent depression. Discussion: Adolescents begins at the onset of puberty, allowing different biological factors such as genetics, stress of puberty, and cognitive changes to increase vulnerability to depression. Adolescents who had substance …

Articulación Y Apoyo Del Programa De Los Agentes Sanitarios De Mendoza: De La Teoría A La Práctica / Coordination And Support In Mendoza’S Community Health Worker Program: From Theory To Practice, Kelly Mchugh

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Información contextual: Desde que fue publicada la resolución de la Alma-Ata, varios sistemas de salud al nivel mundial han implementado programas de agentes sanitarios para ayudar en el cumplimiento de la estrategia de la Atención Primaria de la Salud (APS) y el aseguramiento de la salud como derecho humano. Sin embargo, en los últimos años, varios investigadores identificaron obstáculos comunes que enfrentan los agentes sanitarios en el alcance de sus tareas como resultado de la falta de apoyo que reciben por el sistema de salud. En forma sucesiva, dicha falta de apoyo ocasionó daño potencial para su capacidad de contribuir …

“Arica Tiene Vih, ¿Y Tú?” El Rol Del Test Rápido De Vih En El Diagnóstico Oportuno Para Jóvenes De La Comuna De Arica, Chile / "Arica Has Hiv, And You?" The Role Of The Rapid Hiv Test In The Timely Diagnosis For Young People In The District Of Arica, Chile, Julia Zigman

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Research question: How is the rapid HIV test useful in assuring access to timely diagnosis of HIV for young adults in the city of Arica, Chile?

Objectives: The primary objective of this study is to evaluate the rapid HIV test as a means of increasing access to timely diagnosis of HIV among those aged 18 – 29 in the community of Arica, which participated in a pilot of the rapid test in early 2018. The study sets out to evaluate the installation of this pilot to situate the role of the rapid test in Chile’s HIV landscape. Further objectives …

Perceptions Of Chronic Disease Among Older African Americans: A Qualitative Analysis, Karon Phillips, Charles Rogers, Adrienne Morgan

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Research has documented that African Americans suffer disproportionately from chronic diseases when compared to the general population. Yet, limited research examines older African Americans’ perceptions about having chronic diseases. Accordingly, the first aim of the study provided insight into this disparity with the intent of revealing how older African Americans feel about their overall health, and how much they understand about their individual chronic disease(s). The second aim was to gather information about strategies and coping mechanisms older African Americans use to manage their chronic diseases. The purpose of this aim was to determine if any of the strategies they …

An Ambivalent Embrace: Service Needs And Gaps For Asian Immigrants In New Destinations, John J. Chin

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Asian immigrants to the U.S. are settling in "new destinations," but there has been little research on their health care and social service needs. Our analysis of Census data to identify cities with the fastest Asian immigrant population growth (1990-2000) yielded 33 smaller cities in 13 states. The cities ranged in population from 7,677 to 86,660; were spread across 13 states in the Northeast, South, and Midwest regions of the US; and varied widely demographically. Pilot surveys conducted in 2009 indicated that, although many residents had positive attitudes towards immigrants, many were also concerned about job competition and dilution of …

Investigating A Potential Relationship Between Sibling Gender Composition And Health Behavior Indicators In Young Adult And Adolescent Males, Taylor N. Goss

Honors Undergraduate Theses

The presence of siblings during childhood and adolescence has a significant impact on the behaviors and perceptions of adults later in life. Effects of mixed-gendered sibling dyads on delinquent behavior, gender typing, and romantic and sexual relationships are of interest. These behaviors can lead to notable health disparities, making it imperative to gain insight into factors associated with such behaviors in young adult and adolescent males. This project explored possible correlations between gender composition of siblings and health behavior indicators for violence, competition and risk, and sexual and romantic relationships. Analysis of these variables was performed using data from the …

1.5/2nd Generation Vietnamese-Americans And Their Health Beliefs And Attitudes, Theresa Dang

Pitzer Senior Theses

Vietnamese immigration is distinct from other Asian/Pacific Islander groups in its context – the bulk of Vietnamese immigration was not of educational, economic, or career opportunity, but a diaspora. After the Fall of Saigon during the Vietnam War, Vietnamese immigrants faced extreme adversities and trauma as they fled to neighboring countries. Understanding the context and history of Vietnamese immigration plays a huge role in the acculturation process, management of health, and ability to navigate institutions among these families. As these immigrant families learn to survive in a new country, they also must face and heal from the emotional, psychological, and …