Public Health Commons^™

The Primary Care Provider’S Role In Screening And Intervening In The Human Trafficking Of Adolescents: A Systematic Literature Review, Brittany Schmid

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Human trafficking (HT) is a growing concern within the United States (U.S.) and internationally. With the alarming number of HT victims presenting for medical care, primary care providers (PCPs) are in a unique and privileged position to encounter HT victims within the healthcare system. Adolescents, in particular, are vulnerable to HT because of minimal life experiences, inadequate social support, and limited coping mechanisms (Ertl et al., 2020). Failure to recognize and intervene in cases involving HT victims who are minors is detrimental to the individual’s health, wellbeing, and safety. With the assistance of education and training, community resources, guideline adoption, …

Factors Influencing Contraception Use In Sexual Minority Women: A Systematic Literature Review, Grace M. Hudson

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Contrary to widespread beliefs that lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, plus (LGBTQ+) women do not need contraceptive care, sexual minority women (SMW) engage in vaginal-penile sexual contact which puts them at risk for unintended pregnancy. SMW assigned female gender at birth are at higher risk for less reliable and consistent contraceptive use and thus unintended pregnancy (Everett et al., 2017). This leads to the question of factors which cause SMW to be less engaged in contraceptive services. Through synthesis of studies addressing SMW and contraceptives, four themes developed: attitudes towards contraception, obstacles to care, knowledge gaps, and ways to improve …

Choosing Between Medical Surveillance And Preventive Surgical Interventions Among Asymptomatic Brca Positive Women, Hillary Zupan

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Women with a known BRCA 1 or BRCA 2 genetic mutation are at an increased risk for the development of cancer, most commonly breast and uterine types. Risk reduction strategies to manage cancer risk include increased medical surveillance and various preventive surgeries. This is a deeply personal decision and one that is influenced by a variety of factors. The aim of this literature review is to identify the key factors impacting the decision-making process of a woman with a BRCA mutation and how a woman ultimately decides between the cancer risk management strategies. Six electronic databases were used to obtain …

Perceived Barriers And Facilitators To Cervical Cancer Screening In Asian American Women, Bouathong Thepsombath

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

The purpose of this systematic review is to explore barriers and facilitators of cervical cancer screening in Asian-American women. Articles selected for review were found using a database search method using select predetermined key terms. The clinical question this review sought to answer is: In Asian-American women (21-65 years of age), how does perception of cervical cancer screening impact screening compliance? Nine articles addressing the topic of interest were included in the review. Emerging themes related to answering the question under study included the health literacy of Asian-American women, modesty, acculturation, income comfortability, and self-efficacy. This review found information that …

Understanding The Implications Of Hpv Infection: Does Parental Education Impact Hpv Vaccination Completion Rates?, Heather A. Pederson

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Up to 80% of United States (U.S.) citizens will contract the human papillomavirus (HPV) at some point in their lives. HPV has the ability to cause multiple types of cancer, including cervical, vulvar, vaginal, penile, anal, and oropharyngeal. The most recent HPV vaccine is effective against nine strains of the virus, which account for most cases of cancer and genital warts caused by HPV. Parents are a key component in reaching Healthy People 2030’s goal to have 80% of all adolescents in the U.S. completely vaccinated against HPV. Objective: The purpose of this systematic review was to determine if …

The Impact Of Social Media On Teenage Females Self-Esteem, Amanda C. Perkovich

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Social media has become the way we connect with the world. Social networking sites, including Facebook, Instagram, Snapchat, Twitter and TikTok, allow users to share intimate details of their lives, upload photographs, initiate and maintain relationships, plan social gatherings, observe the lives of others and express beliefs, values and emotions. In the last ten years, numerous articles have focused on the relationship between social media use and mental health however, very few studies have concentrated on self-esteem, especially in teenage females. The purpose of this literature review is to explore the associations between increased social media activity (greater than 2 …

Evaluating Compassion Satisfaction And The Risk Of Compassion Fatigue Among Those Working At Non-Human Primate Sanctuaries And Wildlife Centers, Madalyn Rantala

All Master's Theses

Compassion fatigue, an occupational risk commonly associated with caregiving professions, can have adverse effects for individual employee wellbeing, organizational productivity, and the quality of care that patients receive. Within animal-care worker samples, previous research suggests that around 25 percent of employees are at a high risk of developing compassion fatigue (i.e., experiencing burnout and secondary traumatic stress concurrently). To my knowledge, this thesis is the first study to explore compassion fatigue within the primate sanctuary field. Thirty-nine eligible participants completed an online survey that probed professional quality of life via the ProQOL 5, perceived workplace support via the Trauma-Informed Organizational …

