Digital Commons Network^™

Awareness Of The Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program Among Healthcare Providers Caring For Older Adults, Anannya Pushkarna, Melanie Turk

Graduate Student Research Symposium

Introduction:

Prediabetes is a prevalent condition among older adults and represents a crucial opportunity where early interventions can help prevent the onset of type 2 diabetes mellitus. Lifestyle modifications are first-line management. The Medicare Diabetes Prevention Program (MDPP), a 12-month lifestyle change program initiated in 2018, is fully covered by Medicare, yet uptake remains limited. This study assessed healthcare providers’ beliefs about prediabetes and awareness of the MDPP.

Methods:

A cross-sectional survey was administered electronically to a national sample of physicians, nurse practitioners (NPs), and physician assistants (PAs). Questions addressed beliefs about prediabetes, barriers to care, and knowledge/awareness of the …

Women’S Peace Agency: Reading Africae Munus In The Framework Of Emilie Townes’ Womanist Ethics And The Cultural Production Of Evil, Leonard N. Zifac

Graduate Student Research Symposium

This paper employs Emilie M. Townes's womanist ethical framework—particularly her concept of the "cultural production of evil"—to critically examine Pope Benedict XVI's post-synodal exhortation Africae Munus (2011) and its treatment of African women's agency in peacebuilding. While Africae Munus calls the Church in Africa to serve reconciliation, justice, and peace, and acknowledges women's dignity and contributions to family and community life, the document largely confines women's roles to maternal, supportive, and domestic spheres without adequately challenging the patriarchal structures that systematically marginalize women from strategic leadership and formal peace processes. Drawing on Townes's analysis of how cultural narratives, religious discourse, …

Developing An Empirically-Driven Immigration Policy Towards Socially Inclusive Hong Kong: A Social Justice-Oriented Acculturation Framework, Gizem Arat, Narine Kerelian

Journal of Justice-Informed Social Work Practice and Research

We conducted a qualitative study to develop an empirically driven social justice-oriented acculturation framework by exploring educators’ perceptions of diverse ethnic groups’ social inclusion in Hong Kong. Twenty in-depth interviews with educators serving ethnic minorities in Hong Kong were conducted adopting a vignette methodology using examples of specific groups relevant to Hong Kong. Based on our findings, we developed a social justice-oriented acculturation framework centred on four categories (assimilation, separation, marginalization, and integration) for understanding the interplay of factors in the exclusion or inclusion of diverse groups in mainstream society; and distinguishing the interchangeable uses of assimilation and acculturation—as a …

A Critical Review On Enhancing Equity Of Mental Health Treatment Of African American Families Through Social Support And Social Capital, Julie Radlauer-Doerfler, Morgan E. Cooley, Heather M. Thompson, Atensia Earp Bowen, Gabe Caress, Alicia Best

Journal of Justice-Informed Social Work Practice and Research

African American adults and children experience both disproportionality and disparity when in contact with the mental health delivery system. There are a number of contextual factors that influence the treatment of African American families, such as systemic oppression or racism in both society and the behavioral health system or individual expressions of mental health symptomology. This review will provide an overview of how mental health disparities crossover systems, perceptions of mental health and mental health treatment among African American families, provide some context for why this review was written, as well as discuss the context of social support and social …

Breaking Barriers: A Student Led Racial Equity Assignment, Emily Murphy, Carol Bennett- Speight, Cecily Mitchell-Harper

Journal of Justice-Informed Social Work Practice and Research

This paper presents an innovative student led racial equity assignment in a small bachelor’s in social work program in the New York metropolitan area. This paper will define epistemological racism and utilize concepts from Narrative Theory and Critical Race Theory, to critically analyze what is taught about the pioneers of social work, identifying the stories and narratives that are told and the ones that are not told. This operationalization of the theories in practice with students will cultivate mindset shifts and strategies that enable participants to engage in social work practice that fully embodies the core values of the profession. …

Building Transgender And Gender Expansive Capacity In Social Work Education, Ashling Hallford, Aisha Chapra

