Revitalizing The Puerto Rican Economy After Hurricane Maria, Aditya Mehta

The Cardinal Edge

Puerto Rico is an island in the Caribbean that is an unincorporated territory of the U.S. It is naturally beautiful and caters heavily to tourists. However, it is currently in the midst of an economic crisis that has been building for years and is struggling to rebuild in the aftermath of Hurricane Maria. Additionally, popular culture and statistics have demonstrated that many Puerto Ricans are emigrating from the island. Puerto Rico must address these issues to ensure that its citizens can continue to have a good quality of life on the island. To do this, the U.S. government must work …

The Effect Of Health Promotion Program On Perceived Self-Efficacy And Self-Care Practices Among Elderly With Multimorbidity In Chiang Mai, Thailand, Jukkrit Wungrath, Nuttida Khumai, Phinphot Phrommasen

Kesmas

Multimorbidity in the elderly is a major public health issue with serious consequences. This study investigated the effects of health promotion programs on perceived self-efficacy and self-care practices among the elderly with multimorbidity using a quasi-experimental study design from February to July 2021. The study samples were the elderly from Doi Saket District, Chiang Mai Province, Thailand, selected by a multistage random sampling technique. The experimental and control groups each comprised 40 elderlies with multimorbidity. All elderly participants took part in a 12-week health promotion program. The perceived self-efficacy and self-care practices of the study samples were assessed using interviews, …

Addressing Ethical Issues In The Design Of Smart Home Technology For Older Adults And People With Disabilities., Jonathan Turner, Dympna O'Sullivan, Damian Gordon, Yannis Stavrakakis, Brian Keegan, Emma Murphy

Articles

Unique ethical, privacy and safety implications arise for people who are reliant on home-based smart technology due to health conditions or disabilities. In this paper we highlight a need for a reflective, inclusive ethical framework that encompasses the life cycle of smart home technology. We present key ethical considerations for smart home technology for older adults and people with disabilities and argue for ethical frameworks which combine these key considerations with existing models of design and development.

Co-Design To Support Engagement In Activities Of Daily Living And Meaningful Activities For People Living With Dementia, Michael Wilson, Julie Doyle, Ann Marron, Jonathan Turner, Ciaran Nugent, Dympna O'Sullivan

Articles

Dementia is a chronic and progressive neurodegenerative illness, which can lead to significant difficulties in a person’s capacity to perform activities of daily living and engage in meaningful activities. The Smart Dementia Care project aims to establish an understanding of how best to design digital tools that persons with dementia and their carers will find useful and usable for care planning and goal setting. This paper discusses the first phase of this project and describes how co-design is being used to support engagement in activities of daily living and meaningful activities for people living with the early stages of dementia, …

A Digital Application For Assessment Of Neurocognitive Disabilities, Thomas H. Auriemma

Theses and Dissertations

Background: Neuropsychological assessment is designed to identify neurocognitive impairment and has traditionally relied on pen-and-paper tests. The behavior collected from these tests is usually expressed as a total summary score or a score that reflects a restricted number of features that assess errors. There is now interest in coupling traditional paper and pencil tests with digital assessment technology. In this context traditional metrics such as summary scores are still available. However, using digital technology, a host of time-based parameters can now be obtained. These time-based parameters include the total time to complete the task or total time to completion, as …

Infarct Diameter For Predicting Cognitive Dysfunction In Ischemic Stroke Survivors In West Nusa Tenggara, Indonesia, Herpan Syafii Harahap, Setyawati Asih Putri, Yanna Indrayana, Hasan Amin, Fransisca Ika Mahardika

Kesmas

Cognitive dysfunction is an important consequence of ischemic stroke, which can progress in the first few years and is primarily determined by clinical factors. This study aimed to investigate the clinical determinants of cognitive dysfunction in stroke survivors in West Nusa Tenggara Province, Indonesia. This cross-sectional study assessed 255 ischemic stroke survivors with a mean age of 57.1±9.3 years old and 29–79 years old, recruited consecutively in three main hospitals in West Nusa Tenggara Province between March 2019 and October 2021. Categorical data collected included age, sex, education level, clinical determinants of ischemic stroke, and cognitive status of the patients. …

Benign Prostatic Hyperplasia (Bph): A Comprehensive Analysis Of The Malaise And Summarizing Possible Management Options Through Phytotherapeutic Agents, Shan Sasidharan, Kumarapillai Parameswaran Srinivasakumar, Sandeep Poddar, Amiya Bhaumik, Sreemoy Kanti Das, Hareendran Nair J

