Digital Commons Network^™

Adaptations Of Collaborative/Therapeutic Assessment With Survivors Of Torture: Clinical Insights From Shareback Conversations, Samantha Correa

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

Survivors of Torture (SoT) experience disproportionately high rates of PTSD, depression, and anxiety (Steel et al., 2009). Many SoT treatment programs use brief assessments to monitor symptoms (McFarlane & Kaplan, 2012). However, research on integrating feedback into treatment had been limited until Colpas et al.'s 2024 study on Sharebacks, a novel approach where clients review their progress with their clinician in structured feedback sessions. Given the therapeutic potential of assessment feedback (Tarocchi et al., 2013; Smith & George, 2012; Poston & Hanson, 2010) and Colpas et al.'s findings on Sharebacks' importance, this study explores how practitioners can most effectively incorporate …

Optimizing Clutch Performance In Euroleague Basketball: A Data-Driven Analysis Of Late-Game Decision-Making, Panagiotis F. Foteinakis, Stefania P. Pavlidou, Athanasios Chatzinikolaou, Nikolaos Stavropoulos, Maria Michalopoulou

Baltic Journal of Health and Physical Activity

Background: Decision-making during late-game possessions in basketball is considered one of the most essential aspects of winning a game. This study examined key determinants of late-game shot-making success in closely contested EuroLeague basketball matches, aiming to optimize offensive decision-making in clutch situations. Material and Methods: An observational analysis from the last two minutes of 83 EuroLeague games recorded 471 clutch shot attempts. Logistic regression and chi-square analyses assessed the impact of offense time, shot range, defensive pressure, game status, and offensive tactical strategies on shot success. Results: The results showed that paint clutch shots (63.9% success) were significantly more effective …

Health Effects Of Cadmium And Manganese Exposure On Luteinizing Hormone Levels: A Pilot Study Of Female Infertility, Shatha F. Alhous, Anees A. Al-Hamzawi, Murtadha Sh. Aswood

Al-Bahir

Female infertility occurs for many reasons, some unknown. Exposure to heavy metals is a risk factor that negatively impacts on female reproductive system. Therefore, this study aimed to evaluate the effect of cadmium Cd and manganese Mn on luteinizing hormone LH levels for females’ infertility. This study included a healthy group (n = 20), primary infertile females (n = 40), and secondary infertile females (n = 20) collected from Al-Zahraa hospital in Najaf center, Iraq. The Atomic Absorption Spectroscopy (AAS) was used to measure the cadmium and manganese concentrations and LH levels were measured by a Maglumi 800 from Snibe …

Enacting Tension: A Phenomenological, Art-Based Study Of Nicu Siblings’ Lived Experience Through Engagement With Dramatic Reality, Rebecca A. Versaci

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

A Neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) hospitalization reorganizes family life, yet siblings’ perspectives are rarely centered in NICU research. This phenomenological, art-based dissertation explores NICU siblings’ lived experience as revealed through the roles they created during engagement in dramatic reality. Eight child siblings of NICU patients participated in a storymaking and improvisational role-play intervention. Transcripts, participant artwork, and stories were examined through thematic analysis, and dramaturgical coding. Three central tensions organized children’s dramatic worlds: It’s Hard to be Together and It’s Hard to be Apart, I Want to be Free, but I am Trapped; I Want to Help …

Bodies At Risk When Choice Is A Privilege: Women’S Reproductive Healthcare Accessibility And Health Outcomes Since The Dobbs (2022) Ruling, Dallas Bonnet

Undergraduate Theses

Existing literature has well-documented the disproportionate effects of abortion restrictions upon socioeconomically disadvantaged women and women of color. This thesis builds on that work by exploring the relationship between state-level abortion restrictions and women’s self-reported health, as well as state-level infant mortality rates and maternal mortality rates. This project breaks these relationships down into three separate studies: Study 1 investigates the effect that abortion restrictions have on women’s self perceptions of health. Study 2 assesses the impact of abortion restrictions on infant mortality rates. Study 3 inspects the impact of abortion restrictions on maternal mortality rates. The primary independent variable …

