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Wellness Review 2023, Part 1, Brian A. Ferguson, Martin Huecker

Journal of Wellness

Introduction: The 2023 Part 1 summary reviews research on wellness in healthcare professionals published outside of JWellness from January 1, 2023 to June 30, 2023.

Methods: Editors conducted a Boolean search of titles and abstracts in PubMed utilizing keyword identifiers pairing healthcare personnel (providers, nurses, and other staff) with a well-being metric. Of 416 relevant articles, an intriguing and innovative 30 were selected for inclusion, with two additional articles manually curated.

Literature in Review: This sample of the recent literature into healthcare professional wellness included multiple targeted interventions and studies of resilience. Main themes that emerged include: positive systematic healthcare …

Interest In And Barriers To Online Esol Instruction For Adults During And Beyond Covid-19: Exploring Relationships With Sociodemographics And English Proficiency, Jessica G. Cox, Lauren Y. Chen, Harriet Okatch

College of Population Health Faculty Papers

Digital divides mean that marginalized groups such as adults who speak English as a second or other language (ESOL) are less likely to have access to online instruction. Higher levels of English proficiency are associated with better health and employment; therefore, access to ESOL classes is essential. We investigated how sociodemographics and English proficiency relate to adult learners' preferences for, and barriers to, online instruction of ESOL during and beyond the COVID-19 pandemic. Sixty-one adults completed a survey on their pandemic experiences, demographics, and ESOL classes. Analyses showed nonsignificant relationships between interest in online instruction and internet access, education, income, …

Academic Outcomes Of The Covid-19 Pandemic: Awareness And Action, Tanner B. Howe

Masters Projects

Research has shown that the online learning implemented during the COVID-19-related school closures had impacts on academic outcomes among secondary students. As schools operate in proximity to this event, it is crucial to investigate and understand those academic outcomes. Research suggests that mathematics and reading/language courses displayed negative academic outcomes for the period of online learning. Through this investigation, stress was observed to have played a major role during this period for secondary students and may have also contributed to the academic outcomes observed. This project seeks to raise awareness of possible student educational needs by shining light on the …

Raman Spectroscopic Analysis Of Human Serum Samples Of Convalescing Covid-19 Positive Patients, Hugh Byrne, Naomi Jackson, Jaythoon Hassan

Articles

Rapid screening, detection and monitoring of viral infection is of critical importance, as exemplified by the rapid spread of SARS-CoV-2, leading to the worldwide pandemic of COVID-19. This is equally the case for the stages of patient convalescence as for the initial stages of infection, to understand the medium and long terms effects, as well as the efficacy of therapeutic interventions. Optical spectroscopic techniques potentially offer an alternative to currently employed techniques of screening for the presence, or the response to infection. In this study, the ability of Raman spectroscopy to distinguish between samples of the serum of convalescent COVID-19 …

The Impact Of Covid-19 On Hispanic Restaurants In South-Central Texas: A Qualitative Study, Javier Apolinar

Theses & Dissertations

Research Focus. The COVID-19 pandemic generated a major crisis for the restaurant industry in 2020 and 2021. The nationwide shutdown resulted in widespread restrictions on social gatherings, significantly impacting this industry. Hispanic businesses were not immune to this crisis, and its impact had profound effects on small businesses.

Most of the research in this field has primarily concentrated on small businesses and entrepreneurship under favorable circumstances, highlighting factors such as entrepreneurial drive, maximizing profits, taking risks, developing ideas, and promoting fair competition. Consequently, the current body of research is insufficient and fails to address the specific experiences of minority small …

Free For All: Proposing Legislation To Eliminate Food Insecurity In Arkansas Public Schools, A. Mills Bryant

Journal of Food Law & Policy

Schools serve millions of students daily as one of the largest food distribution sites in the United States. However, more than 13.1 million children in the United States, and almost 150,000 in Arkansas, are food insecure. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, most Arkansas schools offered free and reduced lunch to students at or below the poverty line through participation in the National School Lunch Program (“NSLP”). During COVID-19, Congress passed The Families First Coronavirus Response Act (“FFCRA”) and The Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act (“CARES”) (hereinafter “The Acts”). This legislation effectively eliminated food insecurity in participating American public schools, …

