Digital Commons Network^™

Impact Of Repeated Reimbursement Penalties On Hospital Total Quality Scores, Alice Brewer, M. Courtney Hughes, Kunal N. Patel

Faculty Articles, Papers, and Other Scholarship

Objectives

The incidence of hospital-acquired conditions (HACs) is a serious public health issue with implications ranging from patient morbidity and mortality to negative financial impacts on patients and health care systems. Despite substantial efforts to address and reduce HACs, research into the effect of quality improvement programs is inconclusive. This study seeks to better understand the relationship between repeated reimbursement penalties and improvement in HAC quality scores.

Methods

A quantitative comparative analysis of U.S. health care data was conducted. Data on quality outcomes and hospital characteristics were sourced from the Hospital-Acquired Condition Reduction Program from fiscal years 2018 and 2019 …

Functions Of Translanguaging Practices And Teachers’ And Students’ Perceptions Of Translanguaging In Esl Universities, Dongyang Yuan

Theses and Dissertations--Curriculum and Instruction

Integrating research on both linguistic and semiotic resources of translanguaging practices, this research was carried out using a case study design to understand how translanguaging was used by both ESL teachers and adult language learners in the ESL setting, what functions translanguaging performs, and how teachers and students understand their translanguaging practice. Nine adult ESL learners at the intermediate level and an ESL teacher participated in this research. Data sources included observations, interviews, field notes, and reflective journals. Discourse analysis was used to analyze the transcription of observations and interviews. Results showed that participants used various forms of translanguaging, including …

An Evaluation Of Statistical Approaches Within A Higher Education Research Framework: How Does Online Distance Learning Impact Student Outcomes?, Nathaniel P. Wilson

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

Appropriate methodology choices are of the utmost importance in research, particularly in measurement and education research. When higher education administrators and researchers study topics related to student outcomes, choosing a statistical approach that produces unbiased estimates is of primary concern. Additionally, studying student outcomes in the context of nationally representative samples provides valuable insights into the state of higher education in the U.S. When examining these data, it is critical that the nested structure be taken into consideration prior to making methodological decisions.

The purpose of the following manuscripts is to demonstrate how education researchers can develop, implement and evaluate …

De Aquí, Y De Allá: Education, Culture, And Identity Development Of Transnational Latinas, Elizabeth Harris-Medina

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

De Aquí, y De Allá: Education, Culture, and Identity Development of Transnational Latinas This ethnographic case study examines the experiences of three transnational Latina women, descendants of families from Degollado, Jalisco, Mexico, exploring how their migration history and educational backgrounds influence their life trajectories. Focusing on these three women, the study aims to better understand their challenges and inform the development of resources to support their success in the U.S. education system. Using ethnographic interviews and Ecological Systems Theory, the research highlights how places and social systems shape views and life paths, offering insights into how best to support these …

Data In Higher Education: Exploring The Collection, Interpretation, And Utilization Of Information For Institutional Decision-Making Around Diversity, Equity, And Inclusion, Terri Berkley

Theses and Dissertations--Educational Policy Studies and Evaluation

This study investigates how higher education institutions in the Appalachian region collect, assess, and utilize data to inform diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) initiatives and broader institutional transformations. It focuses on understanding how data influences policy reforms, operational practices, and cultural shifts within these institutions. Through a mixed-methods approach—comprising surveys, semi-structured interviews, and focus groups—the study examines the perspectives of key stakeholders, including DEI administrators, non-DEI administrators, and executive-level leaders.