Implementing Staff Education To Improve Depression Detection In Primary Care Using Patient Health Questionnaire (Phq-9), Ukamaka Okeke

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

This staff education project focuses on improving depression detection in a primary care settings using Patient Health Questionnaire (PHQ-9) screening tool. Depression is a leading cause of disability worldwide, requiring reliable and adaptable screening tools. The diagnosis of depression is one of the most common mental health disorders in primary care but is poorly identified and frequently missed. The lack of consistent screening for depression among patients often results in delayed identification of symptoms, which postpones early treatment, increasing the risk of complications associated with untreated depression. The practice site identified that depression screening was frequently missed during patient intake, …

Limited English Proficiency, Acculturative Stress, And Quality Of Life Among Korean American Patients With Chronic Hepatitis B, Hee-Soon Juon, Gilbert C. Gee, Julia G. Katcher, Daniel Yang, Katherine Smith, Ann C. Klassen

Department of Medical Oncology Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Chronic hepatitis B (CHB) is one of the most widespread liver diseases in the world and disproportionately affects Asian Americans, who are further impacted by the lower quality of life imposed by the infection. Limited English proficiency (LEP) and acculturative stress play an important role in the study of patients with CHB, but the interrelationships of LEP, acculturative stress, and health outcomes are not well studied in this population. This study aims to explore how acculturative stress mediates the relationship between LEP and health outcomes among Korean American patients with CHB.

METHODS: A total of 365 CHB patients completed …

Psychometric Properties And Validation Of The Filipino Satisfaction With Life Scale, Razel Bacuetes Milo, Patricia Calero, Cynthia D. Connelly

School of Nursing and Health Science: Faculty Scholarship

Introduction:

Life satisfaction is the cognitive evaluation of an individual’s current life situation and personal criteria influenced by their acclimatization process. Since the Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS) was introduced in 1985, it has been translated into 30 different languages. To date, there is limited knowledge about Filipino life satisfaction and its correlation to mental health. SWLS has not been translated, and its psychometric properties have not been established in Filipino. This study establishes the psychometric properties of the Filipino SWLS and examines the correlations between life satisfaction and mental health among Filipino Americans.

Methods:

The study design is a …

A Pilot Study Of A Comprehensive Mental Health Intervention For Collegiate Athletes., Joshua Celebre, Philip Sullivan, Mishka E.V. Blacker

Journal of Athlete Development and Experience

Research on mental health interventions for athletes have recognized systematic limitations in the field (i.e., a dearth of randomized control trials, and lack of long-term follow up measurement). The current study summarized the pilot study of the Canadian Mental Health Association’s Talk Today mental health intervention within collegiate sport. Four teams (two male (n = 64), two female (n = 74)) were randomly assigned to an intervention or a wait-list control condition. Mental health literacy, stigma, psychological distress, and help-seeking were measured at four different timepoints, including a 6-month follow up. There were no significant effects between the …

Depression And Psychotic Disorders Worsen Perioperative Outcomes And Increase Resource Utilization After Multilevel Lumbar Fusion: Implications For Screening And Perioperative Care, Leonidas E. Mastrokostas, Paul G. Mastrokostas, Luke B. Schwartz, Abigail Razi, Sean Inzerillo, John K. Houten, Arya Varthi, Alex R. Vaccaro, Jad Bou Monsef, Afshin E. Razi, Mitchell K. Ng

Rothman Institute Papers

CONTEXT: Multilevel lumbar fusion use has increased with an aging U.S. population. Depression and psychotic disorders are linked to poorer surgical outcomes, but their effects in this setting are unclear.

AIMS: The aims of this study were to quantify the prevalence of these disorders and evaluate associations with perioperative outcomes and resource use.

SETTINGS AND DESIGN: This was a retrospective cohort study using the National Inpatient Sample from 2016 to 2022.

SUBJECTS AND METHODS: Depression and psychotic disorders were defined using Elixhauser-derived indicators. Outcomes included medical and mechanical complications, discharge disposition, length of stay (LOS), and costs.

