Digital Commons Network^™

The Time-Dependent Association Between Irritable Bowel Syndrome And All-Cause And Cause-Specific Mortality In The Nih-Aarp Cohort Study, Daniela S Gutiérrez-Torres, Fangyu Li, Linda M Liao, Carrie R Daniel, Shreela V Sharma, Ruosha Li, Eric L Brown, Qing Lan, Maki Inoue-Choi, Baharak Moshiree, Paul Albert, Rashmi Sinha, Emily Vogtmann

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Introduction: Evidence on the association between irritable bowel syndrome (IBS) and mortality is conflicting. In this study, we estimated the association between IBS and all-cause and cause-specific mortality in the NIH-AARP Diet and Health Study.

Methods: IBS diagnoses between 1994 and 2008 were identified from Medicare claims data, and mortality outcomes through 2019 were obtained through linkage to the National Death Index. Using multivariable Cox proportional hazards regression models, we estimated hazard ratios (HRs) and 95% confidence intervals (CIs) for all-cause and cause-specific mortality within partitioned follow-up time categories (>2-5, >5-8, >8-11, >11-14, >14-17, and >17 years) with adjustment …

“Ready, Set, Prepared!” Promoting Household Emergency Preparedness Of Older Adults, Lavonne M. Adams, Charleen Mcneill, William Ellery Samuels, Tara Heagele

Biennial Convention (CONV)

Abstract Text: Introduction Older adults are at-risk for injury, illness, or death following a disaster or public health emergency, especially if they have chronic health conditions or other functional needs. Understanding their unique perspectives may inform education efforts to improve their household emergency preparedness (HEP) and safety.

Purpose This study investigated self-reported levels of HEP among community-dwelling older adults, exploring feasibility and effectiveness of offering group education virtually and in-person. It built on previous studies of the Nurses Taking on Readiness Measures intervention that examined short-term effectiveness of one-on-one HEP education.

Methods The design was a non-randomized before-after feasibility study …

Virtual Reality Across Three Different Learning Environments: Outcomes, Challenges, Successes, Nancy L. Raschke Deichstetter, Joanne O. Dunderdale, Carol T. Kostovich, Donna Quinones, Anne Cahill

Biennial Convention (CONV)

Simulation is widely used in nursing education where students are provided opportunities to experience a variety of clinical encounters ranging from performing a procedural skill to assuming the nurse role in a high-fidelity simulation. Virtual reality (VR) simulations use a variety of immersive, highly visual, 3D characteristics to replicate real-life situations and/or health care procedures (Lioce et al., 2020).
VR has gained increased attention in nursing education and has been used to teach many nursing concepts such as safety, psychomotor skills, health assessment, communication, decision making, critical thinking, teamwork, leadership, and inclusivity. It enables students to practice patient care in …

Overcoming Stigma Of Mental Health And Promoting Well-Being With The 4ws Framework ...Nursing Role, Sharon M. Weinstein, Marianne E. Hess

Biennial Convention (CONV)

Nursing plays a pivotal role in addressing global health priorities. Mental health nursing is pivotal in the worldwide effort to overcome stigma, promote well-being, and address the complex landscape of mental health. By applying the 4Ws framework—What is, What if, What wows, and What works—nurses can strategically enhance their role in advocating for health equity and advancing mental health as a global priority.

Assess the current global mental health crisis presents challenges like stigma, discrimination, and inadequate access to care. Reimagine the role by asking questions, brainstorming new strategies, and considering how mental health services can be integrated into primary …

Raising The Bar With Bsr: Bedside Shift Report, Tanya F. Lott, Marissa Jamarik

Biennial Convention (CONV)

The purpose of this initiative was to engage clinical nurses through professional governance to increase consistency across the hospital system in completing bedside shift report to improve overall patient safety and satisfaction. A four-hospital system established bedside shift report (BSR) in the early 2000s. In 2022, there was an increase in patient safety events that could have been avoided had BSR been conducted appropriately, identifying it was no longer a standardized nursing practice. In 2023, the Quality and Practice Council created a BSR Task Force (TF) to implement new best practices in BSR, aligning with the goal to examine the …

Electronic Screening In Outpatient Clinics To Reduce Clinician Administrative Time, Thu Nguyet Sanadi, Rita Annette Leddy, Patricia Francis

Biennial Convention (CONV)

Background: Primary care clinics often dedicate significant time reviewing screening questionnaires completed by patients to assess preventive care needs and identify possible health conditions. This process not only reduces the time patients spend directly with primary care providers but also increases the documentation burden on nursing staff, detracting from other critical patient care tasks.