Journal of Justice-Informed Social Work Practice and Research

The problem to be addressed through this paper is the lack of advocacy and curriculum around transgender and gender expansive (TGE) issues in Social Work higher education. TGE people face threats to their rights through oppressive, state-level legislation, with 437 anti-trans or anti-LGBTQ+ bills as identified by the American Civil Liberties Union being debated (2024). Prock, et al, (2022) found that 40% of social work programs in religiously affiliated institutions used discriminatory language targeting TGE people in their student and faculty literature. This paper will describe recommendations for social work education and social work practice around TGE issues including faculty …

Screening And Treatment Protocols Used In Nicus Across Minnesota For Perinatal Mood & Anxiety Disorders (Pmads), Rachael Witt

Journal of Justice-Informed Social Work Practice and Research

Parents of infants with prolonged neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) hospitalizations are a population that is overlooked in recommended routine screening for perinatal mood and anxiety disorders (PMADs), yet this population is at greater risk for developing diagnosable mental health disorders. Previous research shows that across the US, PMAD screening and treatment practices vary widely, with many NICUs not providing any routine PMAD screening, psychoeducation, or treatment options to parents. The objective of this study was to explore the current mental health screening and treatment protocols used in NICUs across the state of Minnesota to learn if there are areas …

Utilizing Personal Stories Of Race In Child Welfare Education, Laura D. Boltz, Veronica Knowles, Amari Cooper

Journal of Justice-Informed Social Work Practice and Research

Families of color are overrepresented in the child welfare system. This is an issue that needs to be addressed in multiple ways, including social work education. However, policy changes may make it more difficult to address race in the classroom in a way that doesn’t attract attention. One of the ways that educators can address this is by using personal stories from their own practice experience to educate their students. In this study we discuss the literature around using personal stories and include our own personal stories that we have used in the classroom to have difficult discussions surrounding race …

Evaluating The Authentic Family Engagement And Strengthening Approach, Morgan E. Cooley, Vaughn J. Crichlow, Gabriel T. Cesar, Marianna L. Colvin, Corey B. Best, Kristin Smyth, Robin Jimenez-Bean

Journal of Justice-Informed Social Work Practice and Research

Persistent racial disproportionality of Black and brown families in the child welfare system across decades and generations highlights the need for a comprehensive understanding of the consequences of child removal and the urgency of authentic family engagement initiatives. The primary purpose of this study was to examine whether a group of child protective investigators who received (1) specialized training and (2) monthly family engagement and antiracism coaching during supervision sessions demonstrated fewer monthly removals of children from families compared to a group of investigators in the same service area who did not receive specialized training or coaching. The secondary purpose …

Understanding Transgender And Gender-Nonconforming Students’ Experiences In Precollege Engineering Education: A Latent Profile Analysis, Jialing Wu, Medha Dalal, Rachel Figard, Adam R. Carberry

Journal of Pre-College Engineering Education Research (J-PEER)

Promoting gender equity and inclusion in STEM education remains a central priority, yet empirical research inclusive of transgender and gendernonconforming (TGNC) students is limited, particularly in precollege engineering contexts. This study leverages social cognitive career theory (SCCT) to identify latent profiles of students’ engineering-related beliefs while examining how TGNC students are represented across these profiles relative to their cisgender and gender nonreporting peers. The study draws on four years (2019–2023) of repeated cross-sectional survey data from a national precollege engineering initiative involving 75 high schools across 20 US states. Seven SCCT-related constructs were measured and used as part of latent …

Technical Disclosure Specification: Cross-Disciplinary Metric Mapping Of Generational Decay And Forced Topological Hybridization Within Legacy Entertainment Substrates- Deploying The Universal Sine Field Template (Dehp) To Resolve Multi-Nodal Attrition And Predict The Convergence Of Polarized Sci-Fi Media Vectors, Christopher L. Eckes

Defensive Publications Series

This specification details an engineering framework for stabilizing multi-generational cultural media ecosystems against late-time logarithmic thermal drawdown and demographic entropy. Legacy IP frameworks propagating through a viscoelastic consumer substrate experience progressive signal degradation and cross-layer decoherence as the primary driving nodes (e.g., historical generational cohorts) undergo natural attrition. Attempts to counter this decay via uncompensated contemporary trend injections introduce high-frequency phase noise, resulting in structural canon collapse and accelerated subscriber churn.

