Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Passage Or Pathology: Current Attitudes Toward Women's Aging In The Literature Of Menopause, Kaaren Gearhart Ancarrow

Institute for the Humanities Theses

Menopause is currently portrayed in the medical literature as a pathological 11 process resulting from "hormone deficiency." However, feminist writers contend that the climacteric is part of the normal female aging process and oppose the medicalization of menopause and the consequent inevitable hormone replacement therapy (HR T) promoted by the hegemonic medical and pharmaceutical industries. This paper explores the historical development of these two paradigms of menopause and their manifestations in samples of three classes of contemporary literature on the subject: gynecological textbooks, popular advice books written by physicians, and women's accounts. Five major themes are investigated using quantitative and …

Human Immunodeficiency Virus (Hiv)/Hepatitis B Virus (Hbv) Risk Perception Related To Needlestick Injuries At A Medical School In Norfolk, Virginia, Ronald B. Hartman

Community & Environmental Health Theses & Dissertations

A limited number of studies have been conducted to assess the perceptions of risk of medical students and residents for acquiring Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) or Hepatitis B Virus (HBV) via percutaneous (needlestick) injuries while performing clinical training. The purpose of this study is to investigate these perceptions of risk, and to determine whether there is an association between a high perception of risk and a low incidence of needlestick injury. The method of investigation was a four-page survey questionnaire. The instrument was investigated for reliability by use of a pilot study with a small group of medical students and …

Behavior And Attitudes Related To The Prevention Of Sexually Transmitted Disease And Unplanned Pregnancy, J. Lee Hoover

Dissertations

A sample of 214 persons was tested to determine the impact of gender role orientation, neuroticism, extraversion, authoritarianism, race, gender, and sexual orientation on attitudes and behavior relevant to the prevention of sexually transmitted disease and unintended pregnancy. Specifically measured was the impact of these factors on attitudes toward the condom as contraceptive, attitudes toward the condom as prophylactic, and reported condom use.

Gender role orientation was measured using the short form of the Bern Sex Role Inventory (BSRI) (Bern, 1978), neuroticism and extraversion were measured using the NEO-Five Factor Inventory (NEO-FFI) (Costa & McCrae, 1992), and authoritarianism was measured …

The Role And Perception Of Risk In High-Risk Sports Participants: A Grounded Theory Study Of Rock Climbers, Ronald E. Baglien

Dissertations and Theses

Previous research examining high-risk sports participation has yielded discrepancies between the role assigned to risk and the perceptions of climbers regarding risk. Risk, as it applies to high-risk sport participation, has not been sufficiently defined in the literature. The current study sought to develop, by means of a grounded theory approach, a new, dynamic operational definition of risk as it applies to rock climbers, and to examine the role of risk management as a modifying factor in the perception of risk and its impact on motivation and participation. Nineteen subjects (twelve male and seven female) averaging 14.7 years of climbing …

The Effects Of Lowering Cholesterol On Vasodilation, Maria Christi Hardt

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Endothelial dysfunction has been found prior to any signs of atherosclerotic plaque formation in patients with a variety of risk factors for atherosclerosis. Elevated serum cholesterol has repeatedly been associated with endothelial dysfunction as demonstrated by impaired vasoreactivity to vasodilating stimuli.

The aim of this research was to determine whether short term lowering of serum cholesterol levels by life style changes or by cholesterol lowering medication could reverse or reduce the endothelial dysfunction. The brachial artery diameter was measured by high-resolution ultrasound at rest and during reactive hyperemia pre and postintervention. Fifty-three subjects with cholesterol levels above 240 mg/dl were …

Negotiating The Healthy Self: A Theory Of Health Behavior In Older Adults, Barbara Schwitz White

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Researchers have identified discrete behaviors of older persons to maintain or improve health and prevent or treat illness. Few have developed theories of health behavior specific to this population. The purpose of this study was to develop a substantive theory to explain how health and illness are integrated into and influence behaviors in the daily lives of community-residing older persons. Using grounded theory design and analysis, 26 participant observations involving 186 individual encounters, and seven semistructured [sic] one-on-one interviews were conducted at two senior centers in urban southern California, between 1992 and 1994.