An Assessment Of Contamination Fingerprinting Techniques For Determining The Impact Of Domestic Wastewater Treatment Systems On Private Well Supplies, Chris Fennell, Bruce Misstear, David O'Connell, Donata Dubber, Patrice Behan, Martin Danaher, Mary Moloney, Laurence Gill

Articles

Private wells in Ireland and elsewhere have been shown to be prone to microbial contamination with the main suspected sources being practices associated with agriculture and domestic wastewater treatment systems (DWWTS). While the microbial quality of private well water is commonly assessed using faecal indicator bacteria, such as Escherichia coli, such organisms are not usually source-specific, and hence cannot definitively conclude the exact origin of the contamination. This research assessed a range of different chemical contamination fingerprinting techniques (ionic ratios, artificial sweeteners, caffeine, fluorescent whitening compounds, faecal sterol profiles and pharmaceuticals) as to their use to apportion contamination of private …

Seaweeds Polysaccharides In Active Food Packaging: A Review Of Recent Progress, Carina Dietz, Shubham Sharma, Amit Jaiswal, Swarna Jaiswal

Articles

Background

Due to its short lifetime, food packaging leads to a rapid accumulation of plastic in our surroundings and thereby also has a huge impact on environmental pollution. To reduce these effects and create a more sustainable approach towards food packaging, biodegradable and biobased polymers have been developed and are emerging on the market.

Scope and approach

This review provides the current state of research regarding active packaging and the incorporation of seaweed into food packaging. Further, it summarises the resulting consequences of the seaweed incorporation on mechanical, physical, thermal, antioxidant, antimicrobial, and chemical properties, as well as the release …

The Impact Of The Th17:Treg Axis On The Iga-Biome Across The Glycemic Spectrum, Heather T Essigmann, Kristi L Hoffman, Joseph F Petrosino, Goo Jun, David Aguilar, Craig L Hanis, Herbert L Dupont, Eric L Brown

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Secretory IgA (SIgA) is released into mucosal surfaces where its function extends beyond that of host defense to include the shaping of resident microbial communities by mediating exclusion/inclusion of respective microbes and regulating bacterial gene expression. In this capacity, SIgA acts as the fulcrum on which host immunity and the health of the microbiota are balanced. We recently completed an analysis of the gut and salivary IgA-Biomes (16S rDNA sequencing of SIgA-coated/uncoated bacteria) in Mexican-American adults that identified IgA-Biome differences across the glycemic spectrum. As Th17:Treg ratio imbalances are associated with gut microbiome dysbiosis and chronic inflammatory conditions such as …

N95 Respirator Reuse, Decontamination Methods, And Microbial Burden: A Randomized Controlled Trial, Zi Yang Jiang, Zhen Huang, Isaac Schmale, Eric L Brown, Michael C Lorenz, Scott J Patlovich, Karan Goswami, Hannah B Wilson, Jumah Ahmad, Ronda Alexander, William Bryan, Luke Burke, Martin J Citardi, Jose Elias, Tang Ho, Jack Jacob, Garren Low, Pedro Miramón, Aniruddha U Patki, William C Yao, Amber U Luong

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

PURPOSE: to evaluate the effectiveness and ease of N95 respirator decontamination methods in a clinic setting and to identify the extent of microbial colonization on respirators associated with reuse.

METHODS: In a prospective fashion, N95 respirators (n = 15) were randomized to a decontamination process (time, dry heat, or ultraviolet C light [UVC]) in outpatient clinics. Each respirator was re-used up to 5 separate clinic sessions. Swabs on each respirator for SARS-CoV-2, bacteria, and fungi were obtained before clinic, after clinic and post-treatment. Mask integrity was checked after each treatment (n = 68). Statistical analyses were performed to determine factors …

The Association Between Short-Term Emotion Dynamics And Cigarette Dependence: A Comprehensive Examination Of Dynamic Measures, Anne Buu, Zhanrui Cai, Runze Li, Su-Wei Wong, Hsien-Chang Lin, Wei-Chung Su, Douglas E Jorenby, Megan E Piper

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: The association between short-term emotion dynamics and long-term psychopathology has been well established in the psychology literature. Yet, dynamic measures for inertia and instability of negative and positive affect have not been studied in terms of their association with cigarette dependence. This study builds an important bridge between the psychology and substance use literatures by introducing these novel measures and conducting a comprehensive examination of such association with intervention implications.