The research identifies how institutional roles and positionality shape stakeholders' engagement with data and their ability to implement DEI-informed strategies. Key findings highlight discrepancies in data access, interpretation, and application, …

Marine Protection And Environmental Forcing Influence Fish-Derived Nutrient Cycling In Kelp Forests, June Shrestha, Joseph R. Peters, Jennifer E. Caselle, Scott L. Hamilton

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Animal consumers excrete dissolved inorganic nitrogen, an essential nutrient for regulating primary production and macroalgal growth in the ocean. Often overlooked in attempts to explain kelp forest productivity, relatively little is known about the role of consumers in nutrient cycling in temperate systems, such as the magnitude of nutrients excreted and the factors that influence spatial and temporal variability in consumer-derived nutrients. To investigate the supply of ammonium (NH4+) excreted by the dominant members of the nearshore rocky reef fish community, we combined empirically-measured relationships between excretion rate and body mass with data on fish density and size structure from …

Mitigating Risk: Predicting H5n1 Avian Influenza Spread With An Empirical Model Of Bird Movement, Fiona Mcduie, Cory T. Overton, Austen A. Lorenz, Elliott L. Matchett, Andrea L. Mott, Desmond A. Mackell, Joshua T. Ackerman, Susan E.W. De La Cruz, Vijay P. Patil, Diann J. Prosser, John Y. Takekawa, Dennis L. Orthmeyer, Maurice E. Pitesky, Samuel L. Díaz-Muñoz, Brock M. Riggs, Joseph Gendreau, Eric T. Reed, Mark J. Petrie, Chris K. Williams

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Understanding timing and distribution of virus spread is critical to global commercial and wildlife biosecurity management. A highly pathogenic avian influenza virus (HPAIv) global panzootic, affecting 600 bird and mammal species globally and over 83 million birds across North America (December 2023), poses a serious global threat to animals and public health. We combined a large, long-term waterfowl GPS tracking dataset (16 species) with on-ground disease surveillance data (county-level HPAIv detections) to create a novel empirical model that evaluated spatiotemporal exposure and predicted future spread and potential arrival of HPAIv via GPS tracked migratory waterfowl through 2022. Our model was …

Next Steps For Assessing Ocean Iron Fertilization For Marine Carbon Dioxide Removal, Ken O. Buesseler, Daniele Bianchi, Fei Chai, Jay T. Cullen, Margaret Estapa, Nicholas Hawco, Seth John, Dennis J. Mcgillicuddy, Paul J. Morris, Sara Nawaz, Nishioka, Anh Pham, Kilaparti Ramakrishna, David A. Siegel, Sarah R. Smith, Deborah Steinberg, Kendra A. Turk-Kubo, Benjamin S. Twining, Romany M. Webb

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

There are many potential approaches to marine carbon dioxide removal (mCDR), of which ocean iron fertilization (OIF) has the longest history of study. However, OIF studies to date were not primarily designed to quantify the durability of carbon (C) storage, nor how wise OIF might be as an mCDR approach. To quantify C sequestration, we introduce a metric called the “centennial tonne,” defined as 1,000 kg of C isolated from atmospheric contact for on average at least 100 years. We present the activities needed to assess OIF from a scientific and technological perspective, and additionally, how it might be responsibly …

Rescaling: Change Agency And The Emerging Geography Of Economic Relationships, Markus Grillitsch, Björn Asheim, Nichola Lowe, Sophie Kelmenson, Lea Fünfschilling, Karl Johan Lundquist, Yahia Mahmoud, Mikhail Martynovich, Pauline Mattsson, Magnus Nilsson, Johan Miörner, Torben Schubert

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

In this paper, we propose a theoretical and conceptual framework for articulating and studying changes in the global economic landscape and illustrate this framework in the current context. The framework pivots around the notion of rescaling, which is interpreted from a human agency perspective. We disentangle three theoretically distinct dimensions of rescaling and show how they play together using concrete examples. The theoretical and conceptual framework links the intended and unintended consequences of globalisation to current rescaling efforts, and allows us to investigate when, why, and how changes to the geography of economic relationships occur.

