Digital Commons Network^™

Road Construction As A Facilitator For Dengue Fever Transmission, Kate Billups

Environmental Studies Senior Seminar Projects

Although I plan to focus on the impact of road construction in tropical and subtropical regions on the spread and contraction of dengue fever, I hope to use this focus as a model that could help to create policies that would mitigate other diseases spread through insect contact. In places that road and railway construction have already become a part of the permanent foundation, medical infrastructure should be put into place to ensure that populations at increased risk to contract dengue fever have access to medical care to diminish rates of dengue hemorrhagic fever.

Paper prepared for the Environmental Studies …

Facing An Epidemic: An Analysis Of Hiv/Aids, Antiretroviral Drug, And International Response To The Aids Pandemic, Michael Tate

Annual Undergraduate Conference on Health and Society

More than 33 million people are living with HIV/AIDS around the globe with 68% of all cases occurring in sub-Saharan Africa. The global prevalence rate is shocking considering that the disease was relatively unknown just 30 years ago. After reviewing medical, health policy, and health statistical journals, I will argue in this paper that international aid to nations struggling with AIDS needs to be redirected and refocused on supplying antiretroviral therapy to afflicted nations because ARV has been proven to be effective in managing the disease in countries that can afford the costs of treatment. International aid to countries that …

Value Of Community Partnership For Understanding Stress And Coping In Rural Yup’Ik Communities: The Canhr Study, Inna D. Rivkin, Ellen Lopez, Tonie M. Quaintance, Joseph Trimble, Scarlett Hopkins, Candace Fleming, Eliza Orr, Gerald V. Mohatt

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Stress and trauma can compromise physical and mental health. Rural Alaska Native communities have voiced concern about stressful and traumatic events and their effects on health. The goal of the Yup’ik Experiences of Stress and Coping Project is to develop an in-depth understanding of experiences of stress and ways of coping in Yup’ik communities. The long-range goal is to use project findings to develop and implement a community-informed and culturally grounded intervention to reduce stress and promote physical and mental health in rural Alaska Native communities. This paper introduces a long-standing partnership between the Yukon-Kuskokwim Regional Health Corporation, rural communities …

Associations Between The Quality Of The Residential Built Environment And Pregnancy Outcomes Among Women In North Carolina, Marie Lynn Miranda, Lynne C. Messer, Gretchen L. Kroeger

Community Health Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: The built environment, a key component of environmental health, may be an important contributor to health disparities, particularly for reproductive health outcomes.Objective: In this study we investigated the relationship between seven indices of residential built environment quality and adverse reproductive outcomes for the City of Durham, North Carolina (USA).

Methods: We surveyed approximately 17,000 residential tax parcels in central Durham, assessing > 50 individual variables on each. These data, collected using direct observation, were combined with tax assessor, public safety, and U.S. Census data to construct seven indices representing impor­tant domains of the residential built environment: housing damage, property disorder, …

Post-Acute Care Payment Reform Demonstration: Final Report Volume 4 Of 4, Barbara Gage, Melvin Ingber, Laura Smith, Anne Deutsch, Tracy Kline, Jill Dever, Judith Abbate, Richard Miller, Brieanne Lyda-Mcdonald, Cynthia Kelleher, Danielle Garfinkel, Joshua Manning, Christopher M. Murtaugh, Margaret Stineman, Trudy Mallinson

Clinical Research and Leadership Faculty Publications

This is the Final Report for the Post-Acute Care Payment Reform Demonstration (PAC-PRD), authorized by section 5008 of the Deficit Reduction Act of 2005, Public Law 109-171. The report has 12 sections, which are divided into four volumes: Volume 1: Executive Summary. Volume 2: Sections 1-4 (Section 1: Introduction; Section 2: Underlying Issues of the PAC-PRD Initiating Legislation; Section 3: Developing Standardized Measurement Approaches: The Continuity Assessment Record and Evaluation (CARE); Section 4: Demonstration Methods and Data Collection) Volume 3: Sections 5-6 (Section 5: Framework for Analysis; Section 6: Factors Associated with Hospital Discharge Destination) Volume 4: Sections 7-12; References …

Benchmarking Us Department Of Veterans Affairs Dermatologic Services: Results From A National Survey, L. Kendall Krause, Leilani Townsend, Michael L. Orser, Jennifer Mulhausen, Jodi Duke, Weston T. Waxweiler, Robert P. Dellavalle

United States Public Health Resources

Background: How well Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) dermatology services provide clinical care, medical education, and innovative research is a largely unexplored topic in the literature.