Covid-19 And The Chemical Industry: Impacts, Challenges, And Opportunities, Hossein Abedsoltan

Chemical and Biochemical Engineering Faculty Research & Creative Works

The COVID-19 pandemic imposed unparalleled challenges for the chemical industry, leading to disruptions in supply chains and demand dynamics. This period of crisis tested the adaptability and resilience of global chemical companies. Despite the challenges, the chemical industry exhibited remarkable innovation, collaboration, and adaptability. It demonstrated its capacity to respond swiftly and effectively to societal needs. Key lessons emerged, emphasizing the importance of diversifying supply chains, implementing scenario planning, and embracing digitalization for enhanced preparedness. As the world progresses toward recovery, the chemical industry is poised to leverage the valuable lessons learned. Industry 4.0 adoption, agile decision-making, and collaborative efforts …

Patient Satisfaction With Telemedicine In The Philippines During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Mixed Methods Study, Alicia Victoria G. Noceda, Lianne Margot M. Acierto, Morvenn Chaimek C. Bertiz, David Emmanuel H. Dionisio, Chelsea Beatrice L. Laurito, Girrard Alphonse T. Sanchez, Arianna Maever Loreche

Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health Publications

Background: The capacity to deliver essential health services has been negatively impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, particularly due to lockdown restrictions. Telemedicine provides a safe, efficient, and effective alternative that addresses the needs of patients and the health system. However, there remain implementation challenges and barriers to patient adoption in resource-limited settings as in the Philippines. This mixed methods study aimed to describe patient perspectives and experiences with telemedicine services, and explore the factors that influence telemedicine use and satisfaction. Methods: An online survey consisting of items adapted from the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS) Clinician & …

A Repeated-Measures Study Of Relational Turbulence And Transition Processing Communication During The Summer Of Covid-19 (Summer 2020), Kellie St Cyr Brisini, Denise Haunani Solomon

Faculty Publications

Drawing upon relational turbulence theory and the experiencing life transitions model, this study examined communication and relationship qualities as married couples experienced work-family changes during the COVID-19 pandemic. Sixty-four American married, different-sex partners affected by job-related changes due to COVID-19 reported their relationship qualities and their own and their spouse’s engagement in transition processing communication weekly for 10 weeks. Hypotheses addressed associations between relationship qualities and communication experiences both averaged across the 10 weeks and indexed by within-week deviations from those averages, controlling for the previous week’s reports. Husbands’ and wives’ own attempts—and also their perceptions of their spouse’s attempts—to …

Linking Stress To The Emergence Of Relational Turbulence In Marriage, Kellie St Cyr Brisini, Denise Haunani Solomon, Miriam Brinberg

Faculty Publications

The assumption that stress negatively impacts marital relationships is widely accepted; however, the majority of research has focused on marital satisfaction as the outcome of interest. Relational turbulence is a quality of romantic associations on par with—but distinct from—satisfaction, in which partners conceptualize their relationship as chaotic or tumultuous. This paper draws on relational turbulence theory (RTT) and stress spillover research to propose that day-to-day stress corresponds with perceptions of relational uncertainty and interdependence, which contributes to increases in relational turbulence. We evaluated these assumptions using data from 64 heterosexual married partners who experienced work-related disruptions due to the COVID-19 …

Online Qualitative Research With Vulnerable Populations In The Philippines: Ethical And Methodological Challenges During Covid-19, Vincen Gregory Yu, Jhaki Mendoza, Gideon Lasco

Development Studies Faculty Publications

Our article draws on two multi-sited studies to present the ethical and methodological challenges of conducting online qualitative research among vulnerable populations in the Philippines—specifically, among people who use drugs—during the COVID-19 pandemic. While the global scholarship has long articulated the difficulties inherent to pursuing research on such populations, we show how the specific milieu of the Philippines in the last three years has created exceptional, structural challenges to the conduct of said research. Besides the inevitable migration to online fieldwork brought about by the pandemic, researchers have had to contend with the continuing sociopolitical and existential threat to vulnerable …

Emergency Remote Teaching And Transition To Nursing Practice During The Covid-19 Pandemic: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis, Carrie Watkins Jeffrey

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Purpose: The purpose of this phenomenological study was to explore the lived experience of new nurses in the United States who experienced Emergency Remote Teaching (ERT) for most or all of their nursing education during the COVID-19 pandemic and how they perceive ERT influenced their transition to practice during their first year as registered nurses.

