Public Health Commons^™

Quantifying The Impact Of Chronic Stress On Racial Disparities In Cardiovascular Disease, Nnadozie Emechebe

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Background: Despite declining mortality in cardiovascular diseases (CVD), racial disparities between non-Hispanic Blacks (NHB) and to non-Hispanic Whites (NHW) persist. Although the prevalence of traditional risk factors of CVD such as hypertension, is higher in NHB compared to NHW, adjusting for this difference does not eliminate the disparity completely. This suggests other factors might explain the persisting disparities. Thus, the purpose of this dissertation is to quantify the impact of chronic stress in explaining the racial disparities in cardiovascular diseases (CVD). This dissertation contains three studies that addressed the following Specific Aims: Specific aims: 1) To create and assess the …

A Review Of American College Campus Tobacco Or Smoke Free Policies: A Case Study Of A Large Urban University, Sarah E. Powell

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Objective: A year after a tobacco free policy was passed, the University of South Florida (USF) was interested in the overall policy opinions and efficacy. To assess this a project was completed that included a survey and geospatial data. The survey measured tobacco policy enforcement behavior and a geographic information system (GIS) mapped tobacco policy violation. This project introduces an evaluation process that can efficiently assess an institutions tobacco-free policy. Methods: Using a cross-sectional survey sent to students, faculty, and staff, understanding of policy and resources, tobacco use observations, stage of change regarding policy enforcement, self-efficacy to enforce, and perceived …

On The Importance Of Context: Examining The Applicability Of Infertility Insurance Mandates In The United States Using A Mixed-Methods Study Design, Nathanael B. Stanley

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Accessibility of infertility services is disproportionately experienced in the United States. Although there exist state-based health insurance mandates for infertility services, these mandates contain language that disqualify people from using them. In order to better understand why these mandates are not able to reduce the financial burden and bridge the income disparity for using infertility services, the purpose of this study is to add context to the applicability of these insurance mandates through qualitative and quantitative inquiry. Using the Glass and McAtee model of risk regulators as an operational paradigm, this research explores the role of environmental context, or “place”, …

Evaluating Public Posting, Goal Setting, And Rewards To Increase Physical Activity In Children, Bryon G. Miller

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In Experiments 1 and 2 we evaluated a pedometer-based intervention consisting of public posting between two teams of students, with additional self-monitoring, goal setting, and reinforcement components, to increase physical activity during school recess. In the absence of self-monitoring, performance feedback alone did not increase physical activity levels above those observed during baseline. Additionally, higher levels of physical activity were observed when goal-setting was introduced, with the highest levels of activity observed when raffle tickets could be earned for exceeding a specified step-total goal. In Experiment 3 we removed the team component and evaluated similar intervention components across an entire …

Using Observations From The Uaw-Ford Ergonomic Assessment Tool To Predict Distal Upper Extremity Musculoskeletal Disorders, Zachariah T. Brandes-Powell

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Distal upper extremity (DUE) musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs) affect thousands of workers annually. Job tasks can have a significant amount of MSD risk depending on the presence of certain risk factors The UAW-Ford Ergonomic Surveillance Tool (EST) is a method specifically designed for the UAW and Ford Motor Company to assess MSD risk in its facilities. The purpose of this report is to evaluate which risk factors in the UAW-Ford EST predict the risk of developing DUE MSDs. Data collected by a previous study on four UAW-Ford automotive manufacturing plants were analyzed. Target jobs were selected based on associated First Time …

Using Observations From The Uaw-Ford Ergonomic Assessment Tool To Predict Low Back Musculoskeletal Disorders, Colins Nwafor

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Musculoskeletal disorders of the low back are common injuries found in many work environments. Some of the risk factors that workers experience include the weight of object being lifted during a task, frequency, duration, posture, distance the object is lifted, how well the worker can grasp the object, and the degree to which the worker may have to twist and turn their body during a lift. There are many tools that have been developed that are used to assess risk of a worker developing low back pain. The purpose of this study is to determine if the UAW-Ford Ergonomic Surveillance …

The Role Of Threat And Efficacy In Anti-Vaping Ads: A Test Of The Extended Parallel Process Model, Ryan Noone

