Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Exile, Identity, And Artistic Creation: An Arts Based Phenomenological Study With Immigrant Women: A Dissertation, Vera Heller

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

This arts based phenomenological study with immigrant women explores the migratory and creative processes from the perspective of the Hero's archetype, viewed by Jung as a template for individuation. Its objective is to gain further insight into the contribution of art therapy to healing the fragmentation of identity inherent in the transition between two - often radically different - cultures.

A Program Evaluation Research Study On The Implementation Of The Mentors In Violence Prevention Program In A Public High School: A Dissertation, Nancy G. Beardall

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

The Mentors in Violence Prevention (MVP) Program is the subject of this research study. MVP is a high school leadership and mentoring program that focuses on promoting gender respect and preventing harassment, sexual harassment and teen dating abuse in middle schools and high schools. This program evaluation study of the MVP program utilizes both quantitative and qualitative data. The findings suggest the MVP training supports the mentors in their ability to become active bystanders and leaders in this work, not only in the short term and while they are in the program, but over the long term, when they are …

From Gps To Psychologists: The Patients' Perspective On Help-Seeking And Referral, Zdenka Bartova

Theses : Honours

The experience of living with psychological problems has a profound effect on an individual's life. For those actively seeking help, General Practitioners usually present the first point of contact. General Practitioners thus serve as gatekeepers who either decide to manage the individuals themselves and/or refer them to a mental health professional. The referral decision is part of a complex help-seeking process in which patients have to mediate their own understanding of their problems with that of the practitioner, all within the structural constraints of the current health care system. This literature review discusses constructs of mental illness and the impact …

Chronic Care At The Crossroads: Exploring Solutions For Chronic Care Management. Report On The Us Summit., Janice L Clarke

College of Population Health Faculty Papers

Report on the US Summit

Knowledge And Beliefs Of Adolescents Regarding Sexually Transmitted Infections And Hiv/Aids In A Rural District In Pakistan, Hafsa Raheel, Franklin White, Muhammad Masood Kadir, Zafar Fatmi

Community Health Sciences

Objective:

To assess the knowledge and beliefs of adolescents (15-19 years girls and boys) regarding sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV/AIDS.

Methods:

A community based cross-sectional survey was conducted in October 2002 in a rural district (Mirpurkhas) of Sindh province, Pakistan.

Results:

A total of 428 adolescent girls and boys were interviewed. Only 44% correctly named at least one STI, while 55% knew at least two modes of transmission for HIV/AIDS. Adolescents with education greater than or equal to secondary level, those who were able to read the newspaper, possessed electricity in their homes and were allowed to meet their …

Resource Allocation Within The National Aids Control Program Of Pakistan: A Qualitative Assessment Of Decision Maker's Opinions, Sara Husain, Masood Kadir, Zafar Fatmi

Community Health Sciences

Background:

Limited resources, whether public or private, demand prioritisation among competing needs to maximise productivity. With a substantial increase in the number of reported HIV cases, little work has been done to understand how resources have been distributed and what factors may have influenced allocation within the newly introduced Enhanced National AIDS Control Program of Pakistan. The objective of this study was to identify perceptions of decision makers about the process of resource allocation within Pakistan's Enhanced National AIDS Control Program.

Methods:

A qualitative study was undertaken and in-depth interviews of decision makers at provincial and federal levels responsible to …

Behavioural Activation Treatment For Depression: A Review Of The Literature ; Effects Of A Brief Behavioural Activation Treatment On Activity Levels And Depression, Debra L. Bailey

Theses : Honours

Behavioural activation (BA) is an emergent psychological treatment for depression rooted in the tradition of behavioural theory. This paper discusses the manner in which BA arose as a result of the seminal Jacobson et al. (1996) study, which dismantled the behavioural and cognitive components of cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT; Beck, Rush, Shaw, & Emery, 1979). Published empirical studies examining the effectiveness of BA are reviewed and considerations for future research are offered. It is concluded that BA shows promise as a parsimonious, effective, and potentially cost-efficient psychological treatment for depression. However, more large-scale research is needed: in samples with low …