Background: The National Council of State Boards of Nursing reports that in 2021, the overall pass rate for first-time NCLEX-RN® demonstrated the sharpest decline since 2013. Most of the 185,000 nursing students who took the exam in 2021 and 2022 received their nursing education during …

The Modified Clinical Progression Scale For Pediatric Patients: Evaluation As A Severity Metric And Outcome Measure In Severe Acute Viral Respiratory Illness., Shannon B. Leland, Steven J. Staffa, Margaret M. Newhams, Robinder G. Khemani, John C. Marshall, Cameron C. Young, Aline B. Maddux, Mark W. Hall, Scott L. Weiss, Adam J. Schwarz, Bria M. Coates, Ronald C. Sanders, Michele Kong, Neal J. Thomas, Ryan A. Nofziger, Melissa L. Cullimore, Natasha B. Halasa, Laura L. Loftis, Natalie Z. Cvijanovich, Jennifer E. Schuster, Heidi Flori, Shira J. Gertz, Janet R. Hume, Samantha M. Olson, Manish M. Patel, David Zurakowski, Adrienne G. Randolph, Pediatric Acute Lung And Sepsis Investigator’S Network Pediatric Intensive Care Influenza Study Group (Palisi Picflu) Investigators And Overcoming Covid-19 Investigators

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

OBJECTIVES: To develop, evaluate, and explore the use of a pediatric ordinal score as a potential clinical trial outcome metric in children hospitalized with acute hypoxic respiratory failure caused by viral respiratory infections.

DESIGN: We modified the World Health Organization Clinical Progression Scale for pediatric patients (CPS-Ped) and assigned CPS-Ped at admission, days 2-4, 7, and 14. We identified predictors of clinical improvement (day 14 CPS-Ped ≤ 2 or a three-point decrease) using competing risks regression and compared clinical improvement to hospital length of stay (LOS) and ventilator-free days. We estimated sample sizes (80% power) to detect a 15% clinical …

Sars-Cov-2 Epidemiology And Covid-19 Mrna Vaccine Effectiveness Among Infants And Children Aged 6 Months-4 Years - New Vaccine Surveillance Network, United States, July 2022-September 2023., Ayzsa Tannis, Janet A. Englund, Ariana Perez, Elizabeth J. Harker, Mary Allen Staat, Elizabeth P. Schlaudecker, Natasha B. Halasa, Laura S. Stewart, John V. Williams, Marian G. Michaels, Rangaraj Selvarangan, Jennifer E. Schuster, Leila C. Sahni, Julie A. Boom, Geoffrey A. Weinberg, Peter G. Szilagyi, Benjamin R. Clopper, Yingtao Zhou, Meredith L. Mcmorrow, Eileen J. Klein, Heidi L. Moline

Manuscripts, Articles, Book Chapters and Other Papers

SARS-CoV-2 infection in young children is often mild or asymptomatic; however, some children are at risk for severe disease. Data describing the protective effectiveness of COVID-19 mRNA vaccines against COVID-19-associated emergency department (ED) visits and hospitalization in this population are limited. Data from the New Vaccine Surveillance Network, a prospective population-based surveillance system, were used to estimate vaccine effectiveness using a test-negative, case-control design and describe the epidemiology of SARS-CoV-2 in infants and children aged 6 months-4 years during July 1, 2022-September 30, 2023. Among 7,434 children included, 5% received a positive SARS-CoV-2 test result, and 95% received a negative …

The Experiences Of Leaders Who Transitioned To Leading A Virtual Team During The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Phenomenological Study., Jason W. Oliver