Informants defined health in terms of physiologic …

Understanding Ki In The Daily Experience Of Advanced Practitioners Of Aikido: A Phenomenological Study, Steven C. Andress

Dissertations and Theses

Ki, Japanese for living energy (Chi in Chinese), is at the absolute core of the Oriental model of medicine and wellness. Complementary to this model, many Oriental martial art exercises have evolved to cultivate Ki for optimal health. However, the concept of Ki remains poorly understood and relatively unexplored in traditional Western health and medical literature. Further, the health focus of martial art research has remained primarily concerned with the arts' contribution to psychological health. This has left a significant gap in our understanding of the other health benefits that these arts and Ki have to offer. To begin closing …

A Correlative Study Of An At-Risk Population And Low Birth Weight/Infant Mortality In A Northeast Oklahoma City Community, Estacia D. Thrower

McCabe Thesis Collection

Studies show that numerous and complex variables influence pregnancy outcomes and infant mortality rates. These variables include demographic, medical, physical, environmental, behavioral, and attitudinal factors and prenatal care. Improving the health of mothers and infants is a national challenge. In 1987, more than 3.8 million infants were born in the United States. Of these, 38,408 died before their first birthday. Although the infant mortality rate is at an all-time low, the pace of progress has slowed. According to Dr. Robert Deppen of the Oklahoma State Health Department, "In 1992, Oklahoma ranked 29th in the United States for infant mortality and …

A Case Study Of An Elementary School-Based Health Clinic, Sheila K. Jones

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to perform a qualitative analysis of an elementary school-based health clinic (SBHC). This situational analysis was performed to further understand the impact of accessible primary health care on an elementary school population. Data were collected through 30 participant interviews of parents, educators and medical personnel. Additional data were collected through the clinic files, and a t-test was used to compare the attendance and achievement data of clinic consumers for the clinic year against records from the previous year. The researcher presented information on the steps of SBHC development to include community campaign procedures. The …

A Test Of An Alternate Calibration Matrix For Niosh Method 7300, Robert T. Vitek

Community & Environmental Health Theses & Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to determine if the analytical results (when determining cadmium, lead, and zinc concentrations) for air sample filters prepared and analyzed according to N:OSH Method 7300, differ significantly, from those obtained when the instrument is calibrated using EPA Method 200.7 acid matrix standards. The null hypothesis was that no statistically significant difference, measured at the 95% confidence level, would exist between results obtained from the two calibration standards. Careful standard and sample preparation, the use of an internal standard, and the application of working standard and working internal standard correction factors served to isolate the …

The Effect Of A Nutrition And Fitness Program On The Dietary Habits, Fitness Level, And Health Status Of Ute Indian Youth, Alison K. Lemon

All Graduate Theses and Dissertations, Spring 1920 to Summer 2023

Lifestyle changes from traditional diet and activities to modem diets high in fat and sugar, and sedentary habits have increased inherited health risk for diabetes and obesity among Native American youth. Nutrition education and physical activity programs have been recommended to help reduce health-risk factors. This study evaluated a summer nutrition education and fitness program for effectiveness in improving the dietary habits, nutrition knowledge, fitness level, and health status of American Indian children ages 9-14 living on or near the Uintah-Ouray Reservation in Uintah and Duchesne Counties of Eastern Utah.