Objective: The quality improvement projects aim to reduce the time patients spend with nursing staff collecting information from screening during primary care appointments. This will be accomplished by sending the patient electronic screening (eScreening) that will be completed by patients prior to the appointment.

Methods: …

Stigma Toward Mental Illness And Substance Use Disorder In A Regional Health Care System, Gwendolyn Rook, Jan Mcmillan, Elizabeth Anne Goldsby, James A. Jones, Eric Lester, Patricia Avila, Jamie Maxymuik, Carey Anne Brunswick, Kathryn Renee Twibell

Biennial Convention (CONV)

Stigma toward persons with mental illness (MI) and substance use disorder (SUD) exists worldwide, in both general populations and health care settings. Stigmatizing beliefs and attitudes can negatively impact patient experiences, quality of care, work environments, and patient safety.1,2,3 Little research has explored stigma toward persons with MI and SUD in acute care settings in the midwestern United States. To embrace equitable practice, a better understanding of stigma among personnel employed in a regional health care system may guide initiatives to reduce stigma and improve patient-centered care for vulnerable populations.

This descriptive research study aimed to examine stigmatizing attitudes and …

November 21, 2025 Minutes, Swosu Faculty Senate

Faculty Senate Minutes

No abstract provided.

Cultivating A Sense Of Community: International Students Navigating Community Engaged Learning Opportunities In Line With Their Social Goals, Katherine Lyon, Nicole Malette

Journal of Comparative & International Higher Education

International students often envision their time studying abroad with particular academic, professional, social, linguistic, and identity-related goals in mind (Fong, 2011; Jones, 2013; Montgomery & McDowell, 2009; Page, 2019; Page & Chahboun, 2019). Post-secondary institutions can provide resources and opportunities to help this heterogeneous group of students bring their vision into fruition. One such opportunity is community engaged learning (CEL), which has been shown to help students expand their social and academic abilities as they make contributions to an organization (Arnold, 2019; Greenberg, London & McKay, 2020; Mayer et al., 2019). Through in-depth interviews with 25 new international students who …

Liver-Directed Base Editing Of Abcc6 Prevents Ectopic Calcification In A Variant-Humanized Mouse Model Of Pseudoxanthoma Elasticum, Lauren C. Testa, Dora Obiri-Yeboah, Hooda Said, Ping Qu, Michael A. Levine, Mohamad-Gabriel Alameh, Kiran Musunuru, Qiaoli Li, Xiao Wang

Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Faculty Papers

Pseudoxanthoma elasticum (PXE) is an autosomal recessive connective tissue disorder characterized by ectopic calcification of elastic fibers throughout the skin, retina, and arteries. It is caused by pathogenic variants in ABCC6 , which encodes a transmembrane transporter that primarily localizes to hepatocytes. Loss of ABCC6 function in hepatocytes leads to systemic deficiency of inorganic pyrophosphate (PPi), a potent inhibitor of calcification; such depletion of PPi from the circulation is responsible for multisystemic ectopic calcification seen in PXE. Therefore, liver-targeted variant correction by genome editing and subsequent restoration of systemic PPi may offer a one-and-done therapeutic approach for PXE. The ABCC6 …

Impact Of Peek Implant Surface Design On Postoperative Complications In Cranioplasty: A Retrospective Review, Carmen A Zavala, Laura Zima, Subhiksha Srinivasan, Sanjay V Neerukonda, Mark J Dannenbaum

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Background: The aim of this study was to evaluate and compare complication rates and clinical outcomes associated with smooth and perforated polyetheretherketone (PEEK) implants used in cranioplasty.

Methods: A retrospective analysis of 94 patients who underwent cranioplasty with either smooth (n = 45) or perforated (n = 49) PEEK implants over a five-year period was conducted. Patient demographics, comorbidities, reasons for initial craniectomy, time interval between craniectomy and cranioplasty, postoperative complications, hospital stays, and rates of revision surgeries were analyzed. Multivariate logistic regression was used to control for confounding factors.