Kesmas

Benign prostatic hyperplasia (BPH) is a severe illness affecting middle-aged and geriatric male patients. This disease normally occurs at the age of 40 or above and is also associated with sexual dysfunction. Alpha-blockers and 5α-reductase inhibitors are the preferred drugs practiced to treat BPH. However, invasive surgical therapy remains the gold standard for managing the condition in the case of refractory and intricate BPH conditions. Due to the fear of sexual dysfunction and the detrimental influence on their quality of life, most patients seek to avoid synthetic drugs and surgery. For this reason, several patients turn to phytotherapy and other …

Media Coverage Of Anthropogenic Climate Change: Analysis Of Coverage, Issues, And Implications For Public Engagement And Government Policy, Renee Farmer

Senior Honors Theses

Media coverage of climate change is responsible for shaping both public understanding and government policies regarding the environment. The public relies on the media to translate the oftentimes complex terminology, processes, and implications of environmental research and findings. Unfortunately, miscommunication frequently occurs as the media seek to bridge this knowledge gap, with implications including hostile public sentiment, failure to take necessary action, and ineffective or harmful governmental policies. This thesis will provide an overview of how the media cover climate change, including analyses of both poor and successful coverage of issues, identification of risks and reoccurring problems present in media …

Towards An Ethical Framework For The Design And Development Of Inclusive Home-Based Smart Technology For Smart Spaces For Older Adults And People With Disabilities, Emma Murphy, Julie Doyle, Ioannis Stavrakakis, Damian Gordon, Brian Keegan, Dympna O'Sullivan

Articles

Unique ethical, privacy and safety implications arise for people who are reliant on home-based smart technology due to health conditions or disabilities. As a result we need to carefully reflect on our approaches to ethical issues over the life cycle of smart home technology design and the wider living context for end users and relevant stakeholders. In this position paper we highlight a need for a reflective, inclusive ethical framework for the design of inclusive smart spaces. We present key ethical considerations in the design, development and deployment of smart home-based technology for older adults and people with disabilities. We …

Usability Of Health-Related Websites By Filipino-American Adults And Nursing Informatics Experts, Kathleen Begonia

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Filipino-Americans are an understudied minority group with high prevalence and mortality from chronic conditions, such as cardiovascular disease and diabetes. Facing barriers to care and lack of culturally appropriate health resources, they frequently use the internet to obtain health information. It is unknown whether they perceive health-related websites to be useful or easy to use because there are no published usability studies involving this population. Using the Technology Acceptance Model as a theoretical framework, this study investigated the difference between website design ratings by experts and the perceptions of Filipino-American users to determine if usability guidelines influenced the perceived ease …

Affinity Of Cadmium Versus Zinc For The Carbonic Anhydrase Active Site, Rachel Phan

Honors Scholars Collaborative Projects

Cadmium is a heavy metal found in tobacco plants, nickel-cadmium batteries, and as a byproduct of metal mining. The similarities between the properties of zinc ions and cadmium ions in proteins due to their 2+ charges may cause displacement of zinc by cadmium if encountered and has been shown to do so in several transcription factors. Cadmium’s ability to replace zinc- a metal found in around 3,000 human proteins- is a cause for concern, especially due to its toxicity, long half-life in the body, and larger size.

Carbonic anhydrase is an important metalloprotein protein that relies on a central zinc(II) …

Comparison Of The Mental Burden On Nursing Care Providers With And Without Mat-Type Sleep State Sensors At A Nursing Home In Tokyo, Japan: Quasi-Experimental Study, Sakiko Itoh, Hwee-Pink Tan, Kenichi Kudo, Yasuko Ogata

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Background: Increasing need for nursing care has led to the increased burden on formal caregivers, with those in nursing homes having to deal with exhausting labor. Although research activities on the use of internet of things devices to support nursing care for older adults exist, there is limited evidence on the effectiveness of these interventions among formal caregivers in nursing homes. Objective: This study aims to investigate whether mat-type sleep state sensors for supporting nursing care can reduce the mental burden of formal caregivers in a nursing home. Methods: This was a quasi-experimental study at a nursing home in Tokyo, …

Recycled Human Hair-Derived Activated Carbon For Energy-Related Applications, Oğuzhan Kotan, Hati̇ce Bayrakçeken

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

Activated carbon, having high surface area and porosity, is a carbonaceous material that comes from organic main sources. In this work, activated carbon materials were produced from human hair that belongs to people who can be classified into two age groups (0-18 or 18-40 years). Activated carbons were characterized by nitrogen adsorption/desorption isotherms (BET), X-ray diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy (FTIR), Raman spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and elemental analysis techniques. Capacitances of the synthesized materials were determined by using cyclic voltammetry (CV). Characterization results showed that the structural properties of activated carbon materials and capacitance values are changed …

