Medicine and Health Sciences Commons^™

Agreement Success Plan, Miranda Holtz

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Monterey County Health Department’s Administration Bureau works with contracts and agreements for the Public Health Bureau, which detail what services programs will complete so that they can receive funding or maintain a partnership with the County. The problem was that a large portion of the management analyst’s time was dedicated towards technical support for agreements. The Agreement Success Pan is aimed to increase efficiency by aiding program staff with agreements through a Prezi, which is similar to a self-paced webinar. The project had three phases; interviews of program supervisors or managers, gathering supporting documents, and final launch. Afterward, a questionnaire …

Improving Healthy Relationship Skills In College Students, Madison Newton

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Many college students, because of their inexperience, may lack skills to develop healthy relationship behaviors and may not recognize signs of unhealthy or violent relationships. Using Albert Bandura's social learning theory with college students and increasing their knowledge of healthy relationship skills and skills to help friends in danger. This study shared that this method of instruction was successful and the college students were able to complete the learning outcomes of identify examples of healthy and unhealthy relationship behaviors and ways to help a friend in a violent relationship.

Should I Reduce My Red Meat Consumption?, Joshua Kojiro Bibbee

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Maintaining and improving the health of 5,000+ county employees is no easy task, but the Monterey County Health Department Employee Wellness (MCHDEW) program’s job is to do just that. There are many parts that fall under the category of health, and one area to research on is red meat consumption. A diet high in red meat can cause some of the health conditions of metabolic syndrome, which is a cluster of health conditions that increase a person’s risk of heart disease. This is relevant because metabolic syndrome is found in one-third of county employees, and this contributes to increased healthcare …

A Comprehensive Analysis Of The Importance And Implementation Of Telehealth Behavioral Services In Rural Areas & Schools, Mckensi Uecker, Jode Kinnaman

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Telehealth is a rapidly expanding mode of health care delivery, improving the efficiency of health care and related support services across the United States. Through telehealth, services are made more accessible, resulting in improved care for those in rural and under severed communities. Improving mental health care in the United States is not a simple fix, and it will require the continued normalization of behavioral health, so that our society will be able to move past the stigma, allowing people to feel comfortable seeking care. The goal of this paper is to address the importance of having access to behavioral …

Comparison Of Mortality Data From Nebraska’S Rural & Metropolitan Health Districts, Claire Figi

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

As there has been minimal research done on the correlation between communities identified as rural or metropolitan and their mortality rates, this research aims to provide baseline evidence that mortality rates associated with non-infectious and infectious diseases are connected to an area’s rural or metropolitan classification. This study analyzed public data from the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services and the Center for Disease Control to compare mortality rates related to the top two causes of death in both rural and metropolitan health districts of the state of Nebraska, United States. This data was then compared to mortality rates …

Genetic Counselors’ Attitudes Towards Telegenetics: The Good, The Bad, The In-Between, Madison Badje

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Given that the global coronavirus pandemic has necessitated a quick and vast transition to telehealth, the purpose of this study is to explore these changes in the field of genetic counseling. To examine the perceived effectiveness of telegenetics from the perspective of genetic counselors, I conducted in-depth, semi-structured interviews with two genetic counselors in which each participant was asked six questions. The interviews were recorded, transcribed, and then analyzed using standard thematic analysis techniques for qualitative data analysis. The analysis revealed two main themes: benefits and drawbacks of telegenetics, with two sub-themes under each. The major benefits are increased patient …

Sensing Surfaces: A Non-Filamentous C. Albicans Response, Elias Smith

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Resulting infections of mucosal tissues by Candida albicans present difficulty in treatment due to the formation of biofilms and invasion of tissue directed by thigmo-tropic responses of hyphal cells. Initiation of biofilm formation, however, is largely dependent on yeast-form cells. Their ability to sense surfaces, however, has yet to be examined. In the present study, an initial genetic profiling of the surface sensing response by non-filamentous Candida albicans was generated. In order to assess the ability for yeast-form C. albicans cells to recognize surfaces, four differentially solidified YPD plate types were created using agar, noble agar, Gelrite, and carrageenan. Genetic …

Identification And Characterization Of Butyrate-Producing Species In The Human Gut Microbiome, Grace Maline