STATISTICAL ANALYSIS USED: …

Depressive Symptoms, Campus Connectedness, And Campus Climate Related To Sexual Violence And Misconduct, Stephanie A. Navarro Silvera, Amanda S. Birnbaum, Eva S. Goldfarb, Ranju Mainali, Lisa D. Lieberman

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

Depression, although a consequence of sexual violence, has not been studied in the context of college students’ views of campus sexual violence climate. Depression is one of the most prevalent and impairing mental health concerns among college students and has well-established links to sexual violence victimization; therefore, it serves as a theoretically and clinically meaningful focal outcome. Therefore, we assessed perceptions of institutional climate in the context of self-reported depression. Undergraduates (n = 716) reported perceptions and experiences of campus sexual violence and misconduct, connectedness, attitude, and depressive symptoms in an online survey. More than a third of participants reported …

Comprehensive, Multidisciplinary Care For Fragile X-Associated Tremor/Ataxia Syndrome, James A. Bourgeois, Andrea Schneider, Jessica Klusek Ph.D., Ccc-Slp, Thomas R. Christensen, Ellie Levin, Kendall Gardner, Ariel A. Jacobi, Randy J. Hagerman

Faculty Publications

Objective: 

The authors reviewed the pathophysiology, clinical genetics, phenotype, and comprehensive clinical management of Fragile X-associated Tremor/Ataxia Syndrome (FXTAS), a neurodegenerative disorder affecting FMR1 premutation carriers (55–200 CCG repeats).

Participants: 

A multispecialty and multidisciplinary team of authors with backgrounds in psychiatry, pediatrics, clinical psychology, speech and language pathology, and neurosciences.

Evidence: 

Review of English language sources on the clinical phenomenology, genetics, pathophysiology, and clinical management of FXTAS from 2001 (the original report) through 2025, with emphasis on the general medical, psychiatric, and neurological features of FXTAS and its multispecialty and multidisciplinary clinical management.

Consensus process:

All authors contributed to the …

The Level Of Physical Activity And The Feeling Of Stress In Difficult Life Situations Among Refugees From Ukraine, Bartosz Gondek, Iwona Bonisławska, Milena Lachowicz

Baltic Journal of Health and Physical Activity

Background: Russia's attack on Ukraine in February 2022 started the largest armed conflict in Europe since World War II. In the face of danger, crowds of civilians decided to leave their homes and escape, among others, to Poland in search of shelter. Materials and methods: The research was conducted on groups of refugees from Ukraine who registered in the first days of the war in Sopot and Pruszcz Gdanski. The refugees came from Kharkov, Mariupol, Kherson, Zaporizhzhia, and western Ukraine (not involved in hostilities). People from the war zone areas mostly came with only hand luggage. The respondents were divided …

The Impact Of Social Determinants Of Health On Chronic Diseases: A Narrative Review, Farooq Hyder, Laraib Naeem Arain, Abdullah Ashraf, Abida Perveen, Hina Pervaiz

Journal of Community Hospital Internal Medicine Perspectives

Chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, chronic respiratory disorders, and certain cancers are leading causes of morbidity and mortality worldwide. While biological and behavioral factors contribute to their development, growing evidence indicates that social determinants of health (SDOH) play a fundamental role in influencing chronic disease outcomes. SDOH include socioeconomic status, education, employment, housing conditions, neighborhood environment, access to nutritious food, and availability of healthcare services. These factors not only shape individual health behaviors but also determine access to preventive care, disease management resources, and overall quality of life. Individuals and communities facing socioeconomic disadvantage are disproportionately affected by …

2026 March 17 - Medical Student Education Committee Minutes, Medical Student Education Committee, East Tennessee State University

Medical Student Education Committee Minutes

No abstract provided.