Genetic Contributors Of Incident Stroke In 10,700 African Americans With Hypertension: A Meta-Analysis From The Genetics Of Hypertension Associated Treatments And Reasons For Geographic And Racial Differences In Stroke Studies, Nicole D. Armstrong, Vinodh Srinivasasainagendra, Amit Patki, Rikki M. Tanner, Bertha A. Hidalgo, Hemant K. Tiwari, Nita A. Limdi, Ethan M. Lange, Leslie A. Lange, Donna K. Arnett, Marguerite R. Irvin

Epidemiology and Environmental Health Faculty Publications

Background: African Americans (AAs) suffer a higher stroke burden due to hypertension. Identifying genetic contributors to stroke among AAs with hypertension is critical to understanding the genetic basis of the disease, as well as detecting at-risk individuals.

Methods: In a population comprising over 10,700 AAs treated for hypertension from the Genetics of Hypertension Associated Treatments (GenHAT) and Reasons for Geographic and Racial Differences in Stroke (REGARDS) studies, we performed an inverse variance-weighted meta-analysis of incident stroke. Additionally, we tested the predictive accuracy of a polygenic risk score (PRS) derived from a European ancestral population in both GenHAT and REGARDS AAs …

Flavonoids Reduce Lipid Peroxides And Increase Glutathione Levels In Pooled Human Liver Microsomes (Hlms), William Yaw Boadi, Camille Stevenson, Dontrez Johnson, Mohamed Adel Mohamed

Chemistry Faculty Research

The effects of each of the flavonoids; genistein (G), quercetin (Q) and kaempferol (K) at several doses on lipid peroxides (LP) and reduced glutathione (GSH) in pooled human liver microsomes (HLMs) were investigated following the oxidative damage for 4, 6, 18 and 24 hr. HLMs (1 mg/ml) were exposed to each of the above flavonoids at 0, 5, 10, 15, 20 or 25 μM and incubated for the respective times as previously stated. Our hypothesis was that HLMs exposed to the flavonoids for the respective exposure times can decrease LP and increase GSH in HLMs to better cope with the …

The Spatial Effects Of Elderly Population Presence On Covid -19 Incidence In Dki Jakarta Before, During, And After Large-Scale Social Restriction, Chotib Chotib, I G A A Karishma Maharani Raijaya Mrs., Ahmad Aki Aki Muhaimin Mr., Novani Saputri

Smart City

ABSTRACT

Infected cases and suspect cases of covid-19 are increasing more and more daily. This increment happens either in whole regions of Indonesia and DKI Jakarta as a capital city. The purpose of this research is to seek the pattern in spatial of Covid-19 incidence with 3 different periods of before, during, and after large-scale social restriction, and to identify the influence of the presence of the elderly and other factors. One of the scopes of this study is the presence of the elderly because the elderly population is considered as influencing the increase of Covid-19 incidence. The analysis method …

The Mediating/Moderating Role Of Cultural Context Factors On Self-Care Practices Among Those Living With Diabetes In Rural Appalachia, Brittany L. Smalls, Adebola Adegboyega, Ellen Combs, Matthew Rutledge, Philip M. Westgate, Md. Tofial Azam, Felipe De La Barra, Lovoria B. Williams, Nancy E. Schoenberg

Family and Community Medicine Faculty Publications

Background

The aim of this study was to examine whether cultural factors, such as religiosity and social support, mediate/moderate the relationship between personal/psychosocial factors and T2DM self-care in a rural Appalachian community.

Methods

Regression models were utilized to assess for mediation and moderation. Multilevel linear mixed effects models and GEE-type logistic regression models were fit for continuous (social support, self-care) and binary (religiosity) outcomes, respectively.

Results

The results indicated that cultural context factors (religiosity and social support) can mediate/moderate the relationship between psychosocial factors and T2DM self-care. Specifically, after adjusting for demographic variables, the findings suggested that social support may …

Using Role Play To Develop An Empathetic Mindset In Executive Education, Siu Loon Hoe, Tamsin Greulich-Smith

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

The purpose of this article is to discuss the importance of a role play activity as part of an experiential instructional strategy to develop an empathetic mindset among professionals, managers, and executives (PMEs) attending an executive education program in change management. This article provides an approach and process for management educators and facilitators of executive education programs to introduce and teach role play for the busy executives to learn about empathy. Role play is a useful teaching method that helps adult learners understand the importance of seeing things from another person’s point of view especially within a short period of …

Physical And Mental Disabilities Among The Gender-Diverse Population Using The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, Brfss (2017–2019): A Propensity-Matched Analysis, Jennifer R. Pharr, Kavita Batra