Theses/Capstones/Creative Projects

Inflammatory Bowel Diseases (IBD) including ulcerative colitis, indeterminate colitis, and Crohn’s disease are increasingly common conditions that places a high physical and financial burden on individuals and global healthcare systems. Though many treatments exist for these conditions, their unpredictable nature and causation make them difficult to manage across the variety of IBD patients. Additionally, many of these treatments come with undesirable side effects or modes of delivery. Therefore, it is worthwhile to explore the use of Short Chain Fatty Acids (SCFAs) such as butyrate whose affects in the human gut include decreased inflammation and decreased risk of colorectal cancer. As …

Performance In Mortality Prediction Of Saps 3 And Mpm0-Iii Scores Among Adult Patients Admitted To The Icu Of A Private Tertiary Referral Hospital In Tanzania, Nadeem Kassam

Master of Medicine in Internal Medicine

Background Illness predictive scoring systems are significant and meaningful adjuncts of patient management in the intensive care unit. They assist in predicting patient outcomes, improve clinical decision making and provide insight into the effectiveness of care and management while optimizing the use of hospital resources. We evaluated mortality predictive performance of Simplified acute physiology score (SAPS 3) and Mortality probability models (MPM0-III) in predicting ICU outcome as well as identified disease pattern and clinical factors associated with increased mortality. Methods This was a retrospective cohort study of adult patients admitted to the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) of the Aga Khan …

Correlation Between Disease Severity And Health-Related Quality Of Life Among Patients With Fibromyalgia Syndrome, Janet Chebet Koros

Master of Medicine in Internal Medicine

Background: Fibromyalgia Syndrome is a rheumatic disorder characterized by chronic widespread musculoskeletal pain accompanied by fatigue, sleep, memory problems, and mood disturbances. Little is known about the characteristics of fibromyalgia patients in Kenya. Studies done elsewhere have shown that patients with fibromyalgia syndrome incur more healthcare costs, have a higher prevalence of comorbidities, have more workdays missed, have poor productivity, retire early, have impaired function, and lead a poorer quality of life. Methods: This study was a prospective cross-sectional study that enrolled patients diagnosed with fibromyalgia syndrome attending the rheumatology clinic at the Aga Khan University Hospital Nairobi, Kenya. Those …

Validity And Acceptability Of The Kiswahili-Paediatric Gait, Arms, Legs And Spine (Pgals) Screening Tool At A Tertiary Referral Hospital In Kenya, Jacqueline Evarist Kawishe

Master of Medicine in Paediatrics and Child Health

Background: A common reason implicated in the severity of presentation and mortality resulting from rheumatic conditions among children is the delayed presentation to a paediatric rheumatologist. Evidence suggests low-quality paediatric musculoskeletal clinical skills could be a cause for diagnostic delay and history suggestive of musculoskeletal disease alone has poor sensitivity in detecting paediatric rheumatic conditions. The paediatric gait, arms, legs, and spine (pGALS) musculoskeletal screening tool was developed to encourage early detection of paediatric rheumatic conditions. It has been validated and translated successfully in other countries. Kiswahili serves as a national language in several East African countries. Translating and validating …

Efficacy Of Nerve Blocks On Immediate Post Caesarean Delivery Functionality, Dorothy Makena

Master of Medicine in Obstetrics and Gynecology

Introduction; Caesarean section is becoming increasingly common and is one of the most performed procedures globally. It is a major surgery accompanied by moderate to severe pain. Pain impacts negatively on functionality of the mother in terms of daily activities like self-care, newborn care and mobility. A post caesarean section mother therefore requires effective and safe pain relief to improve functionality, for effective breastfeeding and to reduce the risk of venous thromboembolism. Abdominal plane nerve blocks have been studied widely in the recent past and have been shown to be effective as part of multimodal post caesarean analgesia. This study …

Improving The Rate Of Emergency Department Physician Pre-Procedure Time-Out Documentation For Deep Sedation And Cutaneous Abscess Incision And Drainage, Arjun Sarin, Nikita Sharma, Shobhit Jain

Posters

Background: The pre-procedure time-out, an important safety measure to verify patient identity and accuracy of a planned procedure, and Joint Commission requirement, is not documented consistently by physicians in our emergency department (ED). Deep sedation and cutaneous abscess incision and drainage (I&D) are two high-risk procedures performed in the ED, supporting the use of a time-out in this setting. Between June 2018 and May 2019, a pre-procedure time-out was documented in the physician procedure note of the electronic medical record (EMR) for 75% of deep sedations, and 94% of I&Ds.