Development And Validation Of The Emergency Department Transitions Measure, Sara Beachy, Danielle M. Mccarthy, Julianna Lenoir, Alexzandra Gentsch, Richard W. Hass, Marissa Witmer, Paula Ostroff, Melissa Tupas, Lindsey Shughart, Hailey Shughart, Kristin L. Rising

Jefferson Center for Connected Care Faculty Papers

BACKGROUND: Transitions of care are high-risk periods for patient safety in the emergency department (ED), particularly for patients who are still in the diagnostic process and are discharged with diagnostic uncertainty. Care transitions must be improved for these patients, as one third of discharged ED patients have diagnostic uncertainty. Yet there are no validated measures that assess the quality of care transitions from the ED, limiting the ability to assess the impact of interventions. Thus, we developed and validated the ED Transitions (EDT) measure.

METHODS: This mixed methods study was conducted across a large healthcare system in three phases: item …

Impact Of Depression And Anxiety On Outcomes Following Muscle-Preserving Transforaminal Lumbar Interbody And Fusion., Sahil Garg, Sean M Muir, Kyle Jamar, Alexa Dietrich, Patrick Young, Sonny Gill

Surgery Articles

Background: The impact of concurrent diagnoses of anxiety and depression has not been extensively studied in spine surgery. We hypothesize that a muscle-sparing technique may be associated with decreased postoperative pain and improved strength postoperatively compared to open techniques, decreasing the stress of the postoperative recovery process. Therefore, this study aims to assess the benefits that a modified muscle-preserving lumbar fusion technique (Wiltse transforaminal lumbar interbody and fusion (W-TLIF)) would have on this subset of patients.

Methods: One hundred twenty subjects who underwent a single-level W-TLIF were identified with a recorded diagnosis status associated with mental health. The subjects underwent …

Living In Liberal Areas Reduced Covid-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Among Conservatives, Brittany L. Kmush, Rachel E. Dinero

Population Health Research Brief Series

Political divisions shaped public health responses throughout the COVID-19 pandemic, with conservatives expressing higher vaccine hesitancy than liberals. But does where conservatives live matter? This brief summarizes findings from a study using survey data from 683 U.S. adults (ages 18-94) collected March-April 2023, combined with 2020 presidential election results by zip code. The authors found that liberals consistently had low vaccine hesitancy and high uptake regardless of where they lived, but conservatives living in lower Trump vote share communities reported lower vaccine hesitancy and higher vaccination and booster uptake than conservatives in high Trump vote share communities. This pattern was …

Remote Language Assessment In School-Age Children With Phelan–Mcdermid Syndrome And Genotype–Phenotype Correlation, Sarah Quadri-Valverde, Jessica Klusek Ph.D., Ccc-Slp, Linda D. Ward, Diana Ivankovic, Nancy Powers, Vijay Shankar, Rachel A. Lyman, Trudy F.C. Mackay, William Bridges, Katy Phelan, Chris Rogers, Luigi Boccuto, Sara M. Sarasua

Faculty Publications

People with Phelan–McDermid syndrome (PMS) have reduced speech and language abilities, yet little research has profiled the communication abilities in this population. The purpose of this study was threefold: identifying the language and communication profiles of school-aged children with PMS, identifying genetic contributions to language and communication abilities, and determining the feasibility of remote data collection for research purposes. A speech language pathologist used standardized assessments and direct evaluations by video conferencing to evaluate language and communication abilities. Sixteen children and adolescents were evaluated: 5 with SHANK3 pathogenic variants, 9 with 22q13 deletions including SHANK3 (PMS-SHANK3 related), and 2 …

Nursing Interventions To Reduce Anxiety And Psychological Distress In Breast Cancer Patients In The Us, Alexis Abboud, Al Araydeh Mifleh

The Cardinal Edge

Background Breast cancer patients frequently experience psychological challenges, such as anxiety, distress, and diminished quality of life (QoL). Nursing interventions show promise in addressing these issues; however, a comprehensive synthesis of their impact is lacking. This review evaluates the effectiveness of nursing interventions in reducing anxiety and psychological distress while improving QoL.

Research Question What nursing interventions effectively reduce anxiety and psychological distress and improve QoL among breast cancer patients in the United States?