Dispersal Limits Poleward Expansion Of Mangroves On The West Coast Of North America, Kyle C. Cavanaugh, Dustin Carroll, Rémi Bardou, Tom Van Der Stocken

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

While much attention has been paid to the climatic controls of species' range limits, other factors such as dispersal limitation are also important. Temperature is an important control of the distribution of coastal mangrove forests, and mangrove expansion at multiple poleward range limits has been linked to increasing temperatures. However, mangrove abundances at other poleward range limits have been surprisingly insensitive to climate change, indicating other drivers of range limitation. For example, along the west coast of North America, the poleward mangrove range limits are found on the Baja California and mainland coasts of Mexico, between 26°48ʹ and 30°18ʹN. Non-climatic …

Evaluating The Influence Of Marine Protected Areas On Surf Zone Fish, M. L. Marraffini, S. L. Hamilton, J. R. Marin Jarrin, M. Ladd, G. Koval, J. R. Madden, I. Mangino, L. M. Parker, K. A. Emery, K. Terhaar, D. M. Hubbard, R. J. Miller, J. E. Dugan

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Marine protected areas (MPAs) globally serve conservation and fisheries management goals, generating positive effects in some marine ecosystems. Surf zones and sandy beaches, critical ecotones bridging land and sea, play a pivotal role in the life cycles of numerous fish species and serve as prime areas for subsistence and recreational fishing. Despite their significance, these areas remain understudied when evaluating the effects of MPAs. We compared surf zone fish assemblages inside and outside MPAs across 3 bioregions in California (USA). Using seines and baited remote underwater videos (BRUVs), we found differences in surf zone fish inside and outside MPAs in …

Lithium And Water: Hydrosocial Impacts Across The Life Cycle Of Energy Storage, James J.A. Blair, Noel Vineyard, Dustin Mulvaney, Alida Cantor, Ali Sharbat, Kate Berry, Elizabeth Bartholomew, Ariana Firebaugh Ornelas

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

As a key ingredient of batteries for electric vehicles (EVs), lithium plays a significant role in climate change mitigation, but lithium has considerable impacts on water and society across its life cycle. Upstream extraction methods—including open-pit mining, brine evaporation, and novel direct lithium extraction (DLE)—and downstream processes present different impacts on both the quantity and quality of water resources, leading to water depletion and contamination. Regarding upstream extraction, it is critical for a comprehensive assessment of lithium's life cycle to include cumulative impacts related not only to freshwater, but also mineralized or saline groundwater, also known as brine. Legal frameworks …

Correction To: A Fresh Take: Seasonal Changes In Terrestrial Freshwater Inputs Impact Salt Marsh Hydrology And Vegetation Dynamics (Estuaries And Coasts, (2024), 10.1007/S12237-024-01392-1), Maya S. Montalvo, Emilio Grande, Anna E. Braswell, Ate Visser, Bhavna Arora, Erin C. Seybold, Corianne Tatariw, John C. Haskins, Charlie A. Endris, Fuller Gerbl, Mong Han Huang, Darya Morozov, Margaret A. Zimmer

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

In the original online version of the article the following information was missing from the Funding section: Department of Energy, Small Business Innovation Research Award Number DE-SC0021480. In addition, the following was missing from the Acknowledgements: The authors would like to thank Elkhorn Slough Foundation for providing and facilitating the opportunity to conduct this work at the Cowell Ranch site. Also, the study site noted in the Background section was incorrect. The study was conducted at the Elkhorn Slough on the property of the Elkhorn Slough Foundation. The original article was corrected.

Opening The Black Box: Carbon-Footprint Calculators, Meat Consumption, And The “Wicked Problem” Of Metric Governance, E. Melanie Dupuis, Dustin Mulvaney

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Carbon-footprint calculators are widely used as communication and education tools, designed to make people aware of the ways their personal actions contribute to greenhouse-gas emissions. However, they have come under criticism for emphasizing individual behavior versus structural change. We extend this critique to argue that carbon-footprint calculators are a form of “metric governance” that not only disciplines users but also constrains their abilities to engage with the complexities of climate change and social action. We focus on a particularly wicked problem of carbon-metric governance: livestock greenhouse-gas emissions. We show that carbon-footprint calculators black box and fix the complex politics and …

