Digital Commons Network^™

Determining The Efficacy Of Summer School On Maintaining Hearing-Impaired Children’S Language Levels, Paula Anne Mathias

Independent Studies and Capstones

This paper discusses the process of determining the efficacy of summer school on maintaining hearing-impaired children’s language levels.

A Study Of The Tags, An Enduring Teaching Tool: Teachers’ Perspectives On The Teacher Assessment Of Grammatical Structures Teaching Practices And Application, Andrea Martin

Independent Studies and Capstones

This paper is studied look at the Teacher’s Assessment of Grammatical Structures (TAGS), Teacher Assessment of Spoken Language (TASL), and Cottage Acquisition Scales for Listening, Language and Speech (CASLLS) criterion-referenced language assessments as well as an inquiry into how teachers of the deaf use the TAGS currently as a teaching tool.

Effect Of Auditory Processing On The Preference Of Monaural Amplification For Adults With Symmetrical Hearing Loss, Valerie Danielle Lynch

Independent Studies and Capstones

The purpose of this project was to determine if subjects with symmetrical hearing loss who prefer a monaural hearing aid fit to a binaural hearing aid fit may demonstrate an auditory processing disorder causing them to experience binaural interference when fit binaurally.

Creating A Parent Workshop That Encompasses And Meets The Educational Desires For Parents Of Children With Hearing Impairments Being Taught In An Oral Deaf Education Program, Megan Beauduy

Independent Studies and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to create a parent workshop that was developed around the parents’ educational needs. The workshop demonstrated that the parents’ educational needs can be met through a workshop that is based on those needs and takes into consideration factors that will encourage parent involvement.

Development Of A High-Frequency Hearing Loss Questionnaire For Children, Jamie M. Baum

Independent Studies and Capstones

The "Pediatric Assessment of Hearing" questionnaire was developed to evaluate how children with high-frequency hearing loss perform in various listening conditions.

Quality Of Life In Children With Unilateral Hearing Loss: A Pilot Study, Sarah A. Borton

Independent Studies and Capstones

The purpose of this investigation was to determine the impact of unilateral hearing loss on the quality of life of children. Focus group sessions were held for parents and children or adolescents with unilateral hearing loss to discuss their perceptions. Parents and children or adolescents completed the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory. Findings were presented depicting which domains of quality of life are most affected.

Evaluating Social Skills In Long Term Cochlear Implant Recipients, Amy Lee Bell

Independent Studies and Capstones

A longitudinal study observing cochlear implant recipients' social skills using ratings from their parents and the students themselves over time. The study looked at how adolescents using cochlear implants rate their own social skills compared to an age matched normative group of hearing students, and compared these ratings with social skills ratings obtained from their parents. The study also compared social ratings in adolescence to previous ratings of the same children obtained in elementary school.

Activities For Social Skills Development In Deaf Children Preparing To Enter The Mainstream, Dorie L. Noll

Independent Studies and Capstones

A sample of regular education teachers was surveyed to assess the social skills of recently mainstreamed students from oral deaf programs in their classrooms. In addition, a curriculum of social skills activities was developed to help prepare students from oral deaf schools to enter the mainstream.

School Counselors In The Mainstream Setting: A Tool For Working With Students With Hearing Impairments In The Public School Environment, Andrea Lynn Niekamp

Independent Studies and Capstones

This study looks at public school counselors who work with hearing impaired students and the counselor’s awareness of specific issues of problems of these students.

Are Distortion Levels A Problem With Digital Signal Processing Hearing Aids And Frequency Modulation (Fm) Systems?, Claire Buxton

Independent Studies and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to examine objective and subjective distortion present when frequency modulation (FM) systems were coupled with four digital signal processing (DSP) hearing aids. Electroacoustic analysis and subjective listening tests by experienced audiologists revealed that distortion levels varied across hearing aids and channels.

Current Infection Control Trends In Audiology, Alison Burco

Independent Studies and Capstones

The purpose of this study was to provide an in-depth assessment of current infection control practice trends in a group of practicing audiologists. The study investigated the extent to which Universal Precautions are applied in the clinical settings, the percentages of respondents familiar with general infection control nomenclature, and the future educational directives.

More Appropriate: Additional Stories For Students Who Are Hearing Impaired Using The "Specialized Program Individualizing Reading Excellence" (S.P.I.R.E.) Curriculum, Audrey Jane Davis

Independent Studies and Capstones

S.P.I.R.E., at use at Central Institute for the Deaf, is a comprehensive, multi-sensory systematic reading and language program that targets at risk and struggling students. The purpose of this project was to write additional stories and sentences for students who are hearing impaired through reader 2 that may be used in conjunction with the exiting stories and supplements.