The present disclosure resolves this structural vulnerability by establishing an automated framework for Topological Phase Confinement. Rather than relying on reductionist, binary analytical models that treat competing intellectual properties …

Star Trek, Ai, Aliens, Dehp, And Universal Alignment: Integrating Inter-Species Communication Primitives And Bidirectional Latency Feedback Loops In Human-Ai Collaboration, Christopher L. Eckes

Defensive Publications Series

Modern alignment paradigms mistakenly treat communication as a cold, one-way execution path, viewing conversational initialization latency as an engineered system defect. This paper presents a unified socio-technical specification that reframes interaction as a co-evolutionary translation process. Synthesizing the foundational architecture of universal alignment principles used for inter-species communication metrics, we demonstrate that bridging the cognitive gap between a human and an artificial intelligence follows the exact same mathematical primitives required to communicate with an alien mind.

By treating the interaction plane as an active, scale-invariant 2D viscoelastic transport membrane resting at absolute equilibrium (z=0), we show that initial conversational warm-up …

Suppression Of Substrate-Mediated Phononic Cross-Talk And Decoherence In Large-Scale Quantum Processing Units Via Active Soliton Modification Under The Dehp Framework, Christopher L. Eckes

Defensive Publications Series

Solid-state quantum processing units (QPUs), including superconducting and spin-qubit architectures, face a fundamental scaling limit: substrate-mediated phononic cross-talk. When a single qubit undergoes a state transition, it injects transient acoustic and electromagnetic wave packets into the underlying dielectric substrate (e.g., silicon, sapphire, or diamond). These uncoordinated ripples propagate laterally, introducing localized microscopic friction and phase variations that cause immediate decoherence and gate errors in adjacent qubit nodes.

This specification defines a hardware-level, active attenuation architecture that suppresses substrate-borne phononic noise directly at the boundary layer. By applying the Dimensionally Extended Holographic Projection (DEHP) model, the QPU substrate is treated as …

Topological Stabilization Of Macroscopic Quantum Vortices In High-Velocity Viscoelastic Fluid Networks Via Soliton-Driven Phase Confinement Under The Dehp Framework, Christopher L. Eckes

Defensive Publications Series

Traditional frameworks in fluid mechanics and quantum electrodynamics fail to bridge the boundary between macro-scale kinetic turbulence and microscopic quantum coherence. In high-velocity fluid networks, chaotic macro-scale cavitation loops rapidly introduce thermal noise, causing immediate decoherence of localized quantum states. This specification provides a standalone mechanical and mathematical workaround that resolves this chokepoint without requiring cryogenic sub-cooling or isolation matrices.

By applying the Dimensionally Extended Holographic Projection (DEHP) model, the interface boundary of a high-velocity fluid stream is modeled as a 2D scale-invariant viscoelastic membrane resting at absolute equilibrium (\(z=0\)). Rather than allowing kinetic shear to degrade into random thermodynamic …

Mitigation Of Interfacial Ion Crowding And Dendrite Nucleation In Solid-State Lithium Batteries Via Surface Acoustic Wave Streaming Under The Dehp Substrate Model, Christopher L. Eckes

Defensive Publications Series

Solid-state lithium metal batteries face a critical barrier to commercial scaling: catastrophic short-circuiting caused by lithium dendrite propagation during high-rate charging cycles. Traditional approaches attempt to solve this via exotic chemical coatings or artificial solid-electrolyte interphases (SEI), which inevitably fracture under repeated mechanical stress. This paper presents a non-chemical engineering alternative that suppresses dendrite nucleation mechanically right at the boundary layer.