Depression, Rumination And Dependency In Relation To Age And Gender, Alison J. Lee

Theses : Honours

Extensive research has been carried out in the field of depression and its relation to age and gender. This article reviews relevant literature in the field of depression, rumination and dependency and the relationships of these to age and gender. It has been shown in numerous studies that depression, rumination and dependency are related and exist in comorbidity with each other. This article also reviews some of the research that has been conducted on age and gender with relation to rumination and dependency. It has been found in relation to rumination, dependency and depression that women are more susceptible than …

Why It Is Important To Look At Long-Term Abstinence From Heroin Use: A Review Life Beyond Heroin: An Exploration Of The Motivations For Long-Term Heroin Abstinence, Lucy Dann

Theses : Honours

The phenomenon of achieving long-term abstinence from drug use remains to be thoroughly understood in the alcohol and other drug (AOD) community, particularly in the area of heroin use. This review assesses research in the field of long-term abstinence from drug use and highlights the need to examine long-term abstinence from heroin use. Prochaska and DiClemente's (1986) Stages of Change model of behaviour change is examined as well as literature examining its importance in the AOD field. Studies examining long-term abstinence from alcohol, tobacco, cocaine and heroin use are reviewed from a psychological perspective, focusing on cognitive-behavioural constructs. Findings revealed …

Behavioral Management Of Command Hallucinations To Harm In Schizophrenia, Robin Buccheri, L Trygstad, G Dowling

Nursing and Health Professions Faculty Research and Publications

The study objective was to evaluate changes in prevalence of command hallucinations to harm self or others, characteristics and intensity of auditory hallucinations, and levels of anxiety and depression after attendance at a 10-session course teaching behavioral strategies for managing persistent auditory hallucinations to adult outpatients with schizophrenia. Prevalence of command hallucinations to harm self or others was measured at baseline, end of course, and 1-year post-course. Pre-course scores on the Characteristics of Auditory Hallucinations Questionnaire, Unpleasant Voices Scale, tension-anxiety subscale of Profile of Mood States, and Beck Depression Inventory-II were compared with scores immediately post-course and 1 year later. …

Teaching Parenting Skills In A Methadone Treatment Setting, Randy R. Gainey, Kevin P. Haggerty, Charles B. Fleming, Richard F. Catalano

Sociology & Criminal Justice Faculty Publications

Family factors significantly affect children’s risk of substance abuse, delinquency, and other problem behaviors (Arthur, Hawkins, Pollard, Catalano, & Baglioni, 2002). Children of substance abusers represent a particularly high-risk population. Prenatal exposure to addictive substances and the medical complications that may arise are important factors that, from conception, place this population at high risk of drug abuse and other problem behaviors (Griffith, Azuma, & Chasnoff, 1994). As children of substance abusers mature, their lives are characterized by exposure to continued drug and alcohol abuse by family members, recurrent or chronic illnesses, frequent moves, financial troubles, legal conflicts, family disorganization, and …

Alcohol-Induced Suppression Of Gluconeogenesis Is Greater In Ethanol Fed Female Rat Hepatocytes Than Males, Ken D. Sumida, Alma A. Cogger, Aleksey V. Matveyenko

Physical Therapy Faculty Articles and Research

The impact of alcohol-induced suppression on hepatic gluconeogenesis (HGN) after chronic ethanol consumption between males and females is unknown. To determine the effects of chronic alcohol consumption (8 weeks) on HGN, the isolated hepatocyte technique was used on 24 h fasted male and female Wistar rats. Livers were initially perfused with collagenase and the hepatocytes were isolated. Aliquots of the cell suspension were placed in Krebs-Henseleit buffer and incubated for 30 min with lactate, [U-C-14]lactate, and nine different concentrations of ethanol (EtOH). Dose-effect curves were generated for the determination of maximal and half-maximal alcohol-induced inhibition on HGN. There was no …