An Examination Of Cued Speech As A Tool For Language, Literacy, And Bilingualism For Children Who Are Deaf Or Hard Of Hearing, Sarah Elizabeth Reynolds

Independent Studies and Capstones

This study examines the purpose and uses of Cued Speech, its benefits and limitations, and its effectiveness as a tool for language, literacy, and bilingualism.

Acoustical Barriers To Communication And Hearing, Aline Renee Sundeen

Independent Studies and Capstones

This study examined the acoustical conditions, including the surface-dimension measurements, background noise levels, and reverberation times in classrooms in a metropolitan area. The data collected in this study will help school administrators realize that appropriate classroom acoustics are necessary for both hearing impaired and normal hearing students.

Subjective Versus Objective Measures Of Daily Listening Environments, Jennifer Suzanne Taylor

Independent Studies and Capstones

This study examined hearing impaired listeners’ subjective perceptions of listening environments through a listening questionnaire and compared these results to objective measures mimicked by the questionnaire in the datalogging device SAM (Sound Activity Meter). Results indicate audiologists should not rely on patient reports of “typical” listening environments for hearing aid selection as significant discrepancies were present between several of the subjective and objective measures.

Role Of Synuclein Proteins In Auditory Function, Catherine A. Young

Independent Studies and Capstones

The recent discovery of synuclein proteins in peripheral auditory tissues has prompted a closer examination of the role of these proteins in hearing. In the present study, auditory brainstem response thresholds of synuclein knockout mice are compared to wild type mice.

Comparison Of Computerized Dynamic Posturography (Cdp) Results With Subjective Visual Vertical (Svv) Test In Patients With And Without Vestibular Dysfunction: Effects Of Horizontal Headshaking, Kristy Lee Greco

Independent Studies and Capstones

The goal of the study was to identify what effect headshaking in the horizontal plane has on Computerized Dynamic Posturography results in normals and patients with unilateral vestibular dysfunction. Additionally, the results were compared to results of the dynamic subjective visual vertical test.

Evaluation Of An Education Intervention For The Staff On The Head Of The Bed Elevation In The Pediatric Intensive Care Unit, Randall Johnson

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Elevating the head of bed (HOB) reduces risks for aspiration and ventilator associated pneumonia (VAP) in the adult population. Educational interventions have resulted in improvements in achieving a target HOB elevation of 30° in adults. Limited research has addressed this intervention in the pediatric intensive care unit (PICU). The aim of this study was to determine if an educational intervention for the PICU staff would result in improvement in the HOB elevation in the PICU. Four research questions were studied: 1) What is the common practice related to the elevation of the HOB in the PICU? 2) Is there a …

Quality Of Life In Older Breast Cancer Survivors, Victoria Loerzel

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Quality of life (QoL) in cancer survivors is an important area of research. While data are available about QoL and breast cancer, there is a paucity of research regarding older breast cancer survivors. The purpose of this research was to examine QoL in older women with early stage breast cancer, within the first year of post-treatment survivorship. The specific aims of this study were to: 1) Describe the changes in overall QoL and the four QoL domains of Physical, Psychological, Social, and Spiritual well-being; 2) Examine the effects of a psychoeducational support intervention on QoL outcomes in older women; and …

Disparities In Health And Well-Being Among Latinos In Washington Heights/Inwood, 2000–2005, Ana Motta-Moss

Center for Latin American, Caribbean, and Latino Studies

Introduction: This report analyzes how well the residents of Washington Heights/Inwood (WH/IN) have fared on selected health indicators set forth by the NYC Department of Health and Mental Hygene between 2000 and 2005.

Methods: Data on Latinos and other racial/ethnic groups were obtained from the U.S. Census Bureau American Community Survey, reorganized for public use by the Minnesota Population Center, University of Minnesota, IPUMSusa. Cases in the dataset were weighted and analyzed to produce population estimates.

Results: Immigrant families in particular face a multitude of health concerns, as well as specific barriers to accessing health care services. The socioeconomic and …

Virginia Dental Journal (Vol. 84, No. 4, 2007)

Virginia Dental Journal

No abstract provided.

Virginia Dental Journal (Vol. 84, No. 1, 2007)

Virginia Dental Journal

No abstract provided.