Results: No statistically significant differences were observed in demographic characteristics, …

Integrative Profiling Strategies To Guide Personalized Therapy In Mantle Cell Lymphoma: A Pilot Study, Yang Liu, Holly A Hill, Yijing Li, Joseph Mcintosh, Vivian Jiang, Fangfang Yan, Yixin Yao, Yue Fei, Jared Zhang, Lawrence Qu, Jun Yao, Preetesh Jain, Ken Chen, Michael Wang

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Mantle cell lymphoma (MCL) responds to frontline therapy but is susceptible to relapse. While Bruton's tyrosine kinase inhibitors (BTKi) achieve high response rates, most patients eventually experience disease progression. Predicting responses to subsequent treatments remains challenging due to the lack of an established platform. Heterogeneity in gene alterations and cellular pathways contribute to resistance, complicating treatment approaches. Here, we present a multi-modal profiling platform, targeting key pathways rather than focusing on singular DNA-associated lesions. We identified dysregulated signaling pathways by performing gene expression profiling on 20 MCL samples using a custom MCL MATCH gene set and analyzed the data with …

Shp2: A Redox-Sensitive Regulator Linking Immune Checkpoint Inhibitor Therapy To Cancer Treatment And Vascular Risk, Silvia Fernanda López Moreno, Stefania Assunto Lenz, Bernardo Casso-Chapa, Angelica Paniagua-Bojorges, Jung Hyun Kim, Nicolas L Palaskas, Kevin T Nead, Venkata S K Samanthapudi, Gilbert Mejia, Oanh Hoang, Jonghae Lee, Steven H Lin, Joerg Herrmann, Guangyu Wang, Syed Wamique Yusuf, Cezar A Iliescu, Noah I Beinart, Charlotte Manisty, Masuko Ushio-Fukai, Tohru Fukai, Pietro Ameri, Roza I Nurieva, Michelle A T Hildebrandt, Keri Schadler, Efstratios Koutroumpakis, Sivareddy Kotla, Nhat-Tu Le, Jun-Ichi Abe

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Src homology 2-domain containing protein tyrosine phosphatase 2 (SHP2), encoded by the Ptpn11 gene (Tyrosine-protein phosphatase non-receptor type 11), is a key downstream effector of PD-1/PD-L1 signaling and is likely important, in addition to immune modulation, in tumor development and vascular homeostasis. SHP2 conveys PD-1 mediated inhibitory signaling in T cells, and is emerging as a therapeutic target. Importantly, there is an association between immune checkpoint inhibitors (ICIs), immune-related adverse events (irAEs), and cardiovascular complications, underscoring the need to understand SHP2’s role in these processes. This review aims to summarize current knowledge on SHP2/PTPN11 biology, its role in immune …

Exploring The Interplay Between Hypertension And Osteoporosis: A Narrative Review, Yolanda V. Gutierrez, Ronald Shaju, Alyssa A. Sepulveda, Seval Coban

School of Medicine Publications

Hypertension and osteoporosis are highly prevalent chronic conditions that have significant implications for global health, especially in aging populations. While these conditions have traditionally been viewed as separate, emerging research suggests a strong pathophysiological link between the two. Understanding these shared mechanisms may help improve screening and guide integrated management strategies. This narrative review was conducted between January 2024 and July 2025 using PubMed, ScienceDirect, and Google Scholar. The search strategy used the Boolean string: (“hypertension” OR “high blood pressure”) AND (“osteoporosis” OR “bone loss”), supplemented with pharmacologic terms (“ACE inhibitors,” “angiotensin receptor blockers,” “thiazide diuretics,” “beta-blockers”, “SERMS”, “Bisphosphonates”, “Denosumab”, …

2025-11-21 Faculty Regent Report, Morehead State University. Faculty Senate.

Faculty Senate Records

A summary of the Board of Regents meeting of November 21, 2025 as reported by the Faculty Regent.