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Often thought of as a safer alternative to traditional cigarettes, electronic cigarette use among youth and young adults has steadily increased over the past 10 years. With over 34 percent of high school students and over 7.8 percent of young adults using electronic cigarettes, organizations like the CDC and the FDA have created campaigns and advertisements to combat the epidemic (Truth Initiative). This study uses a 2x2 between subject factoral experiment to gain insights into how varying levels of anti-vaping advertisements’ threat and efficacy elements effect college age students’ perceptions and behaviors towards e-cigarettes. While several of the study’s hypotheses …

Do Similar Exposure Groups (Seg) Differ From Air Force Base To Air Force Base? A Combat Arms Training And Maintenance (Catm) Noise Exposure Comparison Of Moody Afb And Macdill Afb., Miriam F. Escobar

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Noise is a common hazard for the military. The Department of Defense has set an Occupational Exposure Limit for noise at 85 dBA. The Air Force manages exposures using similar exposure groups (SEGs) which are formed at each Air Force Base. The purpose of this study was to compare the noise levels in SEGs in two Air Force bases across distance and time, and to review the effectiveness of the Air Force Hearing Conservation Program over distance and time. The SEGs chosen were Combat Arms Training and Maintenance (CATM) at Moody Air Force Base and MacDill Air Force Base because …

Non-Invasive Sex Determination And Genotyping Of Transgenic Brugia Malayi Larvae, Santiago E. Hernandez Bojorge

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Lymphatic filariasis is a very painful and disfiguring helminth disease caused by the tissue nematodes Wuchereria bancrofti, Brugia malayi, and Brugia timori. This parasitosis is considered a Neglected Tropical Disease and it is a major public health burden for 72 tropical countries of Africa, Southeast Asia, the Caribbean, and South America. Despite the effectiveness of many control programs, there remains the need to develop new pharmacological agents to treat lymphatic filariasis, as most programs rely on a limited variety of drugs that are expensive, logistically difficult to obtain, and can lead to drug resistance. The Clustered Regularly Interspaced Short Palindromic …

‘It’S Been A Huge Stress’: An In-Depth, Exploratory Study Of Vaccine Hesitant Parents In Southern California, Mika Kadono

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In 2015, the US experienced a widespread measles outbreak that originated at Disneyland, California and spread to six other states, Mexico, and Canada. That year, California passed Senate Bill 277 (SB 277), which eliminated the personal belief exemption for vaccinations required for school entry; California became the third state in the country to eliminate nonmedical exemptions. In 2019, Washington, Maine, and New York followed suit eliminating all nonmedical exemptions amid the largest measles outbreak in the US in 25 years. Many countries, including the US, are experiencing a rise in vaccine preventable diseases due, in part, to increasing vaccine hesitancy, …

“They Will Think We Are The Cancer Family”: Studying Patterns Of Cancer Disclosure And Communication Among Indian Immigrants In The United States, Kanan Mehta

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Studies of Indian immigrants in Western countries show that the rates of cancer increase significantly within a generation in the host country. The negative social perceptions associated with health outcomes of cancer often perpetuate limited disclosure regarding the diagnosis of cancer among patients and families. This can result in disrupted communication in clinical settings, while causing increased stress among patients and caregivers. These findings demonstrate the need for studying lived experiences of cancer-related illness and its impacts on social relationships in the domestic and public sphere.

This study explored cancer disclosure and communication among Indian immigrants in the United States …

Differences In Knowledge Acquisition, Perceived Engagement And Self-Efficacy In Latino Promotores Delivering The Heart Disease Prevention Program Su Corazόn, Su Vida, Samuel Matos-Bastidas

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Su Corazόn, Su Vida (Your Heart, Your Life) is a community-based, small-group health intervention designed to empower Latinos to enhance cardiovascular disease awareness and initiate enduring lifestyle changes to improve health outcomes and quality of life. Originally developed to be delivered in weekly sessions in Spanish or English language, it addresses several heart disease risk factors including unhealthy eating habits, poor physical activity, high cholesterol, overweight, metabolic syndrome, diabetes and tobacco smoking, among others. Instructors use diverse learning and support strategies such as group discussion, role modeling, problem-solving, health action planning, and self-monitoring. Participants help each other to stay on …

Governmentality, Biopower, And Sexual Citizenship: A Feminist Examination Of Sexual And Reproductive Healthcare Experiences Of 18-24 Year-Olds In The U.S. Southeast, Melina K. Taylor

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Sexual and reproductive healthcare in the U.S. is a contentious and often stigmatized topic. Conservative politics and Christian religious ideology guide laws and policies that inform narratives of sexual citizenship that promote white, heterosexual, procreative, cis-gendered relationships as the ideal. For young people, exposure to sexuality education greatly influences their self-identity as sexual citizens and guides how they form intimate relationships. While sexual and reproductive healthcare has been included marginally in the discipline of anthropology, almost no research has focused on young people’s sexual and reproductive healthcare within the U.S.