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The COVID-19 pandemic led to organizations rapidly transitioning their workforces to virtual work settings. This sudden shift brought about many challenges to organizations and their employees. In this study, a phenomenological research approach was used to describe the lived experiences of leaders who transitioned to managing a virtual team during the COVID-19 pandemic. The study also explored how leaders adapted their leadership practices and leveraged people and technology when transitioning to managing a virtual team. The findings revealed seven themes that highlighted both benefits and challenges of virtual leadership and work. Leaders recognized the need for intentionality in their actions …

(R2059) Modeling The Spread Of Coronavirus With Self-Protection And Quarantine Effect, Dileep Sharma, Agraj Tripathi, Ram Naresh Tripathi

Applications and Applied Mathematics: An International Journal (AAM)

A nonlinear mathematical model to study the effect of transmission dynamics of COVID-19 virus in a population with variable size structure is proposed and analyzed. The model divides the total human population into five subclasses: susceptibles, self-protected susceptibles, infectives, quarantined infectives, and recovered population including a class representing cumulative density of coronavirus in the environmental reservoir. The model exhibits two equilibria, namely, the diseasefree and the endemic equilibrium. Model analysis reveals the global dynamics of the spread of COVID-19 is completely determined by the basic reproduction number. If basic reproduction number is greater than one, the endemic equilibrium is locally …

Associations Between Mental Health Outcomes And Childhood Trauma And Experiences Of Violence During The First Shelter-In-Place For Covid-19 Among Sexual Minority Men Living In Texas, 2020, Sonam Deki

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic significantly increased mental health issues, disproportionately affecting men who have sex with men (MSM). The relationship between mental health and experiences of trauma and violence are understudied in this population. Purpose: To assess if rates of childhood trauma and COVID-19-related violence are higher for those with depression and anxiety than those without such experiences among cisgender sexual minority men in Texas. Methods: This secondary data analysis is among the cisgender sexual minority men in the COVID-19 and You Survey Study in Texas during the first shelter-in-place order. Descriptive statistics and bivariate associations between trauma and experiences …

The Impact Of Covid-19 On Elementary School Students' Academic Achievement, Kourtney Ashlee Baze

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

COVID-19 is a virus that has caused a nationwide lockdown due to the rapid spread. Due to this, non-essential businesses and schools were closed. Many households were not getting enough food, behind on rent, unable to pay household bills. With schools closed, education was forced into online learning. This had negative effects on students’ academic achievement, their mental, emotional, and social health, and caused more behavioral issues than before the pandemic. Through literature review, interviewing two fifth grade teachers and anonymous surveys of forty-eight students, the findings revealed that online learning had a negative impact on students’ academic achievement and …

Immune Evasion And Membrane Fusion Of Sars-Cov-2 Xbb Subvariants Eg51 And Xbb23, Julia N Faraone, Panke Qu, Negin Goodarzi, Yi-Min Zheng, Claire Carlin, Linda J Saif, Eugene M Oltz, Kai Xu, Daniel Jones, Richard J Gumina, Shan-Lu Liu

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Immune evasion by SARS-CoV-2 paired with immune imprinting from monovalent mRNA vaccines has resulted in attenuated neutralizing antibody responses against Omicron subvariants. In this study, we characterized two new XBB variants rising in circulation - EG.5.1 and XBB.2.3, for their neutralization and syncytia formation. We determined the neutralizing antibody titers in sera of individuals that received a bivalent mRNA vaccine booster, BA.4/5-wave infection, or XBB.1.5-wave infection. Bivalent vaccination-induced antibodies neutralized ancestral D614G efficiently, but to a much less extent, two new EG.5.1 and XBB.2.3 variants. In fact, the enhanced neutralization escape of EG.5.1 appeared to be driven by its key …

Covid-19 Responses Restricted Abilities And Aspirations For Mobility And Migration: Insights From Diverse Cities In Four Continents, Dominique Jolivet, Sonja Fransen, William Neil Adger, Anita Fábos, Mumuni Abu, Charlotte Allen, Emily Boyd, Edward R. Carr, Samuel Nii Ardey Codjoe, Maria Franco Gavonel, François Gemenne, Mahmudol Hasan Rocky, Jozefina Lantz, Domingos Maculule, Ricardo Safra De Campos, Tasneem Siddiqui, Caroline Zickgraf