Objective: We sought to benchmark VA dermatology services by surveying VA dermatologists about their environment, resources, and the pros and cons of working in the VA.

Methods: Printed surveys were mailed to VA dermatologists and responses were compiled and analyzed.

Results: Of 105 dermatology services surveyed, 48% returned surveys completed by board-certified dermatologists (n = 50); 20 surveys completed by nondermatologists were excluded from the analysis. Most services trained …

The Significance Of Race For Neighborhood Social Cohesion: Perceived Difficulty Of Collective Action In Majority Black Neighborhoods, Tamara Leech, Tara Hobson-Prater

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

This article explores William Julius Wilson's contentions about community cultural traits by examining racial differences in middle class neighborhoods' levels of social cohesion. Specifically, we explore the perceived difficulty of these actions-as opposed to general pessimism about their outcomes-as a potential explanation for low levels of instrumental collective action in Black middle class neighborhoods. Our results indicate that, regardless of other neighborhood factors, majority Black neighborhoods have low levels of social cohesion. We also find that this racial disparity is statistically explained by shared perceptions about the amount of effort required to engage in group action in different neighborhoods. These …

School Racial Composition And Race/Ethnic Differences In Early Adulthood Health, Bridget J. Goosby, Katrina M. Walsemann

Faculty Publications

We investigate whether school racial composition is associated with racial and ethnic differences in early adult health. We then examine whether perceived discrimination, social connectedness, and parent support attenuates this relationship. Using U.S. data from Wave I and IV of the National Longitudinal Survey of Adolescent Health, we found that black adolescents attending predominantly white schools reported poorer adult health while Asians reported better health. Further research is warranted to understand whether there are qualitative differences in the treatment of racial and ethnic minorities within certain school contexts and how that differential treatment is related to adult health outcomes.

The Geographic Value Of Patient-Carried Medical Records In Improving Healthcare In The Us, Lauren Edmundson

The Macalester Review

American medical records have typically been maintained in a single location. However, patient-carried medical records (PCMRs) present an opportunity to alter the space in which health records and information operate. While past research has evaluated PCMRs from a largely economic perspective, this research examines potential benefits of PCMRs through a geographic framework. In total, while further work is needed to perfect the PCMR system, they can ultimately serve as a tool to alleviate four specific complaints made by American patients: lack of communication between provider and patient, lack of communication between providers, medical error, and high costs.

Insights From "Creating The Healthcare Workforce For The 21(St) Century" Conference., Amanda R Solis

College of Population Health Faculty Papers

No abstract provided.

A Spatial Cluster Analysis Of Tractor Overturns In Kentucky From 1960 To 2002, Daniel M. Saman, Henry P. Cole, Agricola Odoi, Melvin L. Myers, Daniel I. Carey, Susan C. Westneat

Epidemiology and Environmental Health Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND: Agricultural tractor overturns without rollover protective structures are the leading cause of farm fatalities in the United States. To our knowledge, no studies have incorporated the spatial scan statistic in identifying high-risk areas for tractor overturns. The aim of this study was to determine whether tractor overturns cluster in certain parts of Kentucky and identify factors associated with tractor overturns.

METHODS: A spatial statistical analysis using Kulldorff's spatial scan statistic was performed to identify county clusters at greatest risk for tractor overturns. A regression analysis was then performed to identify factors associated with tractor overturns.