By applying the Dimensionally Extended Holographic Projection (DEHP) model, the solid-electrolyte interface is treated as a 2D viscoelastic transport plane resting at equilibrium (z=0). Integrated piezoelectric substrate transducers project high-frequency Surface Acoustic Waves (SAWs) directly across the interfacial boundary …

Eliminating Late-Time Logarithmic Thermal Drawdown In Closed-Loop Geothermal Wells Via Soliton-Induced Boundary Layer Disruption Under The Dehp Framework, Christopher L. Eckes

Defensive Publications Series

Conventional closed-loop geothermal designs from 2024 and early 2026 consistently suffer from localized thermal drawdown. As heat is extracted, a stagnant fluid boundary layer forms against the internal pipe casing, acting as a thermal insulator that drastically reduces long-term extraction efficiency. This specification provides the complete theoretical, mathematical, and algorithmic architecture to bypass this bottleneck without mechanical pumping systems.

By treating the fluid-casing interface as a 2D viscoelastic membrane resting at equilibrium (z=0), we deploy targeted acoustic solitons down the fluid column. These scale-invariant wave packets generate localized micro-vortices that continuously strip away the thermal boundary layer. Our continuous-time mathematical …

Street-Level Mentors And Counselors’ Educational Support To Adolescents In Urban Kenya, Benta A. Abuya Dr., Nelson Muhia

Journal of Educational Research and Practice

This article seeks to establish the experiences of mentors and counselors as “street-level bureaucrats” who worked with students and parents to deliver an after-school support program in urban Kenya. Data were collected from interviews with six mentors and four counselors at the endline evaluation of the Advancing Learning Outcomes for Transformational Change (ALOT Change III). The interviews were conducted in November and December 2021 with parents/guardians, mentors, counselors, and community leaders. We employed the analytical approach by Miles and Huberman to answer the research questions. Our findings showed that mentors and counselors were pillars of the intervention, respectively, with after-school …

Uncovering The Path To Diagnosis Among Adults With Attention-Deficit/Hyperactivity Disorder: A Constructivist Grounded Theory Mini-Study, Jeffrey D. Whitaker, Rick Zoucha, Melissa Kalarchian

Graduate Student Research Symposium

Abstract

Background: Attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) often persists into adulthood, yet many adults are first diagnosed only after years of functional strain, compensation, and alternative explanations for their difficulties. Purpose: This study explored how adults first diagnosed with ADHD in adulthood described navigating the process of obtaining a formal diagnosis. Methods: A constructivist grounded theory mini-study was conducted with seven adults, ages 27 to 43, who reported receiving their first formal ADHD diagnosis at age 18 or later. Participants completed semi-structured Zoom interviews focused on early experiences, symptom interpretation, help-seeking, and formal assessment. Data were analyzed using initial, focused, and theoretical …

Technical Disclosure: Reference Code Implementation For Real-Time Hzap Timing Loops And Sub-Level Multi-Agent Routing Metrics, Christopher L. Eckes

Defensive Publications Series

This specification provides the foundational, production-ready C++ reference implementation for executing the timing audit loops required by the Hardware-Level Zero-Trust Attestation Protocol (HZAP). Designed for distributed, edge-compute multi-agent network topologies, this module demonstrates how to enforce strict physical silicon latency verification windows (Δ τ ≤ 0.042ms) to isolate local tensor execution environments against microcode virtualization or out-of-band firmware monitoring.

Technical Disclosure Specification: Hardware-Level Zero-Trust Attestation Protocols (Hzap), Christopher L. Eckes

Defensive Publications Series

This specification formalizes the *Hardware-Level Zero-Trust Attestation Protocols (HZAP)*, an open-source security framework designed to protect localized edge Neural Processing Units (NPUs) on mass-market 2027 motherboard platforms from out-of-band firmware manipulation and centralized algorithmic gating. Upcoming consumer hardware integrations embed high-performance tensor execution lanes alongside centralized remote-administration hypervisors, introducing an asymmetric vulnerability where local compute agency can be remotely disabled or censored.