Factors Associated With Employment Among Latinos Living With Hiv/Aids, Shaun Michael Burns, Lydia R. L. Young, Suzanne Maniss

Counseling Faculty Publications

This investigation explored the utility of various demographic, health-related, and psychological variables in predicting employment among Latinos living with HIV/AIDS. Results of an analysis of variance indicated that employed participants were younger, evinced significantly greater CD4 counts, physical and mental health functioning, and internal locus of control beliefs than those who were unable to work due to disabilities. A backward binary logistic regression demonstrated that age, CD4 count, internal locus of control, and mental health functioning contributed to the explanatory power of the final model. This model correctly classified group membership 72% of the time, 78% of participants who were …

Department Of Education: Fy2007 Annual Report, Lehigh Valley Health Network

Department of Education

No abstract provided.

Development And Pilot Testing Of An Omega-3 Fatty Acid Food Frequency Questionnaire, Paula K. Ritter-Gooder, Nancy M. Lewis, Kimberly Barber-Heidal, Megan Waltz-Hill

Department of Nutrition and Health Sciences: Faculty Publications

Omega-3 fatty acids are essential to health and provide cardio-protective benefits. To estimate omega-3 fatty acid dietary intake, we developed a semi-quantitative food frequency questionnaire (FFQ) and pilot tested its reliability and validity in a convenience sample of cardiac patients in the Midwest. The FFQ was developed using the USDA Nutrient Database for Standard Reference and the ESHA Food Processor, ESHA Research, Salem, Oregon. Three 24-h recalls and two administrations of the FFQ two weeks apart were obtained by a dietitian by phone and home visit from 28 volunteers. Pearson correlation was used to assess the association between food recalls …

An Examination Of The Relationships Among Health Literacy, Social Support, And Patient Activation In Community Residing Older Adults, Brenda L. Harding Hage

Theses and Dissertations

This study examined the relationships among the variables health literacy, social support, and patient activation. The subjects were 90 elderly, community residing adults meeting the inclusion criteria and who volunteered to participate in the study and completed three survey instruments: the Short Form of Functional Health Literacy (Parker, Baker, Williams & Nurss, 1995); the Medical Outcomes Survey (MOS) Social Support Survey Instrument (Sherboume & Stewart, 1991); the Patient Activation Measure (PAM) Short-Form (Hibbard, Mahoney, Stockard, & Tusler, 2005); and a demographic form.

A correlational design was used to test the hypotheses that social support and health literacy are positively related …

Evaluation Of A Community-Based Tuberculosis Screening Program For Latino Immigrants In New York City, Cristina R. Fernández

Public Health Theses

No abstract provided.

Oral Health Services In A Medical Setting, Robert William Mansman Ii

Theses and Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this study is to examine the baseline oral health status of infants and the level of their caregiver's oral health knowledge for families who received preventive oral health services in a medical setting. Methods: Using a prospective cohort study, children 0-3 years of age received an oral health screening, risk assessment, caregiver education, and a fluoride varnish treatment in an ambulatory pediatric medical clinic. A 16-item oral health knowledge and socio-demographic questionnaire was delivered to the caregiver of child. This questionnaire included knowledge, behavior and opinion items on risk factors for dental diseases, care of child's …

Language-Based Spelling Instruction For Children Who Are Hard-Of-Hearing, Brittney L. Yakey

Masters Theses

The purpose of the study was to evaluate the effectiveness of SPELL-Links to Reading and Writing, a language-based instructional spelling program, with two hard-of-hearing children. Spelling skills were evaluated using the Spelling Performance Evaluation for Language (SPELL), Wide Range Achievement Test (WRAT), and Featured Inventories. The participants included two hard-of-hearing children with mild hearing loss. Spelling intervention targeted four spelling patterns (short u, ck, ch/tch, and ng). The results showed that one child benefited from the SPELL-Links to Reading and Writing by the improvement across all four patterns, while the other child showed improvement in only two of the patterns.

Phonetic And Acoustic Analyses Of Two New Cases Of Foreign Accent Syndrome, Rosalie Perkins

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This study presents detailed phonetic and acoustic analyses of the speech characteristics of two new cases of Foreign Accent Syndrome (FAS). Participants include a 48-year-old female who began speaking with an "Eastern European" accent following a traumatic brain injury, and a 45-year-old male who presented with a "British" accent following a subcortical cerebral vascular accident (CVA). Identical samples of the participants' pre- and post-morbid speech were obtained, thus affording a new level of control in the study of Foreign Accent Syndrome. The speech tasks consisted of oral readings of the Grandfather Passage and 18 real words comprised of the stop …