RESULTS: The spatial analysis …

Impact Of Antiviral Treatment And Hospital Admission Delay On Risk Of Death Associated With 2009 A/H1n1 Pandemic Influenza In Mexico, Gerardo Chowell, Cecile Viboud, Lone Simonsen, Mark A. Miller, Santiago Echevarría-Zuno, Margotx González-León, Víctor H. Borja Aburto

Global Health Faculty Publications

Background

Increasing our understanding of the factors affecting the severity of the 2009 A/H1N1 influenza pandemic in different regions of the world could lead to improved clinical practice and mitigation strategies for future influenza pandemics. Even though a number of studies have shed light into the risk factors associated with severe outcomes of 2009 A/H1N1 influenza infections in different populations (e.g., [1-5]), analyses of the determinants of mortality risk spanning multiple pandemic waves and geographic regions are scarce. Between-country differences in the mortality burden of the 2009 pandemic could be linked to differences in influenza case management, underlying population health, …

Pursuing High Performance In Rural Health Care, A. Clinton Mackinney Md, Ms, Keith J. Mueller Phd, Andrew F. Coburn Phd, Jennifer P. Lundblad Phd, Mba, Timothy D. Mcbride Phd, Sidney D. Watson Jd

Health System Reform

Rural Futures Lab Foundation Papers are intended to present current thinking on the economic drivers and opportunities that will shape the future of rural America. They provide the foundation upon which it will be possible to answer the question that drives the Lab’s work—What has to happen today in order to achieve positive rural outcomes tomorrow?

A Novel Tool For Assessing And Summarizing The Built Environment, Gretchen L. Kroeger, Lynne C. Messer, Sharon E. Edwards, Marie Lynn Miranda

Community Health Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: A growing corpus of research focuses on assessing the quality of the local built environment and also examining the relationship between the built environment and health outcomes and indicators in communities. However, there is a lack of research presenting a highly resolved, systematic, and comprehensive spatial approach to assessing the built environment over a large geographic extent. In this paper, we contribute to the built environment literature by describing a tool used to assess the residential built environment at the tax parcel-level, as well as a methodology for summarizing the data into meaningful indices for linkages with health data. …

State Policies For Health Education In Public Schools, Lynda K. Vu

Master of Public Health Program Student Publications

Background: Federal and state governmental activities have significantly influenced schools’ health education practices over the past 50 years. Evaluation of these initiatives in the scientific literature has enhanced development of health education and influenced the creation of the National Health Education Standards (NHES). The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) conducts periodic surveys to evaluate the impact of state and local policies on school health education programs and practices.

Objectives: This research project reviews and analyzes state health education policies for the 50 states plus the District of Columbia with regard to the recommendations of the NHES. It also …

Area-Based Differentials In Childhood Cancer Incidence In Australia, 1996–2006, Danny R. Youlden, Peter D. Baade, Patricia C. Valery, Timothy E. Hassall, Leisa J. Ward, Adele C. Green, Joanne F. Aitken

Aboriginal Policy Research Consortium International (APRCi)

Background. International studies examining the association between the incidence of childhood cancer and characteristics of the area in which the patient lives have generally reported inconsistent patterns. Area-based differentials in childhood cancer throughout Australia have not been previously published at a national level. Procedure. Population-based information from the Australian Paediatric Cancer Registry was used to identify all children aged 0- to 14-years old diagnosed with invasive cancer or intracranial and intraspinal tumors of benign or uncertain behavior between 1996 and 2006. Age-standardized incidence rates per million children per year and the corresponding incidence rate ratios were calculated, categorized by remoteness …

Improving Outpatient Diabetes Care, Susan Kirsh, Michael Hein, Leonard Pogach, Gordon Schectman, Lauren Stevenson, Sharon Watts, Archana Radhakrishnan, John Chardos, David Aron

United States Public Health Resources

More than 20% of patients in the Veterans Health Administration (VHA) have diabetes; therefore, disseminating “best practices” in outpatient diabetes care is paramount. The authors’ goal was to identify such practices and the factors associated with their development. First, a national VHA diabetes registry with 2008 data identified clinical performance based on the percentage of patients with an A1c >9%. Facilities (n = 140) and community-based outpatient clinics (n = 582) were included and stratified into high, mid, and low performers. Semistructured telephone interviews (31) and site visits (5) were conducted. Low performers cited lack of teamwork between physicians and …

An Assessment Of Individual And Institutional Research Utilization By Policy-Makers And Programme Managers At State And National Levels In Nigeria, National Agency For The Control Of Aids