Chronic Pelvic Pain Among Transgender Men And Gender Diverse Adults Assigned Female At Birth, Diana M. Tordoff, Mitchell R. Lunn, Annesa Flentje, Diana Atashroo, Bertha Chen, Zubin Dastur, Micah E. Lubensky, Matthew Capriotti, Juno Obedin-Maliver

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Background: There are limited data on pelvic pain among transgender men and gender diverse people, and the impact of testosterone on pelvic pain is poorly understood. Objective: Characterize the prevalence and correlates of chronic pelvic pain (CPP) among transgender men and gender diverse people and examine the association between testosterone use and CPP. Materials and methods: We used 2020–2022 data from The Population Research in Identity and Disparities for Equality (PRIDE) Study, an online prospective cohort study of sexual and gender minority adults in the United States, to conduct complementary cross-sectional and longitudinal analyses. Our primary outcome was self-reported CPP …

Border Trouble: Critical Reflections On The Canada-Us Safe Third Country Agreement Litigation, Efrat Arbel

All Faculty Publications

The Canada-US Safe Third Country Agreement (STCA) has been subject to two different legal challenges before three different Canadian courts and considered in five different judicial decisions. This notwithstanding, the litigation surrounding its legal validity is not yet conclusively determined. This article analyses all five STCA decisions to develop a critical reading of the leading decision as issued by the Supreme Court of Canada in 2023. It posits that the Supreme Court of Canada, like the appellate courts before it, erred in its understanding of the STCA. Specifically, the Court did not engage the facts on record in sufficient detail, …

Glacial Deposits, Vol. 48, 2024, Department Of Geography, Geology, And The Environment

Glacial Deposits

Newsletter of the Department of Geography, Geology, and the Environment

Fuzzy Similarity Analysis Of Effective Training Samples To Improve Machine Learning Estimations Of Water Quality Parameters Using Sentinel-2 Remote Sensing Data, Alireza Taheri Dehkordi, Mohammad Javad Valadan Zoej, Ali Mehran, Mohsen Jafari, Amir Masoud Chegoonian

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Continuous monitoring of water quality parameters (WQPs) is crucial due to the global degradation of water quality, primarily caused by climate change and population growth. Typically, machine learning (ML) models are employed to retrieve WQPs, but they require a large amount of training samples to accurately capture the data relationships. Even with sufficient training data, discrepancies still exist between values of predicted and in-situ WQPs. This study proposes a fuzzy similarity analysis (FSA) technique to enhance ML estimates of WQPs by using the prediction errors in effective training samples. The method was successfully applied to retrieve turbidity (Turb) and specific …

Access To Digital Finance: Equity Crowdfunding Across Countries And Platforms, Saul Estrin, Susanna Khavul, Alexander S. Kritikos, Jonas Löher

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

Financing entrepreneurship spurs innovation and economic growth. Digital financial platforms that crowdfund equity for entrepreneurs have emerged globally, yet they remain poorly understood. We model equity crowdfunding in terms of the relationship between the number of investors and the amount of money raised per pitch. We examine heterogeneity in the average amount raised per pitch that is associated with differences across three countries and seven platforms. Using a novel dataset of successful fundraising on the most prominent platforms in the UK, Germany, and the USA, we find the underlying relationship between the number of investors and the amount of money …

Integration Of Blockchain And Cryptographic Techniques For Location Based Services, Rashed Al Shamali

Theses

As digital systems continue to evolve in complexity, protecting user identities and ensuring the secure transmission of data has become paramount. Conventional techniques such as passwords and digital signatures are often insufficient to address modern security threats unless paired with more sophisticated technologies. This thesis proposes a framework that integrates Blockchain Technology with Elliptic Curve Cryptography (ECC) to fortify identity verification protocols and enhance location-obscuring methods. Blockchain’s inherent features of decentralization, immutability, and non-repudiation makes it an ideal platform for secure data exchange. When combined with ECC, which provides robust encryption with smaller key sizes, the system achieves a heightened …

[Review Of] Abolition Geography, By Ruth Wilson Gilmore, Jennifer Rycenga

Faculty Research, Scholarly, and Creative Activity

No abstract provided.