Sustainability and Social Justice

Research on the impacts of COVID-19 on mobility has focused primarily on the increased health vulnerabilities of involuntary migrant and displaced populations. But virtually all migration flows have been truncated and altered because of reduced economic and mobility opportunities of migrants. Here we use a well-established framework of migration decision-making, whereby individual decisions combine the aspiration and ability to migrate, to explain how public responses to the COVID-19 pandemic alter migration patterns among urban populations across the world. The principal responses to COVID-19 pandemic that affected migration are: 1) through travel restrictions and border closures, 2) by affecting abilities to …

Covid-19 Vaccine Uptake In The Hispanic And Latinx Communities Of Northeast Tennessee, Gabriela Abrego

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This work addresses the underlying issues surrounding COVID-19 vaccine uptake in Hispanic and Latinx communities in the Northeast region of Tennessee. A qualitative, phenomenological research approach was used to conduct interviews and data from the interviews was used to inform a survey instrument. The interview guide in the qualitative phase of the study was based on the Health Belief Model (HBM) developed by Rosenstock (Rosenstock, 1974). A quantitative approach was then used by piloting the survey instrument in the study population. Common themes found through the interviews were: previous negative experience with COVID-19 vaccination, previous negative experience as a result …

The Experiences Of Students During Covid-19 School Disruptions, Brandi Bullock

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to identify the perceptions of educators with respect to student experiences between March 2020 and February 2021 related to academics, social-emotional health, and safety and security. Data collection strategies included one-on-one interviews with 12 educators in one East Tennessee school district. To qualify for the study, participants had to have taught during COVID-19 schooling disruptions and have taught either 1st, 2nd, 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade in the 2022-23 school year. Data analysis was based on Systems Theory (Laszlo & Krippner, 1998) and Change Theory (Fullan, 2020). The results revealed 5 key themes that …

Racial Disparities In Adequacy Of Prenatal Care During The Covid-19 Pandemic In South Carolina, 2018–2021, Emmanuel Fabrice Julceus Md, Mph, Bankole Olatosi Ph.D., Peiyin Hung Ph.D., Jiajia Zhang Ph.D., Xiaoming Li Ph.D., Jihong Liu Sc.D.

Faculty Publications

Background: During the COVID-19 pandemic, hospitals’ decision of not admitting pregnant women’s partner or support person, and pregnant women’s fear of contracting COVID-19 in hospitals may disrupt prenatal care. We aimed to examine whether prenatal care utilization in South Carolina varied before and during the COVID-19 pandemic, and whether the variation was different by race.

Methods: We utilized 2018–2021 statewide birth certificate data using a pre-post design, including all women who delivered a live birth in South Carolina. The Kotelchuck Index - incorporating the timing of prenatal care initiation and the frequency of gestational age-adjusted visits - was employed to …

A Snapshot In Time: Consumer Behavior At The Start Of Covid-19, Michelle L. Childs, Christopher Sneed, Ann A. Berry, Sejin Ha

Journal of Human Sciences and Extension

During the early stages of the coronavirus pandemic, consumers faced challenges related to obtaining household items due to shortages and limitations in shopping. Researchers from the University of Tennessee conducted a national, web-based consumer survey of 300 consumers in late April 2020 to better understand consumer behavior, shopping patterns, and demand shifts for goods and services. Major findings demonstrate that consumers have increased shopping for essential products from brick-and-mortar national chains, avoided brick-and-mortar small businesses, and have chosen to shop more by themselves, often choosing to forgo spending from across all product categories, compared to prior to the pandemic. Additionally, …

How Societal Forces Of Change Are Transforming Youth Physical Activity Promotion In North America, Jacob Szeszulski, Jamie M Faro, Rodney P Joseph, Kevin Lanza, Lucie Lévesque, Courtney M Monroe, Elsa A Pérez-Paredes, Erica G Soltero, Rebecca E Lee

Children’s Nutrition Research Center Staff Publications

Background: Climate change, increasing recognition of institutionalized discrimination, and the COVID-19 pandemic are large-scale, societal events (ie, forces of change) that affect the timing, settings, and modes of youth physical activity. Despite the impact that forces of change have on youth physical activity and physical activity environments, few studies consider how they affect physical activity promotion.