This dissertation examines the viewpoints and experiences of 18-24 year-old …

The Development And Testing Of The Genetic Counseling Communication Checklist (Gcc): A Novel Process Measure, Katherine N. Hehmeyer

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Given that genetic counseling (GC) is a discipline that relies on communication to help people understand and adapt to the genetic contribution of disease, a practical method of comprehensively documenting GC communication strategies is needed to better understand the communication strategies utilized by genetic counselors and the variability that exists within the process. To this end, we created a novel process measure called the Genetic Counseling Communication Checklist (GCC), utilizing previously validated measures, communication/counseling theories, and research findings. Two researchers independently coded six video-taped mock GC sessions using the GCC. Following each session, the GCC was further modified to improve …

The Role Of Financial Insecurity And Expectations On Perspectives Of Mental Health Services Among Refugees, Jacqueline M. Siven

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines how perspectives of mental health among refugees are situated within the realities of the refugee resettlement system, a population for which information on this issue is quite limited. Through in-depth interviews and participant observation with Congolese refugees and non-Congolese refugee-serving professionals in a major Florida city, this dissertation examines how perceptions of mental health and mental health services among refugees were affected by financial insecurity and disparities in expectations. Local Congolese refugees expected the American Dream; they believed that once they arrived they would find prosperity through hard work. Instead they experienced frustration and distress because the …

Does Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Increases The Risk Of Preeclampsia Among Primigravid Women?, Astha Kakkad

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and preeclampsia are serious complications of pregnancy which are associated with both short- and long-term adverse health outcomes for the mother as well as the fetus. The increase in prevalence of these conditions has become a major public health concern. The purpose of this study is to examine the association and risk imposed by GDM for preeclampsia in primigravid women. This descriptive study was conducted using data retrieved from the electronic medical records of a large integrated health system in Florida. The data for this analysis included pregnancy records for patients at least 18 years of …

Exploration Of Factors Associated With Perceptions Of Community Safety Among Youth In Hillsborough County, Florida: A Convergent Parallel Mixed-Methods Approach, Yingwei Yang

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: Youth perceived safety is not only linked to crime and violence in a neighborhood but is also associated with health risk behaviors and certain neighborhood characteristics. The purpose of this mixed-methods study was to measure the co-occurring effects of individual and community risk factors by conducting a secondary data analysis using structural equation modeling (SEM) and to explore reasons for youth feeling safe/unsafe in their community using photovoice methodology.

Methods: Syndemic theory/model served as the theoretical framework to guide this mixed-methods study with a convergent parallel design. The quantitative strand (first manuscript) utilized an existing dataset collected from middle …

Identifying Barriers And Facilitators To Improve Hepatitis C Virus Screening, Linh M. Duong

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Background: Birth cohort hepatitis C Virus (HCV) screening recommendations were issued by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and United States Preventive Services Task Force (USPSTF) in 2012 and 2013, respectively. Despite this, studies have reported low HCV screening rates. Currently, the prevalence of HCV screening rates nationally is unknown and there are no in-depth studies that have evaluated the barriers or facilitators of HCV screening. Our study aimed to fill this gap by 1) conducting a systematic literature review to assess the national HCV screening prevalence, 2) evaluating temporal trends in HCV screening using a large academic …

Adolescent Asthma And School Disparities: An Ecological Perspective Of Students And Stakeholders, Tali Schneider

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Asthma is a chronic condition that mainly affects adolescents. Recent reports from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) indicate a gradual increase in rates of lifetime asthma among adolescents from 17.1% in 2005 to 22.8% in 2015. Currently, one in ten adolescents nation-wide experience active asthma; similar trends are seen in the state of Florida (Florida Asthma Program, 2013; Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Prevention, 2015). As a chronic, lifelong condition, asthma can be life-threatening if not properly controlled. When exacerbated, attacks of asthma constrict airways, leading to restrained breathing, wheezing, coughing and chest pain (Parulekar, Alobaidy, …