Considerations And Guidelines For Clinical Training And Professional Practice In The Area Of Psychotherapy Termination, Elyssa L. Jampolsky

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

Treatment termination occurs, invariably, in every psychotherapy relationship. Closing the therapy relationship is often a complex process and requires targeted training for psychotherapists to terminate treatment competently and in a way that preserves gains made and fosters continued client growth. Discontinuation of psychotherapy services requires practitioners to apply ethical knowledge, clinical expertise, and relational boundaries. Further, the nuances of forced, end-of-year termination in clinical training environments necessitates targeted supervision and explicit guidelines. Surprisingly, termination practices are underemphasized in training programs and in the literature. The current paper will review the extant literature related to psychotherapy termination broadly as well as …

Culturally Aware Mindfulness Training For Army Leaders: A Scalable Solution To Strengthen Mental Readiness, Katherine Dutler (Skowronski)

Graduate School of Professional Psychology: Doctoral Papers and Masters Projects

This doctoral paper examines cost-effective, easily distributed mindfulness practices as a force-multiplier for psychological readiness in the U.S. Army. Daily mindfulness reduces symptom burden, raises distress tolerance, and sharpens performance—all without added equipment, appointments, or cost. However, stigma, long waitlists, and civilian-centric messaging still deter soldiers from adapting mindfulness practices. Rather than replacing clinicians, the program functions as preventive maintenance and a bridge while soldiers await care, thereby easing load on an overtaxed system. By embedding mental fitness alongside physical PT, the Army can advance its mandate to “deploy, fight, and win” with forces that are both mentally and physically …

Norms For Scaling Up Small And Sick Newborn Care: An Overview Of Reviews, Natalie A. Strobel, Georgia Whisson, Derek Swe, Amy Budrikis, Karen M. Edmond

Research outputs 2022 to 2026

Background: The World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) currently have no benchmarks or 'norms' for scaling up small and sick newborn (SSN) service delivery in health facilities in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Our objective was to understand which systematic reviews had addressed the following norms in the last five years: number of SSN beds per live births in a district or similar administrative unit (admission beds); space requirements for SSN units, including mother-infant dyads (space); health workforce ratios in SSN units (workforce); and travel time to health facilities with SSN units (travel time). Methods: …

How Students Of Osteopathy And Physiotherapy View And Perceive Each Other’S Practice, Heather Donaldson, Alec Rickard

School of Health Professions

Purpose: Physiotherapists and Osteopaths have been found to have more similarities than differences but are they able to work well together when necessary. The two professions are likely to share patient populations due to their similarities and it has been found that there are benefits for both clinicians and patients when they are able to work together. Students start to establish their professional identity and lay the foundation of their knowledge of other professions during degree learning, therefore do these professions have knowledge of the other profession and do their views and perceptions align with working in an interprofessional collaboration.Methods: …

Pragmatic Textualism, Brian G. Slocum, Kevin Tobia

Duke Law Journal

Traditional textualism instructs judges to adhere to a statute's linguistic meaning and reject as irrelevant its interpretive consequences. Justice Scalia famously contrasted his restrained textualist judge with "Mr. Fix-It," a judge who inappropriately weighs consequences. Today, however, textualists increasingly embrace consequentialist reasoning. This Article documents this undertheorized shift and the emerging textualist efforts to justify it, including Justices Kavanaugh and Barrett's arguments for nonliteralism and judicial sensitivity to context. This Article critiques these efforts: Modern textualist theory lacks a compelling explanation for its newfound reliance on interpretive consequences.

Next, we offer a novel theory of the linguistic role for interpretive …

An Examination Of Disparities In Adhd Diagnosis Between Men And Women, Julia Holloway

University Honors Theses

Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder has become an increasingly popular area of study over the last decade. The rise in cases over the same period likely explains this trend, as does ADHD’s status as one of the most commonly encountered neurodevelopmental disorders. While much of this research has served as an invaluable asset to both practitioners and patients there are still blind spots which have yet to be addressed by the existing body of research. This progress in our understanding of ADHD has gone far in illuminating the biases which have set the precedent for treatment and diagnosis, however, widespread understanding …

Understanding The U.S. Maternal Healthcare System At The Intersection Of Asian American Birth Outcomes And The Model Minority Stereotype: A Literature Review, Sophia Hevel