Optimising School Nurse Involvement In Youth Based Tobacco Control Programs: Presented To The Western Australian Health Promotion Foundation, Child Health Promotion Research Unit, Edith Cowan University

Research outputs pre 2011

A significant proportion of youth smoke regularly, placing them at risk of addiction to cigarette smoking. It is known that adolescence is a critical period for the establishment of adult drug use behaviours. The key focus for this research program is the investigation of interventions addressing adolescent smoking cessation, with a particular emphasis on School Nurse involvement.

The research program aims to provide capacity building benefits at three levels: to secondary school nurses, to two post-graduate students, as well as school health promotion /smoking prevention/cessation practitioners and researchers. Ultimately this project may add previously underused but well trained, highly credible …

Impact Of Extra-Curricular Activities On Adolescents' Connectedness And Cigarette Smoking: Final Report, Margaret Hall, Greg Hamilton, Therese Shaw, Donna Cross, Tommy Cordin, Leanne Lester, Stacey Waters

Research outputs pre 2011

In Australia, cigarette smoking is still the leading cause of preventable death and yet in the past 10 years, despite efforts that have been made in the classroom and through the media, there have been limited reductions in adolescent smoking. The Extra-curricular Project builds on the work of two other projects conducted by researchers from the Child Health Promotion Research Centre (CHPRC). The Smoking Cessation for Youth Project (SCYP), conducted by the Western Australian Centre for Health Promotion Research, led to the identification of connectedness as a key mediator of cigarette smoking. The role of extra-curricular activities in mediating school …

The Latino Caregiver Experience Among Dementia And Non-Dementia Caregivers : Can Community Based Care Management Improve Caregiver Health?, Catherine Oliveros

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Purpose: This study provides an analysis of the Latino caregiving community in Southeast Texas and the role community based care management plays in influencing caregiver physical and emotional well-being. Design and Methods: A non-random sample of 63 Latino caregivers was interviewed by phone. Caregiver physical and emotional well-being was studied through burden, depression, perceived health status, and resourcefulness. Regression, correlation, and comparison analysis was performed with key variables. Results: Acculturation was positively correlated with care management use. In comparing dementia and non-dementia caregivers both groups had similar levels of depression and burden, however, the dementia group had significantly lower levels …

Foster Parent Pre-Service Training Programs: A Content Analysis Of Four Common Curricula, Jason B. Whiting Phd, Paul Huber, Alice Koech

Faculty Publications

This study compares four curricula commonly used in the pre-service training of US foster parents. Stufflebeam's (1983) CIPP model for program evaluation was used to guide a content analysis of each curriculum, with specific attention to the content and training methodology used. The content was examined to determine if it covered topics identified as germane to the task of fostering children. The instructional methodology of each program was compared with established andragogical adult education techniques. Results indicated that each curriculum varied in content and method of instruction, although there were many areas of overlap. Suggestions for curriculum selection criteria are …

Developing Healthy Kids In Healthy Communities: Eight Evidence-Based Strategies For Preventing High-Risk Behaviour., Gary L. Hopkins, Duane C. Mcbride, Helen H. Marshak, Kiti Freier, John V. Stevens, Wendi Kannenberg, James B. Weaver, Stephanie L. Sargent Weaver, Peter N. Landless, Jonathan Duffy

Faculty Publications

Australian youth engage in behaviour that threatens their health and wellbeing. National surveys report that about a third of young Australians have tried an illicit drug. High rates of substance use and risky sexual behaviour among young Australians suggest that effective prevention efforts based on empirical evidence need to be expanded. Church-associated organisations are an untapped resource that could be used to improve the health and welfare of young people. We describe eight evidence-based elements to consider in designing strategies to prevent high-risk behaviour in young people.

