Mental and Social Health Commons^™

Clinician Perspectives On Fistula Mental Health, Victoria K. Leonard

Doctoral Dissertations

Background – Obstetric fistula is a childbirth injury caused by prolonged labor that leads to stillbirth and incontinence, spurring social exclusion and isolation. These layers of trauma put women with fistula at great risk for psychological suffering, which has profound negative socioeconomic impacts on them, their families, and communities. This study captured treatment as usual at Comprehensive Community Based Rehabilitation in Tanzania (CCBRT), the country’s largest provider of fistula care.

Method – Improving holistic fistula treatment requires engaging the clinicians who care for women with fistula. This study aimed to investigate the training, beliefs, and treatment approaches of nurses and …

Stress And Depression During Pregnancy Among Hispanic Women: Risk For Adverse Birth Outcomes And The Role Of Physical Activity, Kathleen Szegda

Doctoral Dissertations

Preterm birth and low birth weight are among the leading causes of infant mortality and morbidity in the United States. Puerto Rican women are at increased risk for these adverse birth outcomes and elevated levels of depression and psychosocial stress during pregnancy when compared to non-Hispanic Whites. Therefore, it is important to understand whether these psychological factors increase risk for these adverse birth outcomes and mechanisms to prevent/reduce depression in this high-risk population. The first study of this dissertation examined associations between perceived stress during pregnancy and preterm birth, low birth weight, and birth of a small-for-gestational age infant (SGA) …

Communication, Control, And Time: The Lived Experience Of Uncertainty In Adolescent Pregnancy, Elizabeth Dortch Dalton

Doctoral Dissertations

This study qualitatively examined the lived experience of uncertainty among pregnant adolescents. Utilizing a phenomenological approach, long interviews were conducted with 10 pregnant adolescent women between the ages of 15-18 years. Interviews were transcribed and analyzed using the process of phenomenological explication. Data, emergent themes, memos, and a detailed audit trail were maintained using the qualitative data analysis package Nvivo 10 for Mac (beta version). Findings can be summarized with eight themes that underlie the essence of uncertainty in adolescent pregnancy: suspicion and denial, disclosure and reactions, controlling the flow of information, relational renegotiation, the emerging reality of pregnancy, information …