University Honors Theses

This thesis aims to explore the maternal healthcare system in the United States as it pertains to Asian American birthing people, the ways in which their racial, ethnic, and cultural identities are interacted with within the U.S. Healthcare system, and subsequently the detrimental effects of the medical system's devaluation of culturally specific birthing and postpartum practices have on Asian American birthing experiences. This will be accomplished through an exploration of the United States' maternal healthcare system, or rather, its crisis; how Asian Americans navigate a system that has not been structured to support their specific needs; and lastly, a discussion …

Art And Critical Thinking, Audrey Nixon

University Honors Theses

The voice of art molds and dictates norms and behaviors of society. Art eases people into sitting with discomfort or alternate ideas of the world. I work with mixed-media collage to respond and react to culture and the current American political climate. Through the act of expressing and working through thoughts and emotions, art teaches people how to process, it teaches histories of resistance, and empathy. Artists have the ability to engage their audience to critically think about what is happening in our world. By channeling expression and passion, art can help people make necessary connections about concepts that lead …

Risk Factors For Unexpected Death In Patients Identified By A Communication And Resolution Program, Peter Lodato, Neal D. Goldstein, Alexandra M, Mapp, Adebayo Gbadebo, David A. Paul

Department of Pediatrics Faculty Papers

Many patients experience unexpected harm while receiving healthcare, with a lasting impact on patients, families, and caregivers. Communication and Resolution Programs are being adopted with increased frequency, as a more systematic, transparent, and equitable approach to these unexpected outcomes. The aim of this study was to identify whether demographic factors played a role in identifying patients with unexpected death, as managed in our CRP. This nested case-controlled compared 236 patients who experienced an unanticipated death with 2,360 controls who died expectedly over a 10-year period. Patients with unexpected death were more likely to be Black (AOR 2.18 95% CI 1.01-4.68), …

Patent Monopsonies, Roy Baharad, Gideon Parchomovsky

Duke Law Journal

Conventional wisdom perceives patent protection as a necessary evil. Patent protection, the argument goes, raises the prices of patented products and processes, thus restricting access to innovation. But without it, not enough innovation will be produced. Hence, generations of scholars have sought ways to curb the market power of patentees via various legal interventions, such as prizes, compulsory licenses, and other forms of regulation. All have tacitly assumed that eroding the market power of patentees would result in a competitive market for innovation that would put an end to the allocative inefficiencies and distributional inequities that emanate from patent protection. …

Incubators Of Innovation: Finding A Place For Title Ix In Religious Charter Schools, Emily Bass

Duke Law Journal

Since the early 1990s, many people across the country have embraced charter schools as "incubators of innovation." Charter schools are publicly funded, tuition-free, K–12 schools that have more flexibility than traditional public schools in curriculum, staffing, and more. With this flexibility, charter schools constantly test new approaches, aiming to inspire educational reform.

In recent years, some have begun calling for a new kind of charter school: the religious charter school. In May 2025, the Supreme Court deadlocked in Oklahoma Statewide Virtual Charter School Board v. Drummund, a case involving St. Isidore, the nation's first explicitly religious charter school. For …

Barriers And Facilitators To Engaging With Academia: A Black Dental Student Perspective – Pilot Study., Amitha Ranauta, Favour Onwudiwe, Tanaka Anthony Jeremy Kadiyo, Obioma Mofiyinfoluwa Ukoha, Rachel Adebukola Anuoluwa Ogunleye, Vivienne Banke Onamusi, Nicole Meerah Elango, Oluwasola Helen Asaolu, Antonia Oluwatosin Oluwakemi Ajayi, Modupe Toluwanimi Osunkoya, Kaamilah Shitta-Bey, Amy Maame Aba Amanfu, Cathy Coelho, Alasdair Robertson, Julie Monk, Nikos Donos, Sally Hanks

Peninsula Dental School

Introduction This pilot study investigates barriers and facilitators to Black dental students' engagement with academic careers in dentistry, focusing on underrepresentation in academia despite efforts to diversify the workforce. Methods and results Through qualitative analysis of focus group discussions with Black dental students from two UK dental schools, several key themes emerged. Participants highlighted the importance of active patronage in addressing underrepresentation, advocating for proactive support systems beyond mere mentoring. They also emphasised the significance of various forms of capital – economic, cultural, and social – in shaping career trajectories and success in academia. Intersectionality, encompassing experiences of sexism, racism, …

