Medical Humanities Commons^™

Using Drama Therapy To Foster Peer Support Among Nurse Leaders, Chyela Rowe

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

This study explored the use of drama therapy to support the social-emotional experiences of nurse leaders at a mid-sized regional hospital system in the Southeastern United States. Nurse leaders have experienced profound changes to their work environments in recent years and burnout has been at an all-time high among healthcare workers globally. Organizational supports for nurses and nurse leaders are both inadequate to meet the needs and under-resourced. The research questions explored 1) whether the drama therapy peer support initiative improved outcomes and 2) whether there was a significant relationship between measures, and 3) what nurse leaders described as facilitators …

Food Insecurity And Dietary Restrictions, Courtney Williams, Savana Rodriguez, Tiffany Guerrero, Stephen Acheampong, Vanesa Pizutelli

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

According to the USDA Food Insecurity affects around 10.2 percent of the US population as of 2021. For families that have members with certain dietary restriction such as, but not limited to diabetes, hypertension, gluten intolerance, lactose intolerance, and food allergies, the challenge of securing food becomes an even greater burden with having to navigate food banks or discount stores that may not offer food items that meet their dietary requirements. Families with dietary restrictions often face greater food insecurity and less access to food. More research is needed to understand the challenges families with dietary restrictions face regarding food …

Cultural Food Accomodations In South New Jersey, Anahit Stepanyan, Resty Mercado, David Jiang

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

NJ is a melting pot of different cultures and ethnicities, each bringing their own unique customs and traditions. Of these traditions, diet and food are one of the most renowned distinctions and some of the most celebrated.

In response, several Public School districts have made halal and kosher food reforms to accommodate the rise in the Muslim and Jewish student body.

These menu accommodations were made in response to concerns about a lack of halal food options, which negatively impacted Muslim and Jewish students' health and mental well-being and can be recognized as a health disparity disadvantaging Muslim American student …

Maternal Mortality In The United States: An Outlying Social Phenomenon In The Industrialized World, Whitney Buckendorf

Undergraduate Theses, Capstones, and Recitals

Maternal mortality rates claim the lives of over 300,000 individuals per year, with most of these deaths taking place in low to middle-income nations. Since 1990, maternal mortality rates have declined significantly with a global reduction from 385 to 216 maternal deaths per 100,000 births; an average decline of 2.9% per year. While this is an honorable reduction, there are outlying nations that experience higher than normal maternal mortality rates given their region and circumstance. While many studies focus on lower to middle-income nations for maternal mortality associated with lack of medical access and evolved care, there is also the …

Pva-Sansevieria Trifasciata Fraction Films As Absorbers Of Electromagnetic And Thermal Radiation On Smartphones, Nabiila Rahmani, Gustini Syahbirin, Akhiruddin Maddu, Purwantiningsih Sugita, Auliya Ilmiawati

Makara Journal of Science

Technological developments have prompted the production of highly advanced smartphones. However, various advanced features cause smartphones to heat up quickly and emit more electromagnetic radiation, which harms human health. Smartphone protection is needed to solve these issues. This study aims to create a film from the S. trifasciata plant based on polyvinyl alcohol (PVA) to reduce electromagnetic and thermal radiation on smartphones. S. trifasciata plants were macerated with acetone and partitioned with n-hexane, dichloromethane, ethyl acetate, and water. The films were made by mixing PVA with the four fractions. Among the four layers of film, the PVA + water …

Grinding All My Life: Nipsey Hussle, Community Health, And Care Ethics, Pyar J. Seth, Carlton K. Harrison, Jasmyn Mackell

Journal of Hip Hop Studies

As John Legend said, “Nipsey was so gifted, so proud of his home, so invested in his community” (Martin, 2019). Though Nipsey Hussle certainly had a lyrical gift, the discourse after his murder remained largely focused on his work as a humanitarian and community activist. Hussle was a staunch advocate for gun control, police abolition, and education equity in Los Angeles and the State of California. Academic research has often neglected the very clear relationship between Hip Hop and health, particularly the underlying theme of improving community health. To our knowledge, Hussle never identified as a community health organizer. Still, …

Vaccinate: Posters From The Covid-19 Pandemic, Aaron Sutherlen, Judy Diamond, Meghan Leadabrand, Julia Mcquillan, St Patrick Reid

Zea E-Books Collection

In 2022 we are living through a global pandemic, and vaccines are one of the most effective strategies for slowing the spread of infectious disease, minimizing symptoms, and lowering healthcare demands. In short, vaccines save lives and can reduce the risk of contagion from social interaction.