METHODS: This study conducted secondary analysis on the data from a community sample of 136 dual users (e-cigarette + cigarette) and 101 exclusive smokers who completed both the two-week …

Addressing The Needs Of African American Grandparents: An Intersectionality Perspective, Dorothy Smith-Ruiz, Kendra Jason

The Journal of Sociology & Social Welfare

This study seeks to demonstrate the intersecting structural and compounding challenges African American custodial grandparents experience collectively, rather than as separate non-competing factors, which has been modeled in prior studies. Using a mixed-method research design, the study explored the challenges faced by African American and white custodial grandparents. These challenges included difficulties attaining different types of support, respite care, and programs for teens and special needs grandchildren. Results showed that caregiving challenges among African Americans were more pervasive than their White counterparts. These findings have significant implications for the development of intervention programs for custodial African American grandmothers and their …

Exploring The Hazards Of Scaling Up Clinical Data Analyses: A Drug Side Effect Discovery Case Report, Franck Diaz-Garelli, Todd R Johnson, Mohammad H Rahbar, Elmer V Bernstam

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

We assessed the scalability of pharmacological signal detection use case from a single-site CDW to a large aggregated clinical data warehouse (single-site database with 754,214 distinct patient IDs vs. multisite database with 49.8M). We aimed to explore whether a larger clinical dataset would provide clearer signals for secondary analyses such as detecting the known relationship between prednisone and weight. We found significant weight gain rate using the single-site data but not from using aggregated data (0.0104 kg/day, p

Determining Risk Factors That Affect Progression In Patients With Nonproliferative Diabetic Retinopathy, Dalbert J Chen, Jacky C Kuo, Alex J Wright, Alice Z Chuang, Wenyaw Chan, Robert M Feldman, Eric L Crowell

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

PURPOSE: to determine risk factors that affect nonproliferative diabetic retinopathy (NPDR) progression and establish a predictive model to estimate the probability of and time to progression in NPDR.

RESULTS: Two hundred thirty patients were included. Initially, 65 eyes (28.3%) had no retinopathy; 73 (31.7%) mild NPDR; 60 (26.1%) moderate NPDR; and 32 (13.9%) severe NPDR. Patients were followed for a mean of 5.8 years (±2.0 years; range 2.1-9.4 years). 164 (71.3%) eyes progressed during the follow-up. Time-independent risk factors affecting progression rate were age (hazard ratio (HR) = 0.99,

CONCLUSION: HbA1c level is a significant modifiable risk factor in controlling …

Utilization Of Target Lesion Heterogeneity For Treatment Efficacy Assessment In Late Stage Lung Cancer, Dung-Tsa Chen, Wenyaw Chan, Zachary J Thompson, Ram Thapa, Amer A Beg, Andreas N Saltos, Alberto A Chiappori, Jhanelle E Gray, Eric B Haura, Trevor A Rose, Ben Creelan

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

RATIONALE: Recent studies have discovered several unique tumor response subgroups outside of response classification by Response Evaluation Criteria for Solid Tumors (RECIST), such as mixed response and oligometastasis. These subtypes have a distinctive property, lesion heterogeneity defined as diversity of tumor growth profiles in RECIST target lesions. Furthermore, many cancer clinical trials have been activated to evaluate various treatment options for heterogeneity-related subgroups (e.g., 29 trials so far listed in clinicaltrials.gov for cancer patients with oligometastasis). Some of the trials have shown survival benefit by tailored treatment strategies. This evidence presents the unmet need to incorporate lesion heterogeneity to improve …

A Multivariable Model Of Parent Satisfaction, Pain, And Opioid Administration In A Pediatric Emergency Department, Candice D. Donaldson, Thomas W. Heyming, Louis Ehwerhemuepha, Brooke N. Jenkins, Michelle A. Fortier, William Feaster, Zeev N. Kain

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Introduction: Children and adolescents are not impervious to the unprecedented epidemic of opioid misuse in the United States. In 2016 more than 88,000 adolescents between the ages of 12–17 reported misusing opioid medication, and evidence suggests that there has been a rise in opioid-related mortality for pediatric patients. A major source of prescribed opioids for the treatment of pain is the emergency department (ED). The current study sought to assess the complex relationship between opioid administration, pain severity, and parent satisfaction with children’s care in a pediatric ED.