Psychotherapists Working With Homeless Clients: The Experience Of Stress, Burnout Symptoms, And Coping, Sharon D. Young

Antioch University Dissertations & Theses

Stress, secondary trauma, and burnout symptoms are significant problems within the field of human services. Homeless clients present many challenges, frequently are highly traumatized, and often require many services. Psychotherapist working with homeless clients experience negative effects of exposure to the stress and trauma of homeless clients, and as a result must develop strategies for coping in order to continue in the work. This study used a mixed method design to investigate psychotherapists' experience working with homeless clients through Healthcare for the Homeless grantee projects, and their strategies for coping with the stress of their work. A survey, which included …

Significant Stress And Real Rewards: The Ecological And Ambiguous Experiences Of Foster Parents, Jason B. Whiting Phd, Paul T. Huber Ma

Faculty Publications

To obtain an insider's perspective of the unique dynamics and needs of foster parents, surveys and interviews were conducted using human ecology and ambiguous loss as a guiding framework. The resulting qualitative and quantitative data show significant and distinctive stressors for foster parents. These include challenges with agency staff and procedures and ambiguous situations. However, these parents generally found meaning and satisfaction in service and coped with the help of informal and formal supports.

An Overview Of The Near-Death Experience Phenomenon, David San Filippo Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

Near-death experiences appear to be universal phenomena that have been reported for centuries. A near-death encounter is defined as an event in which the individual could very easily die or be killed, or may have already been considered clinically dead, but nonetheless survives, and continue his or her physical life. Reports of near-death experiences date back to the Ice Age. There are cave paintings, in France and Spain that depict possible after life scenes that are similar to reported scenes related to near-death experiences. Plato's Republic presents the story of a near-death experience of a Greek soldier named Er. In …

Paved With Good Intentions: A Definitional Study On The Issue Of Psychological Child Abuse, Anita Renee Fromm

Graduate Theses

Definitional issues concerning child abuse have long plagued the identification and treatment of this malady. This study examined the role of perpetrator intention in categorizing adverse parenting skills, as well as psychological child abuse potential. Exploitative parenting styles were displayed and rated in a variety of vignettes. Social service professionals and university students were participants in this vignette style questionnaire study. Results indicated that with a few exceptions, a constant perpetrator intention did not appear to alter subject perceptions that the scenarios presented adverse parenting skills and child abuse potential. The participants were indecisive concerning scenarios that represented excessive athletic …

The Qingdao Twin Registry: A Focus On Chronic Disease Research, C. Anderson Johnson, Zengchang Pang, Feng Ning, Jennifer B. Unger, Shaojie Wang, Qian Guo, Weihua Cao, Liming Lee

CGU Faculty Publications and Research

With the changing patterns of morbidity and mortality in China, noncommunicable chronic diseases have become the major threats to the health of the Chinese population. The causes of chronic diseases include genetic factors and behavioral risk factors such as the use of tobacco, alcohol, and other drugs, unhealthy dietary behaviors, and lack of physical activity. Twin studies offer a unique opportunity to disentangle the genetic and environmental risk and protective factors for chronic disease. The Qingdao Twin Registry (QTR) was initiated in 1998 as part of the National Chinese Twin Registry. Over 11,000 pairs of twins and multiples of all …

Recognition Of Depression In Primary Care Settings: The Influence Of Patient Age And Gender On Patient Care, Kelly Marie Monette

All-Inclusive List of Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Depression is a common condition that is often poorly detected in primary care medical settings. The elderly often fail to receive appropriate attention to their mental health needs, possibly due to physician's interpretation of physical and emotional changes as part of the normal aging process. The purpose of this study was to explore physicians' identification of depression and to determine whether age-related factors and gender impact recommendations for patient care. The respondents were full-time primary care physicians (N = 46; 63% male) who were randomly selected from a national listing of family medicine practitioners and primary care physicians (family medicine, …