Environmental & Global Health Faculty Research

This propensity-matched analysis utilized the publicly available Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (2017–2019) data to compare the burden of disabilities among transgender/non-binary (TGNB) and cisgender groups. The groups were matched (1:1 ratio) on demographic variables using Nearest Neighborhood Matching. Categorical variables were compared among groups using a Chi-square analysis to test differences in the proportions. Multivariate logistic regression analysis was fit to predict the likelihood of the physical and mental disabilities among the TGNB group compared with the cisgender group while controlling for healthcare access factors, income, and employment. Survey weights were included in the model to account for the …

Association Between Self-Reported Fatigue And Sarcopenia Measures Among Elderly In Selangor, Malaysia, Maria Justine, Aliff Latir, Nadhirah Noor, Angelbeth Joanny, Izzaty Iskandar, Maisarah Sakinah Amirul Faizi, Dzulhelmi Edinan

Kesmas

The association between fatigue and sarcopenia is not well understood, therefore, this study aimed to compare the sarcopenia measures among elderly with mild and severe fatigue and to determine whether fatigue severity is associated with sarcopenia measures. This was a cross-sectional study conducted on201 elderly (age = 68.45±6.30 years). The elderly was classified into either mild or severe fatigue based on the Fatigue Severity Scale (FSS), meanwhile, sarcopenia measures include SARC-F score, muscle mass (ASM/height2), calf circumference (CC), upper (handgrip) and lower limb muscle strength, as well as physical performance (gait speed). Data were analyzed using independent t-tests and logistic …

Qualitative Review Of Educational Interventions For Improving Physical Activity Behaviors In Older Asian Americans In The United States, Raisa Kabir, Manoj Sharma, Sayeda Tazim Zaidi, Chia-Liang Dai

Spectra Undergraduate Research Journal

Physical activity (PA) provides numerous health benefits and minimizes chronic diseases and mental health issues, especially in older adults. The national survey data indicated that only 27.3% to 44.3% of older adults meet the recommended PA guidelines of 150 to 300 minutes/ week. There is limited data on PA behavior among older Asian American (AA) adults as very few to no local/national surveys have targeted these marginalized subgroups. This comprehensive review aims to identify existing PA intervention strategies and to update current knowledge on the effectiveness of these interventions to improve PA behavior among aging AA in the US. The …

A Multidimensional Welfare Status Of Leprosy Patients Living In A Suburban Area, Yunia Irawati, Sri Linuwih Sw Menaldi, Melinda Harini, Luh Karunia Wahyuni, Wanarani Alwin, Astari Dwiranti, Adhityawarman Menaldi, Sonny Tirta Luzanil, Qaishum Matsurah, Dadun ., Rico Kurniawan, Ida Ruwaida, Gunawan Wicaksono, Muhammad Hidayat Sahid, Febrina Rahmayanti, Florentina Priscilia, Anis Fitriana, Tri Rahayu, Made Susiyanti, Gitalisa Andayani, Anna Puspitasari Bani, Hisar Daniel, Yeni Dwi Lestari

ASEAN Journal of Community Engagement

Leprosy has a high incidence of physical complications that will impact directly the physiological, economic, and social status of patients. Indonesia has a high burden of the disease, and several leprosy settlements are still spread in the country. Neglasari Village, Sitanala, Tangerang serves as one of the places of residence of people who have had leprosy. A health service initiative known as Identifikasi Tanda-Tanda Mata, Ekstremitas, dan Kulit pada Kusta (KATAMATAKU) was launched as a collaboration of health services among multi-departments (ophthalmology, dermatovenereology, and medical rehabilitation). Sitanala has a relatively high incidence of people who have had leprosy with disabilities …

An Exploratory Assessment Of Callings: The Importance Of Specialization, Christopher Paul Cain, Lisa Nicole Cain, James A. Busser, Hee Jung Kang

Hospitality Faculty Research

Purpose This study sought to understand how having a calling influenced engagement, work–life balance and career satisfaction for Professional Golfers Association of America (PGA) and Golf Course Superintendent of America (GCSA) professionals. Design/methodology/approach A conceptual model was used to examine callings among golf course supervisors and its impact on their engagement, work–life balance and career satisfaction. This study also explored the moderation effect of employees’ generalized or specialized role on the calling–engagement relationship. Surveys were collected from a single golf management company and partial least squares structural equation modeling (PLS-SEM) was used for data analysis. Findings The results revealed significant …

Cognitive Complaints In Age-Related Chronic Conditions: A Systematic Review, Nikki L. Hill, Sakshi Bhargava, Monique J. Brown, Hyejin Kim, Iris Bhang, Kaitlyn Mullin, Kathleen Phillips, Jacqueline Mogle

Faculty Publications

Introduction

Cognitive complaints in older adults may be indicative of progressive cognitive decline including Alzheimer’s disease (AD), but also occur in other age-related chronic conditions, complicating identification of early AD symptoms. To better understand cognitive complaints in aging, we systematically reviewed the evidence to determine their prevalence and characterization among older adults with the most common age-related chronic conditions.