Objective: We aimed to improve ED physician pre-procedure time-out documentation …

Improving Access To Spanish Covid-19 Resources At A Children’S Hospital, Fernando Zapata, Romina Barral, July K. Jean Cuevas, Lines Vargas Collado, Nicholas Clark, Amanda Montalbano, Cristina Fernandez

Posters

Background: The COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impacts Spanish-speaking communities. COVID-19-related health information is overall more available in English than Spanish. From May to August 2020, Spanish COVID-19-related resources on our institution’s website had an average of 2954 views/month compared to 48573 views/month to the English COVID-19-related resources.


Objective:
Our project aim was to increase the percent of page views for Spanish COVID-19-related resources on our institution’s website from 5.7% of the total views to the COVID-19-related pages, to 20% from September 2020 through June 2021.


Design/Methods: An ethnically diverse, multidisciplinary team including physicians proficient in Spanish as well as our institution’s …

Registration Of Newly Diagnosed Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder And Developmental Disabilities At State Regional Offices, Whitney Rolling, Rachel Goodson

Posters

• In fiscal year 2020, 39,220 Missouri residents utilized developmental disability services through the Missouri Department of Mental Health.1 • Developmental disability services account for 53% of Missouri’s state mental health funding (about 1.3 billion dollars annually).

• Physicians and psychologists are required for making eligible diagnoses, but registration for state support is patient dependent and can be perceived as an extensive paperwork process.

• Project Goal: Measure and increase the percentage of eligible patients registered for their state mental health resource offices.

Efficacy And Safety Of Bardoxolone Methyl In Pediatric Patients With Alport Syndrome In Cardinal Phase 3 Trial, Bradley A. Warady, Sharon Andreol, Vimal Chadha, Melanie Chin, Rasheed Gbadegesin, Keisha Gibson, Debbie Gipson, Angie Goldsberry, Kenneth Lieberman, Colin Meyer, Kevin Meyers, Nozu Kandai, Megan O'Grady, Michelle Rheault, Clifford Kashtan

Posters

Background: Alport syndrome accounts for an estimated 3% of children with end-stage kidney disease in the US (USRDS, 2014). Whereas current management recommendations include the use of renin-angiotensin-aldosterone system inhibitors (RAASi) in patients with proteinuria, no specific therapies have been approved for this disease.


Objective: A Phase 3 study (CARDINAL; NCT03019185) evaluated the safety and efficacy of bardoxolone methyl (Bard) in adult and adolescent patients with Alport syndrome.


Design/Methods: CARDINAL was an international, multicenter, double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomized trial conducted over two years in patients with confirmed diagnosis of Alport syndrome. Patients aged 12 to 70 years old with baseline eGFR …

Perinatal Exposure To Interleukin-6 (Il-6): A Model To Study Influence Of Developmental Insult On Susceptibility To Chronic Kidney Disease (Ckd), Tarak Srivastava, Robert E. Garola, Varun Chandra Boinpelly, Jianping Zhou, Daniel P. Heruth, Mohammad Rezaiekhaligh, M. Farhan Ali, Lakshmi Priya, Uri Alon, Trupti Joshi, Yuexu Jiang, Ellen T. Mccarthy, Ram Sharma, Madhulika Sharma, Gregory Vanden Heuvel, Virginia J. Savin, Pramod B. Mahajan, Mukut Sharma

Posters

Background: CKD and obesity are marked by elevated pro-inflammatory cytokines, including IL-6. Pregnant obese women are associated with 1.5- to 2-fold increase in serum IL-6, newborns with smaller kidney/body weight ratio, kidney anomalies and increased susceptibility to CKD. Maternal IL-6, but not TNFα or IL-1β, can cross the placental barrier and enter fetal compartment.


Objective: We examined the role of (a) maternal injection of IL-6 during mid-gestation, similar to levels observed in pregnant obese women, on kidney development as a specific molecular surrogate of gestational inflammation and (b) IL-6 on glomerular filtration barrier.


Design/Methods: Pregnant mice received IL-6 (10 pg/g …