HIV and AIDS

This report undertakes a systematic assessment of the need for evidence by decision-makers working on HIV and AIDS funding and policymaking, and implementing organizations at the national and subnational levels in Nigeria. The assessment identifies barriers and constraints to data use, identifies best practices, and offers recommendations for the design and prioritization of strategic approaches to address barriers and constraints in data use and production. Tools to monitor the adoption of evidence in policy and practice are also offered. The need for evidence-based practice in the national response to HIV and AIDS has been widely acknowledged and incorporated into policy …

Expanding The Understanding Of The Social Determinants Of Health To Support Community Readiness For Change, Nandi A. Marshall

College of Graduate Studies: Theses & Dissertations

Addressing the Social Determinants of Health is critical if we truly want to achieve health equity. The World Health Organization's Commission on the Social Determinants of Health (2008) recognized the need to broaden the understanding of these determinants among the general public to facilitate change in communities. Using a concurrent transformative case study, this mixed methods design explored the potential increase in 1) awareness of the social determinants of health, 2) understanding of context and 3) organizational empowerment through the use of Photovoice and Action planning with a Rural Diabetes Community Coalition in Southeast Georgia. Engaging the coalition through these …

Influenza In The 21st Century : Assessment Of The 2009 H1n1 Pandemic Severity, Enhanced Surveillance Methods, And Pediatric Influenza-Associated Deaths, Dina M. Hoefer

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Influenza is among the most important of the endemic, epidemic, and pandemic diseases infecting humans. In June 2009, the World Health Organization raised the worldwide pandemic alert level to Phase 6 in response to the ongoing global spread of 2009 pandemic influenza A (H1N1) virus (pH1N1).1 The 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic presented a unique opportunity and provided resources to monitor and study influenza in a way that would and could not be supported during a `typical' influenza season. Research objectives included: 1) characterizing the severity of illness among hospitalized patients infected with pH1N1; 2) assessing the utility of hospital discharge …

Detection And Epidemiological Patterns Of Drug Resistance Mutations In Nys Plasmodium Falciparum Clinical Malaria Specimens, Jennifer L. Conaway

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Plasmodium falciparum is a human-infective parasite that causes the most severe form of malaria. Resistance to a wide spectrum of antimalarials has been documented in this species, and single strains may be resistant to several drugs. A new technology, pyrosequencing, has been shown to be useful for the rapid detection of SNPs involved in drug resistance. It can be used in a clinical setting and readily detects new mutants, which frequently appear in this species due to strong selection for antimalarial resistance. In this study, a pyrosequencing protocol was developed to identify mutations in the Plasmodium falciparum genes Pfcrt, Pfdhps, …

Association Between Chemical Constituents Of Particulate Matter And Cardiovascular And Respiratory Morbidities In Nys, Rena Jones

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Improved understanding of health risks from short- and long-term exposure to fine particulate matter (PM_2.5) constituents may explain seasonal and geographic heterogeneity in PM_{2.5-health associations and inform control efforts targeting PM sources. Few studies have examined PM species health effects; most have been limited by their exposure assessments and modeling approaches. The goals of this project were to improve the PM exposure assessment and explore relationships between PM2.5 species and health in acute and chronic contexts.}

Geographic And Community Factors Associated With Adolescent Pregnancy In New York State, Elizabeth Villamil

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Background

Study Of International Students' Definations Of, And Perceptions About, Domestic Violence Against Women, Sarbinaz Zamirovna Bekmuratova

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The purpose of this study was to identify and compare definitions of, and perceptions about, domestic violence of international students enrolled in spring semester, 2012 at Minnesota State University, Mankato. These definitions and perceptions were compared according to the presence of domestic violence policies in the international students’ countries of origin as well as their gender and the length of residence in the United States. A quantitative cross-sectional online survey was conducted to collect data regarding participants’ definitions of different types of domestic violence, appropriateness of hitting and yelling in the relationship, and their perceptions about domestic violence. International students …

Is Early Childhood Care And Education A Good Investment For Egypt? Estimates Of Educational Impacts, Costs, And Benefits, Caroline Krafft

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This brief examines Early Childhood Care and Education (ECCE) in Egypt. Findings suggest that expansion of ECCE is a good investment. Providing kindergarten to all Egyptian children, and particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds, could be an important step toward greater equality, efficiency, and attainment in the education system.