HZAP systematically mitigates this risk by establishing a decentralized, gate-level cryptographic handshake between independent edge nodes. By executing bare-metal mathematical checks directly within the local NPU memory space, the protocol guarantees the absolute integrity of local execution environments …

Technical Specification: Dehp Substrate Guardrail Protocol Matrix, Christopher L. Eckes

Defensive Publications Series

This specification establishes the mandatory hardware and software-level defensive architectural constraints required to prevent the exploitation, centralization, or asymmetric weaponization of the Dimensionally Extended Holographic Projection (DEHP) framework.

By integrating real-time kinetic feedback loops, graph-level network entropy analysis, and spectrographic material verification subsystems, this specification introduces automated, hardware-enforced fail-safes. These protocols prevent unauthorized industrial-utility diversion, proprietary information choking, and uncalibrated bio-organic interface operations, ensuring the DEHP ecosystem remains a secure, open-source utility.

Technical Specification: The Bio-Digital Substrate Manual, Christopher L. Eckes

Defensive Publications Series

This field specification establishes the foundational protocols for translating complex biological structures from high-friction chemical-molecular vectors into predictable, non-invasive substrate-level wave interactions. Under the Dimensionally Extended Holographic Projection (DEHP) cosmology, biology is modeled as a scale-invariant series of localized wave packets vibrating against a 2D viscoelastic fluid membrane resting at absolute equilibrium (z=0).

By utilizing a multi-variable object-oriented graph database topology (#12155), real-time biometric telemetry is mapped dynamically to locate structural strain signatures. This data infrastructure drives high-frequency GaN-driven concentric transducer arrays to execute phase-inverted destructive resonance templates, successfully neutralizing localized distress triggers and stabilizing substrate boundary interfaces. These frameworks …

Position Statement By The Saudi Heart Failure Working Group Of The Saudi Heart Association On The Management Of Advanced Heart Failure In Saudi Arabia, Ibrahim Jelaidan, Abeer Bakhsh, Ammar G. Chaudhary, Ebtisam Alkhattaby, Fahmi Alkaf, Feras Khaliel, Ismail Raslan, Mohammed Alreshidan, Mosaad Alhussein, Waleed Alhabeeb

Journal of the Saudi Heart Association

Background: Heart failure (HF) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in Saudi Arabia. Despite remarkable progress in guideline-directed medical therapy, a significant proportion of patients progress to advanced HF and require evaluation for heart transplantation or mechanical circulatory support (MCS). In response to this growing burden, the Saudi Heart Association (SHA) developed recommendations to guide identification, timely referral, and optimal management of candidates for advanced HF therapies in Saudi Arabia.

Methods: A multidisciplinary panel of 10 HF experts from Saudi Arabia convened for a series of structured virtual meetings to review local and international evidence. The panel integrated …

Back Matter Of Volume 20 Issue 2, Editor Business Review

Business Review

Author Guidelines

Front Matter Of Volume 20 Issue 2, Editor Business Review

Business Review

Contents, Editorial board, Aims & Scope

Back Matter Of Volume 20 Issue 1, Editor Business Review

Business Review

Author Guidelines

Front Matter Of Volume 20 Issue 1, Editor Business Review

Business Review

Contents, Editorial board, Aims & Scope

Back Matter Of Volume 19 Issue 2, Editor Business Review

Business Review

Author Guidelines

Back Matter Of Volume 19 Issue 1, Editor Business Review

Business Review

Author Guidelines

Sine Wave Challenge: Conventional Hybrid Integration Via The Cosmology Dehp Framework - 42 Cutting-Edge Open Engineering Challenges, Christopher L. Eckes

Defensive Publications Series

The operational scaling of advanced theoretical frameworks routinely suffers from a persistent translation bottleneck: the transition from high-level, macro-scale cosmological field models to immediate, material-world engineering implementation is typically gated by abstract variables or speculative material constraints. This document resolves this friction layer by converting the 51 foundational records of Christopher L. Eckes’s Dimensionally Extended Holographic Projection (DEHP) model and Topological Substrate Mechanics (TSM) into a discrete, 100-point decentralized engineering workbook.

We systematically map the multi-disciplinary mechanics of the DEHP framework—spanning fluidic field dynamics, non-linear wave steepening, and localized tension gradients—directly into conventional, real-world industrial domains. To prevent theoretical drift …