What Is Aphthous Stomatitis? What Are The Possible Causes And Treatments?, Shirah Balakhane

The Science Journal of the Lander College of Arts and Sciences

The historical understanding of Recurrent Aphthous Stomatitis (RAS), also known as canker sores, has evolved. This paper aims to collect data that determines the underlying factors that can cause RAS and highlights treatments or preventive measures one should take. RAS is a common mucosal disease of the mouth that affects healthy people and presents atypically in immunocompromised people. Geographical, age, and gender-related factors can all affect the prevalence. RAS still has no known cause; however, several systemic, local, immunologic, genetic, dietary, allergy, and microbiological factors—including immunosuppressive medications and stress—have been suggested as potential culprits. Using topical and systemic medicines, the …

A Rpl In Time: A Brown Buffalo's Observations On The Ongoing Struggle Of Civic And Racial Nationalism In Higher Education - Circa 2023, Tom I. Romero Ii

Scholarly Works

No abstract provided.

Building Resilience: The Role Of Public Private Partnerships In Disaster Management For Vulnerable Communities, Latisha Nixon-Jones

Scholarly Works

This essay provides a compelling historical analysis of the legislative developments that have shaped the current framework of disaster management in the United States. By tracing the evolution of these laws, it highlights a crucial shift in disaster responsibility—from centralized government agencies to a shared burden with the communities they aim to protect. In response to this shift, I propose that disaster management agencies adopt a socio-legal framework designed to guide the formation of public- private partnerships (PPPs). Such a framework would offer a structured approach to balancing transparency with the profitability goals that often characterize private involvement in public …

Dicta Mines, Pretext, And Excessive Force: Toward Criminal Procedure Futurism, Frank Rudy Cooper

Scholarly Works

Scholars have recently criticized Fourth Amendment pretext doctrine for leading to more police contact with Black and Brown people and thus to racially disproportionate uses of excessive force. This Essay reveals the intersection of the Court’s pretext and excessive force doctrines by unearthing their shared roots in the 1973 United States v. Robinson search-incident-to-arrest opinion.

This Essay’s new insight is that Robinson contains what it calls a “dicta mine.” A dicta mine is (1) an unnecessary statement that (2) a Court silently recharacterizes as having already resolved an issue, (3) exploding it into a significant doctrine. The Robinson dicta mine …

Race, Ethnicity, Language, And The Treatment Of Low-Risk Febrile Infants, Colleen K Gutman, Paul L Aronson, Nidhi V Singh, Michelle L Pickett, Kamali Bouvay, Rebecca S Green, Britta Roach, Hannah Kotler, Jessica L Chow, Emily A Hartford, Mark Hincapie, Ryan St Pierre-Hetz, Jessica Kelly, Laura Sartori, Jennifer A Hoffmann, Jacqueline B Corboy, Kelly R Bergmann, Bolanle Akinsola, Vanessa Ford, Natalie J Tedford, Theresa T Tran, Sasha Gifford, Amy D Thompson, Andrew Krack, Mary Jane Piroutek, Samantha Lucrezia, Sunhee Chung, Nabila Chowdhury, Kathleen Jackson, Tabitha Cheng, Christian D Pulcini, Nirupama Kannikeswaran, Larissa L Truschel, Karen Lin, Jamie Chu, Neh D Molyneaux, Myto Duong, Leslie Dingeldein, Jerri A Rose, Carly Theiler, Sonali Bhalodkar, Emily Powers, Muhammad Waseem, Ahmed Lababidi, Xinyu Yan, Xiang-Yang Lou, Rosemarie Fernandez, K Casey Lion

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

IMPORTANCE: Febrile infants at low risk of invasive bacterial infections are unlikely to benefit from lumbar puncture, antibiotics, or hospitalization, yet these are commonly performed. It is not known if there are differences in management by race, ethnicity, or language.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate associations between race, ethnicity, and language and additional interventions (lumbar puncture, empirical antibiotics, and hospitalization) in well-appearing febrile infants at low risk of invasive bacterial infection.