In the United States in late 2021, after the vaccines had been broadly available for almost a year, one in five adults still chose not to get vaccinated against COVID-19.

Art can disrupt what is embedded in our minds and open us up to new perspectives and insights. We hope to offer access to …

Development And Modification Of A Culturally Tailored Education Program To Prevent Breast Cancer In Korean Immigrant Women In New York City, Jin Young Seo, So-Hyun Park, Sung-Eun Choi, Minkyung Lee, Shiela M. Strauss

Publications and Research

Breast cancer (BC) is the most common cancer in Korean American (KA) women. In view of its high prevalence in these women, their low screening rates, and the cultural influence of BC risk factors in their lifestyles, we developed a community-based culturally tailored BC prevention program, the Korean Breast Cancer Risk Reduction Program (KBCRRP). Guided by the PRECEDE-PROCEDE and health belief models, the KBCRRP was developed to achieve four goals: (1) healthy weight, (2) physically active lifestyle, (3) healthy diet, and (4) BC screening and adherence. KBCRRP combines effective multicomponent strategies for BC screening and a group-based lifestyle intervention incorporating …

Evidence-Based Best Practice Toolkit For Social Determinants Of Health: A Program Evaluation Review, Bryleigh Berry

Student Scholarly Projects

Despite an increase in healthcare expenditure, racial and ethnic disparities remain a substantial concern among adult primary care patients in the United States. This is largely due to the focus on medical intervention and disregard for the underlying factors that contribute significantly to health outcomes such as economic stability, educational access and quality, healthcare access and quality, neighborhood and built environment, and social and community context. The PICOT question that guided this program evaluation review project is: In adult clients seeking care at a primary care clinic (P), how does a SDOH toolkit based on the CDC framework (I) compared …

The Mission System: An Electronic Health Record For Medical Treatment In Guatemala, Tawniece M. Curry

Dissertations

Abstract

Problem: The introduction of an electronic health record (EHR) system has become an essential component in monitoring and tracking patient information in most developed countries but are difficult to implement in underdeveloped countries. Guatemala is a country with poor health care and limited resources for patient tracking and monitoring. An organization in Guatemala, Nursing Heart Inc. (NHI), provides care to over 40 underserved rural communities but lacks the ability to monitor and track patient information. In order for NHI to properly monitor and evaluate their programs and track patients’ continuity of care, the introduction of an EHR system is …

Is There A Bias Toward Unvaccinated Covid-19 Patients?, Abbas B. Jama, Anwar Khedr, Hisham Mushtaq, Nitesh K. Jain, Thoyaja Koritala, Syed Anjum Khan

HCA Healthcare Journal of Medicine

With more than 22% of the United States still not vaccinated for COVID-19, we are trying to shed some light on whether there is any bias when treating unvaccinated COVID-19 patients. We highlight several reports where some individuals or organizations displayed possible bias, whether implicit or explicit. We examine the legal and ethical implications of these biases and offer a general overview of how to tackle them.