Methods A systematic review was conducted following PRISMA 2020 guidelines. Searches of CINAHL, APA PsycInfo, and Medline identified studies published in the last five years in …

Hallucinogens For Mood And Anxiety Disorders: A Critical Review Of Psychedelic-Assisted Therapies, Georgia Chlebek

The Cardinal Edge

In quite a few people worldwide, there are several mental disorders that prevent the brain from operating in the “proper” way, depression, anxiety, and post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) being among the most common. Luckily, there are several medications that are produced and used to treat these disorders, but some medications are hard to access, and others simply don’t help the patient. Firstly, these medications take time to study and prove safe for public use, though in some cases time is not readily available. In other cases, these medications are going through shortages and becoming increasingly difficult for patients to access …

Quality Improvement Project: Implementation Of A Screening Tool For Postpartum Depression, Yaminah Johnson

Doctor of Nursing Practice Projects

Postpartum depression (PPD) remains underrecognized in clinical practice, with many cases going undiagnosed due to inconsistent or absent screening processes. At the project site, only 60% of postpartum patients reported that their mental health needs were adequately addressed, highlight-ing a critical gap in care. The purpose of this quality improvement project was to implement an evidence-based PPD screening tool and evaluate its impact on provider confidence and patient outcomes. Guided by Lewin’s Theory of Planned Change and Orem’s Self-Care Deficit Theory, the project aimed to improve physician and nursing staff confidence in screening and increase appropriate interventions for patients who …

Targeting Il-1 Signaling In Recessive Dystrophic Epidermolysis Bullosa: Improved Survival And Pathogenesis In Rdeb Mouse Model, Rahim Hirani

NYMC Student Theses and Dissertations

Recessive dystrophic epidermolysis bullosa (RDEB) is a devastating inherited blistering disorder caused by biallelic mutations in COL7A1, resulting in deficiency of type VII collagen (C7) and loss of dermal–epidermal adhesion. Beyond mechanical fragility, RDEB is characterized by chronic inflammation, progressive fibrosis, impaired wound healing, severe pain, and an exceptionally high risk of aggressive cutaneous squamous cell carcinoma. Emerging transcriptomic and cytokine profiling studies have identified interleukin-1 alpha (IL-1α) as a dominant and temporally upstream inflammatory mediator in RDEB skin. The central hypothesis of this dissertation is that IL-1α signaling functions as a key initiator and amplifier of inflammation-driven pathology …

Examining Undergraduate Nursing Faculty’S Job Satisfaction Related To Workload, Work-Life Balance, And Student Incivility, Melissa Walch

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Exploring nursing faculty job satisfaction is important for retaining faculty in undergraduate nursing programs because they are vital to training future bedside nurses. There is a nursing faculty shortage in the United States, and retaining faculty is critical to addressing it. The purpose of this study, guided by Herzberg’s motivation-hygiene theory, was to (a) understand the relationship between workload, work-life balance, and nursing faculty job satisfaction and (b) the relationship between student incivility and nursing faculty job satisfaction in undergraduate nursing programs. Undergraduate nursing faculty in Ohio and Florida with at least 2 years of teaching experience were recruited via …

The Prospects Of Car T-Cell Therapies In Changing The Therapeutic Algorithm Of Neurologic Autoimmunities, Marinos C. Dalakas

Department of Neurosurgery Faculty Papers

T cells, genetically modified to express chimeric antigen receptors (CAR T), successfully used in hemato-oncologic malignancies, are showing promising and sustained benefits in refractory autoimmune neurological diseases, including Myasthenia Gravis, stiff-person syndrome, neuromyelitis optica, myositis, autoimmune neuropathies, and multiple sclerosis. Several reported patients with a steadily progressive disease and evolving disability unresponsive to available therapies, including rituximab and new biologics, after 2-3 months of treatment with CARs targeting CD19-positive, antibody-secreting, long-lived plasma cells, and plasmablasts exhibit impressive, long-lasting, and drug-free clinical improvements with the potential for immune reset shifting immunity to a healthy state without the need for continuing more …

Revisiting A Service-Learning Component In Aac Coursework: Design, Logistics, And Practical Challenges, Juhi Kidwai, Mohammad Al Rjoob, Maria Claudia Franca, Valerie E. Boyer