Methods

This systematic review was conducted in accordance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses statement and the review protocol was prospectively registered with PROSPERO (ID: CRD42020153147). Searches were conducted in PubMed, CINAHL, PsycINFO, Web of Science, and …

Novel Applications Of Statistical And Machine Learning Methods To Analyze Trial-Level Data From Cognitive Measures, Chelsea Parlett

Computational and Data Sciences (PhD) Dissertations

Many cognitive tasks and measures can benefit from trial-level analyses including Item Response Theory models as well as other Bayesian and Machine Learning models. Specifically, this dissertation focuses mainly on task-based measures of metamemory and how within-set variability as well as item-level characteristics can improve the inferences researchers make about these measures.First, a clustering analysis of judgements of learning across a task is examined in order to detect different participant strategies on a metamemory task and whether strategy use differs by age. Second, the benefits of using item response theory models to analyze both individual and item-level differences in metamemory …

Promises Endure: Historical Views Of Nursing Faculty, Laura R. Muñoz

Verbum Incarnatum: An Academic Journal of Social Justice

Lessons learned from the history of an organization are valuable. This is especially true for an organization with the legacy held by the Ila Faye Miller School of Nursing and Health Professions at the University of the Incarnate Word. Memories recounted by nursing faculty were collected to enhance information provided in the two-volume chronicle written by Sister Patrice Slattery in 1995 entitled, “Promises to Keep” and the last history of the school, “The Story of One School of Nursing” written by Sister Charles Marie Frank in 1976.

Spring 2021, Joëlle Walls

The Investigator Research Magazine

Dear readers,

We are proud to present the spring issue of The Investigator and share with you the expansion of diverse research and scholarly activities occurring at Kennesaw State. Although this year was met with challenges, KSU’s research enterprise has thrived and grown.

In this issue, Pamela Whitten discussed the establishment of the Interdisciplinary Innovation Initiative, an internal funding program to spur new collaborations focused on KSU’s research themes. And alumni Carl Saint-Louis and Karen Armstrong, featured in our cover story, have returned as faculty to mentor the next generation.

This publication would not have been possible without the visual …

Std Prevention: An Educational Intervention For Exotic Dancers, Maria Delurdes Dehoyos

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The Centers for Disease Control and prevention reported nearly 2.3 million STD cases diagnosed in 2017, and the number is continuing to rise. San Antonio, Texas, is ranked third in the state of Texas with the highest STD rates and leading in the state with congenital syphilis. There is an increased risk for contracting STDs working in the sex industry. There are little to no studies pertaining to any educational interventions offered to exotic dancers to increase personal knowledge on STDs. This research has focused on an educational intervention offered by a nurse practitioner to exotic dancers in two adults-only …

Evoking Empathy: A Framework For Describing Empathy Tools, Sydney Pratte, Anthony Tang, Lora Oehlberg

Research Collection School Of Computing and Information Systems

Empathy tools are experiences designed to evoke empathetic responses by placing the user in another’s lived and felt experience. The problem is that designers do not have a common vocabulary to describe empathy tool experiences; consequently, it is difficult to compare/contrast empathy tool designs or to think about their efficacy. To address this problem, we analyzed 26 publications on empathy tools to develop a descriptive framework for designers of empathy tools. Based on our analysis, we found that empathy tools can be described along three dimensions: (i) the amount of agency the tool allows, (ii) the user’s perspective while using …

Formation And Characterization Of Mechanochemically Generated Free Lignin Radicalsfrom Olive Seeds, Fatma Demi̇r

Turkish Journal of Chemistry

In this study, formation and quantification of mechanochemically generated free radicals of lignin were evaluated after the extraction of lignin from olive seeds and detailed lignin characterization was performed. Lignin was extracted from crushed olive seeds as an insoluble solid using Klason method. Isolated lignin was mechanochemically grinded under cryo conditions using Cryomill and particlesizes were determined by using Zeta Sizer, structural changes were followed by XRD and FTIR-ATR; thermal stabilities were tracked by TGA and DSC. In order to enable solubility demanding studies (such as 1H-NMR and GPC), acylation of lignin was accomplished. ESR measurements were completed to prove …