Methods: The authors use 2 established frameworks, the ecological model of physical activity and the youth physical activity timing, how, and setting framework, to highlight changes in physical activity patterns of youth in North America that have resulted from contemporary forces of change.

Results: …

Exchange Rate Responses And Volatility Spillover Effects During The Covid-19 Pandemic In Indonesia, Panky Tri Febiyansah

Economics and Finance in Indonesia

This paper aims to assess the impact of the confirmed COVID-19 cases, the timing of the outbreak, and physical measures on the returns and spillover effects of exchange rate in Indonesia. The model will be tested by the exponential generalized autoregressive conditional heteroskedastic (EGARCH) process and the spillover volatility index. The study discovers that the confirmed cases, outbreak news, and the implementation of large-scale social restrictions simultaneously contribute to a leverage effect on the volatility of a direct quote of Indonesian Rupiah to Australian Dollar, Euro, US Dollar, Singapore Dollar, and Great British Pound. To a certain extent, the heatwave …

The Effect Of Financial Inclusion On Food Security: Evidence From Developing And Developed Countries, Yasmin Yasmin, Sekar Utami Setiastuti

Economics and Finance in Indonesia

This study investigates the global impact of financial inclusion on food security, with a focus on both developing and developed countries. The study constructs a financial inclusion index using the Sarma method and secondary data sourced from IMF and World Bank databases. System GMM is employed as the estimation method due to its effectiveness in addressing endogeneity issues and its efficient and consistent use of instruments. The analysis reveals that financial inclusion has a positive and statistically significant effect on food security across all research sub-samples. In addition, the study incorporates interaction variables between financial inclusion and the COVID-19 pandemic …

Sars-Cov-2 Seroprevalence In Pregnant Women In Kilifi, Kenya From March 2020 To March 2022, Angela Koech, Geoffrey Omuse, Alex Mugo, Isaac Mwaniki, Joseph Mutunga, Moses Mukhanya, Onesmus Wanje, Grace Mwashigadi, Geoffrey Katana, Marleen Temmerman

Centre of Excellence in Women and Child Health

Background: Seroprevalence studies are an alternative approach to estimating the extent of transmission of SARS-CoV-2 and the evolution of the pandemic in different geographical settings. We aimed to determine the SARS-CoV-2 seroprevalence from March 2020 to March 2022 in a rural and urban setting in Kilifi County, Kenya.

Methods: We obtained representative random samples of stored serum from a pregnancy cohort study for the period March 2020 to March 2022 and tested for antibodies against the spike protein using a qualitative SARS-CoV-2 ELISA kit (Wantai, total antibodies). All positive samples were retested for anti-SARS-CoV-2 anti-nucleocapsid antibodies (Euroimmun, ELISA kits, NCP, …

Reflections Of Elementary Principals Leading Through Disruption And Crisis: An Exploration Of Pandemic Leadership, Nicole Renee Peterson

Dissertations

COVID-19 had a tremendous impact on schools across the globe. Educational leaders had to respond to executive orders quickly. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) guidelines focused on mandates regarding students’ and staff’s educational, health, and social-emotional needs. This study explored and described the experience and reflections of elementary principals and their staff members during this disruptive time in history.

This qualitative multiple case study involved the interviews of five elementary principals and staff focus groups from each of their buildings. The overarching research questions were: (a) How do principals describe, metacognitively process, and make meaning of their response …

Empagliflozin In Patients Admitted To Hospital With Covid-19 (Recovery): A Randomised, Controlled, Open-Label, Platform Trial, Recovery Collaborative Group

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Empagliflozin has been proposed as a treatment for COVID-19 on the basis of its anti-inflammatory, metabolic, and haemodynamic effects. The RECOVERY trial aimed to assess its safety and efficacy in patients admitted to hospital with COVID-19.

METHODS: In the randomised, controlled, open-label RECOVERY trial, several possible treatments are compared with usual care in patients hospitalised with COVID-19. In this analysis, we assess eligible and consenting adults who were randomly allocated in a 1:1 ratio to either usual standard of care alone or usual standard of care plus oral empagliflozin 10 mg once daily for 28 days or until discharge …