Teaching and Learning in Communication Sciences & Disorders

This scholarly teaching manuscript describes the design, implementation, and challenges of integrating a service-learning component into a graduate-level augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) course within a Communication Disorders and Sciences (CDS) program. The project sought to bridge academic instruction with real-world application while addressing unmet service needs in local schools. The 16-week course was divided into an eight-week didactic phase followed by an eight-week field-based practicum. Graduate students were paired with school-based speech-language pathologists (SLPs) in a rural, midwestern special education cooperative district, to support children using AAC. Implementation included a pre-semester needs assessment, collaborative student–SLP matching, structured orientation, weekly …

From Answers To Understanding: Bridging The Gap Between Multiple-Choice And Open-Ended Questions, Kathleen A. Siren

Teaching and Learning in Communication Sciences & Disorders

Assessment is central to effective teaching, and the structure of exam questions significantly influences both learning and instruction. Multiple-choice (MCQ) and short-answer (SAQ) questions are widely used and frequently studied, each offering distinct advantages and limitations for formative and summative assessment. This study examined a modified multiple-choice format, multiple-choice questions with explanation (MCQwE), for which students selected an answer and briefly explained their reasoning. Designed to combine the efficiency of MCQs with the diagnostic value of open-ended responses, MCQwE were implemented in an undergraduate speech science course and compared to traditional MCQs and SAQs in terms of student performance. Findings …

Teaching Through Disruption: Trauma-Informed, Community-Engaged Learning In A Graduate Csd Course, Teresa L. Boggs

Teaching and Learning in Communication Sciences & Disorders

This article explores how a graduate course in communication sciences and disorders (CSD) was rapidly redesigned in response to a natural disaster to integrate trauma-informed and community-engaged learning. Following Hurricane Helene’s impact on Appalachian communities, a standard literature review assignment was transformed into a collaborative project where students created low-cost, developmentally appropriate language-learning kits for young children affected by the storm. Grounded in adult learning theory, trauma-responsive pedagogy, and high-impact educational practices, the revised course structure enabled students to apply clinical knowledge in real time while supporting families in crisis. Outcomes included increased student engagement, empathy, and professional competency. The …

Teaching Students To Identify And Adjust Linguistic Bias In Speech-Language Pathology Clinical Writing, Ann K. Holland, Mary Riotte, Abby "Po Jung" Lee, Angela Ayre, Sarah Friel, Mirza J. Lugo-Neris, Laura L. Wolford

Teaching and Learning in Communication Sciences & Disorders

Biased and stigmatizing language is pervasive in healthcare records and has negative effects on clients’ care. While some research has studied how medical students may be taught to reduce stigmatizing language in their writing, the impacts of such trainings on clinical writing are rarely directly assessed, and little has been done to address this problem in speech-language pathology (SLP). This study assessed how a training module on biased language in clinical writing impacted SLP masters students’ ability to identify and correct stigmatizing language in a clinical report. Across two years, 120 students took part in this module. During the second …

High Dietary Fiber Is Associated With Improved Outcomes In Patients With Melanoma And Sarcoma Treated With Immunotherapy Regardless Of Gut Microbiome Dysbiosis And Social Vulnerability, Brittany C Fields, Raymond S Traweek, Kai Jiang, Russell G Witt, Ashish Damania, Nadim Ajami, Emily Z Keung, Manoj Chelvanambi, Xiaotao Zhang, Christine B Peterson, Jennifer A Wargo, Carrie R Daniel, Christina L Roland, Ashley M Holder

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: Social vulnerability, dietary fiber, and the gut microbiome have been individually implicated in clinical outcomes for melanoma and sarcoma patients. This study hypothesized that increasing social vulnerability is associated with insufficient dietary fiber intake and negatively associated with microbiome composition and clinical outcomes.

Methods: Clinicopathologic data, baseline fiber intake, and gut microbiome profiles were assessed in 153 patients with melanoma or sarcoma treated with immune checkpoint blockade (ICB) and prospectively followed. Patients' social vulnerability index (SVI) and fiber intake were evaluated for associations with microbiome composition, treatment response, and overall survival (OS).

Results: SVI percentile was 0.4 (interquartile ratio …