Exploring The Perceived Management Priorities Between Physiotherapy And Osteopathy For Chronic Low Back Pain, Mollie Ford, Alec Rickard

School of Health Professions

Purpose:Physiotherapists and osteopaths are integral to the management of chronic low back pain (CLBP), yet patient confusion often arises due to overlap in their roles and techniques. Whilst existing literature has examined the approaches of each profession separately, limited research explores the perceived roles and management priorities. Thus, the aim of this study was to explore the perceived roles and management priorities of physiotherapists and osteopaths in addressing CLBP.Methods:A qualitative phenomenological design was used. Individual online semi-structured interviews were conducted with five UK-based healthcare professionals; two physiotherapists and three osteopaths. Participants were recruited through volunteer sampling and data was collected …

Antidepressant Use In Older Age Bipolar Disorder (Oabd): Results From The Gage-Bd International Consortium, P. J. Chen, Lisa T. Eyler

Faculty Scholarship

Background Antidepressants are still commonly prescribed in bipolar disorders, despite ongoing controversy of the potential risk of inducing hypomania/mania. There is limited knowledge about the characteristics of antidepressant use in older age bipolar disorder (OABD; age ≥50) in the current literature. Aim To describe antidepressant use, sociodemographic and clinical correlates of a global sample of OABD individuals. Methods The Global Aging and Geriatric Experiments in Bipolar Disorder (GAGE-BD) consortium provided cross-sectional international data on OABD individuals ( n = 746) and younger-age bipolar disorder (YABD, age <50 years; n = 692) regarding antidepressant use. Multivariate logistic regression was employed to assess the association between AD use with demographic and clinical variables. Results Of 1252 participants, 33.1 % of OABD individuals and 38.1 % of YABD individuals were using antidepressants. In multivariable models among OABD, antidepressant use was associated with BD type II (OR = 1.61, 95 % CI: 1.09–2.38), higher depression severity (mild-to-moderate: OR = 1.86, 95 % CI: 1.13–3.06; severe: OR = 4.23, 95 % CI: 2.38–7.50), lower YMRS scores (OR = 0.93, 95 % CI: 0.89–0.97), female sex (OR = 1.37, 95 % CI: 1.00–1.89), lower education (OR = 0.61, 95 % CI: 0.43–0.86), and being unemployed (OR = 0.69, 95 % CI: 0.50–0.96). Antidepressant monotherapy was reported in 18 % of OABD users ( n = 46) and 19 % of YABD users ( n = 51). These findings suggest that both clinical severity and sociodemographic characteristics influence antidepressant prescribing in OABD. Conclusion Antidepressant use was less prevalent in OABD compared to YABD, and associated with female sex, lower education, lack of occupation, type II BD, higher depression severity and lower mania scores. In OABD, antidepressants appear to be used more commonly in contexts where they may be clinically more indicated, such as increased depression severity.

The Effect Of Uterine Entry Technique On Chorioamniotic Membrane Separation In Fetoscopic Laser Photocoagulation For Twin-To-Twin Transfusion Syndrome: Protocol For A Randomized Controlled Trial, Brian A Burnett, Jessian L Munoz, Rebecca M Johnson, Christian M Parobek, Luis E Delgadillo Chabolla, Cara Buskmiller, Roopali V Donepudi, Magdalena Sanz Cortes, Michael A Belfort, Ahmed A Nassr

Faculty, Staff and Students Publications

Background: Chorioamniotic membrane separation (CAS) is a recognized complication of fetoscopic laser photocoagulation (FLP) for twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome (TTTS), associated with increased risks of preterm prelabor rupture of membranes (PPROM) and preterm birth (PTB). Although CAS is well described, its incidence and relationship to specific surgical techniques, particularly the method of uterine entry, are not well defined in the published literature. No randomized trials have evaluated whether entry technique influences the risk of CAS.

Methods: We present the protocol for a randomized controlled trial comparing sharp-trocar and Seldinger uterine entry techniques for FLP in TTTS diagnosed between 16 + 0 …