A 6-week nutrition and fitness program was conducted through the …

Southern Appalachian Settlement Schools As Early Initiators Of Integrated Services, Eloise H. Jurgens

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This historical-descriptive study examined Southern Appalachian settlement schools as early initiators of integrated health and social services with education from the 1900s through the 1970s. Three schools were studied: Hindman Settlement School (KY), Pine Mountain Settlement School (KY) and Crossnore School, Inc. (NC). The purpose of the study was to determine the type and extent of services provided, the relationship of the settlement schools with their respective county public school system, and the transfer, if any, of integrated services from the settlement schools to public schools as the public schools took over educational responsibilities once offered by the settlement schools. …

Association Between Nutrient Intake And Risk Of Coronary Heart Disease In California Seventh-Day Adventists, Peter Pribiš

Loma Linda University Electronic Theses, Dissertations & Projects

Dietary habits are believed to be major determinants of risk of coronary heart disease (CHD). Studies of high and low risk populations have suggested several nutrients to be protective or hazardous against CHD. Most published work since 1984 on diet and CHD in the Adventist Health Study (AHS) population examined either foods or food groups. This study investigated ten nutrients as exposure variables and their relationship to CHD risk. A cohort of 23,616 nonsmoking, non-Hispanic white California Seventh-day Adventists was followed for six years beginning in 1976. Extensive dietary information was collected at baseline, as well as values of traditional …

Job Accommodation In The Automobile Industry : Addressing The Problem Of Lateral Epicondylitis, Thanigaivel Ashwin Raj

Theses and Dissertations (ETD)

Cumulative trauma disorders are musculoskeletal problems such as carpal tunnel syndrome, rotator cuff tendinitis, and epicondylitis which can affect assembly line workers. The injuries are thought to result from repetitive motions performed under excessive loads in anomalous postures. The project aimed to design, build, install, and evaluate worksite accommodation at the Saturn plant for a worker with right lateral epicondylitis. The goal was to make her fully functional in her original team which required addressing the injurious aspects of the task that caused or aggravated her injury.

A process of observation, interview, and analysis identified “the door mount” operation on …

An Examination Of The Effect Of Substance Abuse On Prison Populations And Related Policy Issues Of The California Department Of Corrections, Frank Siaca

Theses Digitization Project

No abstract provided.

Assessment Of The Health Needs Of The Communities Served By Kaiser Permanente Of Riverside, Jennifer Van Arsdall

Theses Digitization Project

The purpose of this community needs assessment was to explore the unmet health needs in some of the communities of Riverside County, to discover which populations are most adversely affected by these unmet needs, and to determine what barriers hinder individuals from getting their needs met. United Way of the Inland Valleys, in cooperation with Kaiser Permanente of Riverside conducted this study as part of their community based needs assessment.

Determinants Of The New Entry Of Hmos Into A Medicare Risk Contract: A Resource Dependence-Diversification Model, Chih-Wen Pai

Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to examine the determinants of the new entry of an HMO into a Medicare risk contract using a resource dependence—diversification model. This study is conducted through a non-experimental, panel design With one year time lag. An HMO’s market is defined as the service area. The primary sample for this study is composed of 440 HMOS that do not have a Medicare risk contract as of January 1994.

Data for the variables are extracted from the 1994 and 1995 InterStudy and Group Health Association of America (GHAA) directories, the 1996 Area Resource File, the 1994 …

The Impact Of Sick Building Syndrome On Selected Variables Associated With School Effectiveness, Caryl Shannon Felty

Dissertations, Theses, and Masters Projects

Using matched pairs of schools having a diagnosis of Sick Building Syndrome (SBS) and those not identified, and not having the potential of being identified as having the diagnosis, this study examined the relationship between factors assumed or determined to have an impact on a school's ability to carry out its mission as they related to the SBS diagnosis. The factors studied were student average daily attendance (ADA); students' mean standardized test scores in math and reading on the Iowa Test of Basic Skills and the Tests of Achievement and Proficiency; the need for students to take prophylactic medications; the …

The Effect Of Resistance Training For Cardiac Patients On Activities Of Daily Living, Amanda Clare Benson

Masters Theses

No abstract provided.