Rowan Community Health Center’S Ask First Model: Building Authentic & Impactful Community Relationships By Asking A Simple Question, Patrick J. Tempera, Christian Diliberto, Ruchi Shah, Daniel Hurst

Cooper Rowan Medical Journal

Spring of 2017, Rowan University School of Osteopathic Medicine’s student-run free clinic, the Rowan Community Health Center, launched an outreach initiative named the Unity Project. This is an ongoing initiative aimed at fostering relationships with Camden, New Jersey organizations to both educate community members about our clinic services and collaborate on improving Camden’s health. The objective of the Unity Project is to work towards affecting long-term change by forming authentic and impactful relationships with organizations that are already participating in meaningful community work. In order to achieve such a goal, we needed to overcome the traditional model of medical school …

Investigating The Covid-19 Pandemic In Your Community, Tanzina Ahmed

Open Educational Resources

In this writing assignment, students will conduct research on statistics about COVID-19 in New York City and their embedded communities using free online databases from the New York City Department of Health (NYC DOH). For questions 1, 2, 3, and 4, students will conduct research on COVID-19 statistics within NYC and their specific neighborhood/community in New York City. In questions 5 and 6, students will analyze the data you have gathered while using your own knowledge of your community. A full set of instructions for accessing NYC DOH databases and a complete rubric for grading the assignment is included.

Understanding Changes In Mortality With Implementation Of Safe Injection Sites, Shubh Bhambri

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

The purpose of this study is to analyze mortality due to overdose in areas that have implemented supervised injection sites and understand what factors these facilities affect that can lead to a change in outcomes.

Sexual Coercion, Unintended Pregnancy, And Poor Reproductive Health Among Adolescent Girls (Aged 13 - 19) In Mexico, Arun Kumar Acharya, Maria Luisa Martinez

Dignity: A Journal of Analysis of Exploitation and Violence

In Mexico, nearly 23,000 adolescents between the ages of 12-17 years suffer sexual coercion every year. This group also has a high birth rate of 77/1,000 adolescents, which indicates that one in every five pregnant women is an adolescent. This study describes the sexual coercion of victims and their views regarding the experience based on data collected from 37 Mexican girls between the age of 13 to 19, selected purposively using the snowball method in Monterrey city, Mexico. Results indicate that sexual coercion among adolescents is a serious problem, where 70% of adolescents experienced vaginal sexual coercion, nearly 22% experienced …

Implementation Of A Drive-Through Covid-19 Mass Vaccination Site: Experiences From Louvax–Broadbent In Louisville, Kentucky, Ruth Carrico, Sarah Beth Hartlage, Valenchia Brown Msn, Aprn, Fnp-C, Sarah M. Bishop, Luanne Didelot, William Hayden, Beverly Williams Coleman, Sarah Tan, Delanor Manson, Kellie Kane, Dawn Balcom, Paul Kern

The University of Louisville Journal of Respiratory Infections

Background: Response to the COVID-19 pandemic has required innovative approaches to vaccination, including methods to rapidly and safely immunize communities. A major challenge to such a response involved access to untapped healthcare worker resources. The Louisville, Kentucky, response involved the use of a large volunteer workforce to supplement local public health employees in planning and implementing a large-scale drive-through vaccination event. The objective of this manuscript was to outline processes involved in training a mass immunization workforce and implementating a large-scale COVID-19 community vaccination.

Approach: Competency-based and standardized training was provided for every volunteer before working their shift. Volunteers worked …

Queer Survival Amidst Hiv/Aids, Covid-19 And Homelessness, Julia Young

Pitzer Senior Theses

The treatment and survival of a society's marginalized peoples reveal the true impacts of a pandemic. An analysis of homeless queer youth during the HIV/AIDS and SARS-CoV-2 crises lays bare the systemic failure of the United States government to provide equitable healthcare.

I compare the HIV/AIDS and COVID-19 pandemics in queer homeless youth to demonstrate the dangers of disease moralization via a sociocultural analyses of disease stigma and responsibility politics. Utilizing syndemic theory I draw on the synergistic relationship between disease and illness to describe the unique challenges queer homeless youth face. A syndemic framework is applied to address common …

The Program To Reduce Implicit Bias In Carroll Hospital Center Using The Implicit Association Test, Katherine E. Traynor