DESIGN, SETTING, AND PARTICIPANTS: This was a multicenter retrospective cross-sectional analysis of infants receiving emergency department care between January 1, 2018, and December 31, 2019. Data were analyzed from December 2022 …

Study Protocol For Measuring Stigmatization In Persistent Tic Disorders: Development And Validation Of The Tourette Discrimination-Stigmatization Scale, Jaclyn M Martindale, Victor M Ringheanu, Kelly A Pring, Sandra Norona, Kimberly Wiseman, Roy E Strowd, Leah Chapman, Joseph Rigdon, Stephen R Rapp, Eric A Storch, Edward Ip, Jonathan W Mink

Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy Staff Publications

Introduction: Persistent Tic Disorders such as Tourette Syndrome are common neurodevelopmental disorders that are highly stigmatized. Many individuals with Persistent Tic Disorders experience peer rejection, loneliness, and self-stigma. Experiencing stigmatization during childhood can influence the persistence of moderate-to-severe tics later in life. Additionally, these factors have been associated with increased suicidal ideation, suicide attempts, and psychiatric symptom severity. There is a need for interventions to reduce stigma and stigmatization in Persistent Tic Disorders. Before developing cost-effective interventions to mitigate stigma's profound downstream health impacts, a reliable measure of stigmatization must be created. The overarching goal of this research is to …

Delivering Multidisciplinary Rehabilitation Care In Parkinson's Disease: An International Consensus Statement, Jennifer G Goldman, Daniele Volpe, Terry D Ellis, Mark A Hirsch, Julia Johnson, Julia Wood, Ana Aragon, Roberta Biundo, Alessandro Di Rocco, Glenn S Kasman, Robert Iansek, Janis Miyasaki, Victor M Mcconvey, Marten Munneke, Serge Pinto, Karen A St Clair, Santiago Toledo, Michele K York, Ronnie Todaro, Nicole Yarab, Kristin Wallock

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

BACKGROUND: Parkinson's disease (PD) is a complex neurodegenerative disorder impacting everyday function and quality of life. Rehabilitation plays a crucial role in improving symptoms, function, and quality of life and reducing disability, particularly given the lack of disease-modifying agents and limitations of medications and surgical therapies. However, rehabilitative care is under-recognized and under-utilized in PD and often only utilized in later disease stages, despite research and guidelines demonstrating its positive effects. Currently, there is a lack of consensus regarding fundamental topics related to rehabilitative services in PD.

OBJECTIVE: The goal of the international Parkinson's Foundation Rehabilitation Medicine Task Force was …

International Grain Origin Switching: Contract Washouts And Embedded Switching Options, Caleb Hauck

Agribusiness and Applied Economics

Changing dynamics in the international grain trading industry have led to a rise in two new contracting practices colloquially termed washouts and switching options and formally defined as contract washouts and embedded origin switching options. When spatial arbitrage opportunities exist, grain buying firms switch from one origin to another. This thesis documents the increased frequency with which these contract practices have been used and examines the factors that incentivize firms to use them. Using data from 2018 to 2023, two models are developed with a binomial lattice that value these contracting terms. The results indicate that these practices have significant …

Legacy Of Labour: The Impact Of Parental Occupations On Children’S Careers Choices And Income Inequality, Swapnil Landge

Publications and Research

This paper investigates how intergenerational occupational mobility and self-selection into occupations are influenced by the occupations of parents. The results demonstrate that children who pursue their parents’ occupations, particularly those in the lowest earnings percentiles, are more negatively self-selected compared to those whose parents are in the highest earning deciles. In particular, 65% of the children who pursue their parents’ occupation in Decile 1, 49% in Decile 2, 32% in Decile 3 and 26% in Decile 4 would have achieved higher productivity and earned higher earnings in high-income occupations (specifically in Decile 10 occupations). In contrast, children from high-income backgrounds …