Fairness Issues In Law And Mental Health: Directions For Future Social Work Research, Jose B. Ashford, Jane Holschuh

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Concepts from the procedural justice literature in social psychology are examined that offer useful guidance for social work researchers with interests in investigating informal adjudications, speciality treatment courts, and other areas of the administrative process previously neglected in mental health services research. These theoretical concepts are offered as an alternative to the therapeutic jurisprudence framework being adopted by some social workers in the field of law and mental health. The issues outlined in this paper also draw on the health services and psychotherapy literature to highlight issues involving process and procedure as social justice and their significance for advancing a …

Cognitive Impairment And Substance Abuse: Implications For Treatment Planning, Hunter Downing Alessi, Mary Ballard, Alan Kirk, Nicholas Montalbano

Faculty Articles

The cognitive abilities of 24 males at an in-patient substance abuse facility were assessed using the Neurobehavioral Cognitive Status Examination (Cognistat). Findings suggested that there were significant changes in cognitive functioning during the 21-day in-patient treatment as measured by the Cognistat. Implications for mental health professionals working with this population are discussed.

Depression, Anxiety, Hazardous Drinking, Subjective Burden, And Rewards In Family Caregivers Of Patients With Chronic Liver Disease, Lois Vennesta Bolden

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

This descriptive correlation study had three purposes. The study first described depressive and anxiety symptom levels, prevalence of hazardous drinking, rewards, and subjective burden reported by family caregivers of patients with chronic liver disease (CLD). Second, the investigator compared depressive and anxiety symptom levels, prevalence of hazardous drinking, rewards, and subjective burden reported by African Americans family caregivers with those reported by Caucasian family caregivers of patients with CLD. The third purpose was to determine the predictors of subjective burden and mental health status of family caregivers of persons with CLD.

A convenience sample of 73 caregivers of patients receiving …

Nineteenth Century Review Of Mental Health Care For African Americans: A Legacy Of Service And Policy Barriers, Tony B. Lowe

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

The need to focus on service and policy barriers to mental health service delivery for African Americans remains critical. The purpose of this article is to review nineteenth century care as a method for understanding contemporary service and policy barriers. A case study strategy is used to compare the efforts of Pennsylvania and South Carolina using primary and secondary sources to document these developments through a political economy perspective. These findings suggest that the prevailing social, political and economic realities have created mental health disparities along racial lines. Existing barriers are likely rooted in this same reality.

The Use Of Critical Ethnography In Managed Mental Health Care Settings, Cassandra L. Bransford

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

How social workers in managed mental health care settings exercise their professional authority may have profound consequences for the provision of ethical and value-based services to vulnerable populations. Building upon Gidden's theory of structuration, this article describes the use of critical ethnography as a specific research methodology that may support social workers in the exercise of their authority. This article examines the historical roots of critical ethnography and provides a detailed examination of its underlying assumptions and research procedures. The article concludes with a case example of a critical ethnography conducted within a managed mental health care setting.

Review Of Freud's Free Clinics: Psychoanalysis And Social Justice, 1918-1938. Elizabeth Ann Danto. Reviewed By Leslie Leighninger., Leslie Leighninger

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

Book review of Elizabeth Ann Danto, Freud's Free Clinics; Psychoanalysis and Social Justice, 1918-1938. New York: Columbia University Press, 2005. $ 29.50 hardcover.

A Delphi Survey Of Experts’ Opinions Regarding Prevention Of Impairment In Professional Psychology Training, Kin-Ming Chan

Dissertations

This study sought to identify the most important measures that may be implemented in professional psychology training to prevent the future impairment of professionals. An adjunctive research question of this study addressed how these important measures can be successfully implemented. A 2-round Delphi method was conducted. Twenty-eight experts in impairment prevention participated in the first round study, and 20 of them continued to participate in the second round. In the first round, the experts rated the importance of an original list of 38 preventive measures, suggested additional important preventive measures, and provided considerations for successful implementation of their most important …