Capstone Showcase

Natural brain processes make all individuals susceptible to unconscious bias; however, stressful, fearful, or anger-evoking situations as well as the negative influence of media and social surroundings increase the risk of holding obstructive bias, and there is a greater risk of being negatively impacted by this phenomenon when belonging to a minority population (Rose & Flores, 2020). As a result, high rates of infant mortality (10.2 deaths per 1,000 live births for the Non-Hispanic Black population compared to 4.1 in the White population) and cardiovascular related diseases (190.0 cases per 1,000 in the Non-Hispanic Black population compared to 161.3 in …

Pain That Only She Must Bear: On The Invisibility Of Women In Judicial Abortion Rhetoric, Francesca Laguardia

Department of Justice Studies Faculty Scholarship and Creative Works

The graphic and bodily facts of a legal question of rights are relevant to the courts, particularly in questions that directly implicate physical bodies and pain, such as right to die cases, or what level of search may be allowable and when. However, in the case of abortion, or more specifically the bodily ramifications of pregnancy and childbirth, this detail is conspicuously absent. This article, relying on a content analysis of over 220 legal opinions on abortion rights, documents this absence of rhetoric. Particularly in the context of other discussions of pain and physical health risks in these very same …

Disparities In Covid-19 Rates Among Various Demographics And Lack Of Racial Representation In Medical Texts, Diangelo Gonzalez

Celebration of Learning

The 2019 novel coronavirus (COVID-19) outbreak, which originated in Wuhan, China in December of 2019, has impacted nations all over the globe. Given the health disparities which existed within the United States prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, this pandemic continued to pose a significant challenge to the health of the public. The aims of this research study were twofold: (1) to analyze the incidence rates of COVID-19 among different racial and ethnic groups within the United States and (2) to describe the occurrence of diversity within medical texts. Overall, the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated health disparities within the United States. Understanding …

Use Of Telehealth In Home-Based End-Of-Life Care For Children In Rural Regions, Meaghann S. Weaver

Theses & Dissertations

A national shortage in pediatric-trained providers results in certain geographies, primarily rural, where children with special needs are not able to access home-based care at their end-of-life. Advances in technology have made the use of telemedicine a potential modality for palliative care subspecialty clinicians to provide clinical care and support for adult-trained hospice teams. This dissertation utilizes four approaches to consider telehealth as an unexplored opportunity in care delivery: (1) a systematic review of telehealth measures and instruments to select the Technology Acceptance Model as a validated metric of telehealth acceptance uniquely now applied to pediatric care; (b) a pilot …

Exploring Provider Perspectives To Understand How To Best Inform Patients In South Dakota, Isabelle M. Lehman

Honors Thesis

Patients in rural areas are more likely to experience worse health outcomes than patients in urban or suburban areas. The reasons for this discrepancy are multi-faceted, including inequities in resources and access, as well as differences in the environment. Rural providers understand what education and resources patients are missing as they often interact with patients in multiple contexts. We interviewed rural providers and performed an inductive thematic content analysis of the interviews to shed some insight into what information rural patients would need to be better healthcare advocates for themselves. Three themes emerged from the interview data: health education, access, …

Breastfeeding Education Support Tool For Baby (Best4baby): Feasibility, Acceptability, And Preliminary Impact Of An Mhealth Supported Breastfeeding Peer Counselor Intervention In Rural India, Parth D. Lalakia, Vanessa L. Short, Roopa M. Bellad, Patricia J. Kelly, Yukiko Washio, Tony Ma, Katie Chang, Niranjana Majantashetti, Umesh S. Charantimath, Frances J. Jaeger, Shivaprasad S. Goudar, Richard J. Derman

Rowan-Virtua Research Day

Objective: To evaluate the feasibility of an mHealth-supported breastfeeding peer counselor intervention implemented in rural India and the preliminary impact of the intervention on maternal breastfeeding behaviors, including exclusive breastfeeding (EBF).