Healthcare Access And Mammography Screening In Michigan: A Multilevel Cross-Sectional Study, Tomi F. Akinyemiju, Amr S. Soliman, May Yassine, Mousumi Banerjee, Kendra Schwartz, Sofia Merajver

Wayne State University Associated BioMed Central Scholarship

Abstract

Background

Breast cancer screening rates have increased over time in the United States. However actual screening rates appear to be lower among black women compared with white women.

Purpose

To assess determinants of breast cancer screening among women in Michigan USA, focusing on individual and neighborhood socio-economic status and healthcare access.

Methods

Data from 1163 women ages 50-74 years who participated in the 2008 Michigan Special Cancer Behavioral Risk Factor Survey were analyzed. County-level SES and healthcare access were obtained from the Area Resource File. Multilevel logistic regression models were fit using SAS Proc Glimmix to account for clustering …

Conceptualizing Neighborhood Space: Consistency And Variation Of Associations For Neighborhood Factors And Pregnancy Health Across Multiple Neighborhood Units, Lynne C. Messer, Lisa C. Vinikoor-Imler, Barbara A. Laraia

Community Health Faculty Publications and Presentations

The purpose of this research was to assess the consistency of associations between neighborhood characteristics and pregnancy-related behaviors and outcomes across four nested neighborhood boundaries using race-stratified fixed-slope random-intercept multilevel logistic models. High incivilities was associated with increased smoking, inadequate weight gain and pregnancy-induced hypertension (PIH), while walkability was associated with decreased smoking and PIH for white women across all neighborhood definitions. For African American women, high incivilities was associated with increased smoking and inadequate gestational weight gain, while more walkable neighborhoods appeared protective against smoking and inadequate weight gain in all but the smallest neighborhoods. Associations with neighborhood attributes …

Equitable Consequences? Issues Of Evidence, Equity And Ethics Arising From Outdoor Smoke-Free Policies, Ann Pederson, Wendy Rice, Phoebe M. Long, Natasha Jategaonkar, Lorraine Greaves, Steven Chasey, Natalie Hemsing, Chizimuzo T.C. Okoli, Joan L. Bottorff

Nursing Faculty Publications

From Introduction:

Kass argues that an ethical approach in public health is one that places the fewest burdens on individuals’ health without significantly reducing the potential benefits of intervening. Yet many population health regulations are highly intrusive, compromising individual liberty and imposing penalties for non-compliance. Moreover, the benefits of these regulations and the burdens they impose may not be shared equally. When developing interventions, the state has, therefore, an obligation to consider the benefits and burdens, particularly on those vulnerable to health inequities and other disparities.

Repositioning Community-Based Family Planning In Ghana: A Case Study Of Community-Based Health Planning And Services (Chps), Stephen Ntsua, Placide Tapsoba, Gloria Quansah Asare, Frank K. Nyonator

Reproductive Health

The Population Council conducted a diagnostic appraisal of delivering family planning services using the community-based health planning and services (CHPS model) in Ghana. This study’s results indicate that the CHPS program is well appreciated by rural communities where it is operational. However, the study identified several developments with implications for service delivery: increased community health officer (CHO) workloads and concomitant reductions in outreach services and home visits by community health visitors (CHVs) have weakened the CHO-CHV working relationship, leaving both cadres working in isolation. CHPS has significantly improved health indices but its contribution to increasing family planning is limited and …

Country Mapping: Nigeria, Salisu Mohammed Ishaku, Saumya Ramarao

Reproductive Health

The Population Council conducted a three-year acceptability study of the progesterone vaginal ring (PVR) in three sub-Saharan African countries. This technical report presents results from Nigeria, laying out the country’s demographics and high fertility rates; describing the family planning program and policy context; and, finally, revealing the stakeholder support thus far with a discussion on how best to proceed with introduction activities. This country mapping confirms the likelihood that the PVR would be well received in Nigeria and fill a large need in family planning. The PVR is a safe, long-acting, user-controlled product that can be easily inserted and removed …