Methods: In this quasi-experimental pilot study, participants received either the intervention plus usual care (n = 110) or usual care alone (n = 112). The intervention group received nine in-home visits during and after pregnancy from peer counselors who provided education about and support for EBF and other optimal infant feeding practices and were aided with an mHealth tool. The control group received routine prenatal and postnatal health education. …

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 …

Spoken Barriers: The Effects Of Spanish-English Interpretation Within The United States Health System, Michelle Lounsbery

Honors Program: Senior Projects (Public)

In recent times the prevalence of the Spanish language in the United States has been on a steady incline, and the language barrier created between patients and providers is only growing. Studies display a direct relationship between communication barriers formed by insufficient interpretation methods and negative patient outcomes due to a lack of understanding. This study will evaluate of the effects of Spanish-English interpretation in the United States health system as well as review the significance of direct patient-provider communication and how to improve these methods. Research methods will involve the use of other accredited academic literature and studies, as …

The Silence Of Food Insecurity: Disconnections Between Primary Care And Community Organizations, Nicole K. Runkle, David A. Nelson

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

Purpose: Food insecurity is a prominent issue in the United States, and it is well established that food insecurity is linked to health and chronic illnesses. Studies show that screening for food insecurity is not yet part of standardized practice among all primary care physicians, nor are care providers comfortable with how to proceed with a patient who presents with this issue. Food insecurity is often handled by community-based organizations (CBOs) such as food pantries. Family medicine and pediatric clinics (FMPC) and CBOs hold unique relationships with their clients and can benefit from partnerships with each other to improve health …

Implementación De Políticas De Prevención Y Control De La Obesidad Infantil En Estados Unidos Y Latinoamérica: Lecciones Para La Investigación Y La Práctica Transfronterizas, Mireya Vilar-Compte, Rafael Perez-Escamilla, Elizabeth Rhodes, Olga L. Sarmiento, Camila Corvalan, Rachel Sturke, Susan Vorkoper

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

Aunque se han hecho avances en el desarrollo y aplicación a gran escala de inter-venciones eficaces contra la obesidad infantil, los retos siguen siendo importantes. Nuestro objetivo era comprender las causas del éxito de Estados Unidos y los países latinoamericanos en la implementación de políticas y programas (PYP) contra la obe-sidad e identificar oportunidades de mejora aplicando los principios de la ciencia de la implementación. Seleccionamos tres estudios de comparación de casos: (1) el etique-tado frontal en los envases de alimentos (México y Chile), (2) los programas de calles abiertas y calles para el juego (Colombia y Estados Unidos) y …

Green Prescriptions – Prescribing Lifestyle Modification To Combat A Silent Pandemic., Jonathan Guajardo

MEDI 9331 Scholarly Activities Clinical Years

Obesity is a well-known modifiable risk factor that contributes to the development of atherosclerosis. In the Rio Grande Valley, a region located in southern Texas, the rate of obesity rises to 47%, compared to 44% in the US. [4] Obesity is largely driven by poor diet and lack of physical activity and poor compliance/adherence to dietary and physical activity recommendations. [4] We seek to gauge the effect of green prescriptions, prescribed lifestyle modification, on compliance in the RGV population. Selected patients will receive a pre- and post-survey for subjective measures and be given a workout regimen according to exercise history. …

Treading Water: Coping With Uncertainty During A Novel Pandemic, Sachin Patel

Patient Experience Journal

The abruptness with which the COVID-19 pandemic has changed the delivery of healthcare will have a lasting effect on patients and families of intensive care unit survivors. Using the best science and epidemiology healthcare systems developed protocols and policies to implement the highest level of care but mitigate disease spread. Out of these initiatives the “no visitor” policy was born. The impact of COVID-19 causing florid respiratory failure immediately derailed the lives of a happily retired couple. While on mechanical ventilation for sixteen days, Betty was unable to connect with her husband of over 40 years. In that time, the …

Solutions To Address Frequent Hospital Attendance, Glenda Sundberg

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

In this editorial, practical solutions and considerations in helping the most complex and at-risk patients in our health systems are discussed. These patients, sometimes referred to as health care “super-utilizers” in the literature, tend to be frequently seen and cared for in costly hospital and emergency department settings. Innovative care models that aim to bridge system gaps, achieve better health outcomes, and improve the well-being of both patients and providers are needed and should continue to be explored.