Methods: We examined data from a tertiary pediatric care facility. A health …

The Effect Of Quality Of Life On Cardiometabolic Risk Factors In Postmenopausal Women, Chavela Lynn Riotutar

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

Background: The emergence of cardiometabolic (CMD) indicators for Metabolic Syndrome (MetS) coincides with the decline in estrogen production during menopause and substantially increases development of cardiovascular disease (CVD) in women. Quality of life (QOL) encompasses physical, material, and social well-being. Research reveals a correlation between low QOL scores and CMD disease. Menopause significantly increases CMD risk, and may also lower QOL scores. Objective: To investigate the relationship between QOL and CMD risk in postmenopausal women. Method: Cisgender, postmenopausal women (age > 45 years) were recruited through emails to complete the online survey. Data collection included demographics, physical characteristics and activity level, …

The Interplay Of Policy, Behavior, And Socioeconomic Conditions In Early Covid-19 Epidemiology In Georgia, Mallory J. Harris, Ella Tessier-Lavigne, Erin Mordecai

Journal of the Georgia Public Health Association

Publishing Note: This article has been published in its peer-reviewed and accepted form as a post-print version. The fully formatted version of the article will be published on this record when it is available.

ABSTRACT

Background: As COVID-19 began to spread worldwide, local socioeconomic and health factors and nonpharmaceutical interventions may have affected epidemiological outcomes. To investigate the associations between public health orders, behavior, and population factors, and early epidemic dynamics, we investigated variation among counties in the U.S. state of Georgia. There, a large early outbreak occurred in March 2020 with varying levels of local nonpharmaceutical interventions prior to …

Structural Racism And Immigrant Health: Exploring The Association Between Wage Theft, Mental Health, And Injury Among Latino Day Laborers, Maria Eugenia Fernández-Esquer, Lynn N Ibekwe, Rosalia Guerrero-Luera, Yesmel A King, Casey P Durand, John S Atkinson

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Although wage theft has been discussed primarily as a labor and human rights issue, it can be conceptualized as an issue of structural racism with important consequences for immigrant health.

OBJECTIVES: The objectives of this study were to: 1) identify sociodemographic, employment, and stress-related characteristics that increase Latino day laborers' odds of experiencing wage theft; 2) assess the association between wage theft and serious work-related injury; 3) assess the association between wage theft and three indicators of mental health-depression, social isolation, and alcohol use-as a function of wage theft; and 4) assess serious work-related injury as a function of …

Grappling With Covid-19 By Imposing And Lifting Nonpharmaceutical Interventions In Sri Lanka: A Modeling Perspective, Mahesh Jayaweera, Chamath Dannongoda, Dilum Dilshan, Janith Dissanayake, Hasini Perera, Jagath Manatunge, Buddhika Gunawardana

Physics & Astronomy Faculty Publications

The imposition and lifting of non-pharmaceutical interventions (NPIs) to avert the COVID19 pandemic have gained popularity worldwide and will continue to be enforced until herd immunity is achieved. We developed a linear regression model to ascertain the nexus between the time-varying reproduction number averaged over a time window of six days (Rts) and seven NPIs: contact tracing, quarantine efforts, social distancing and health checks, hand hygiene, wearing of facemasks, lockdown and isolation, and health-related supports. Our analysis suggests that the second wave that emerged in Sri Lanka in early October 2020 continued despite numerous NPIs. The model indicates that the …

Applying Machine Learning Approaches To Suicide Prediction Using Healthcare Data: Overview And Future Directions, Edwin D Boudreaux, Elke Rundensteiner, Feifan Liu, Bo Wang, Celine Larkin, Emmanuel Agu, Samiran Ghosh, Joshua Semeter, Gregory Simon, Rachel E Davis-Martin

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

Objective: Early identification of individuals who are at risk for suicide is crucial in supporting suicide prevention. Machine learning is emerging as a promising approach to support this objective. Machine learning is broadly defined as a set of mathematical models and computational algorithms designed to automatically learn complex patterns between predictors and outcomes from example data, without being explicitly programmed to do so. The model's performance continuously improves over time by learning from newly available data.

Method: This concept paper explores how machine learning approaches applied to healthcare data obtained from electronic health records, including billing and claims data, can …

Impact Of Out-Of-Pocket Fees On Under-5 Infant Mortality In Cameroon, Amelie Olga Mafotsing Fopoussi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Health facilities in Cameroon charge fees for treatment and services, which can affect health outcomes for those unable to pay for services. Some studies have shown that the removal of user fees had a positive impact on child health outcomes in selected African countries. The aim of this quantitative, cross-sectional study was to understand whether there is a link between out-of-pocket expenses and under-5 mortality in Cameron. The study was guided by the social ecological framework. Secondary data from the 2011 Cameroon Demographic Health Survey were used in the study. Chi-square, binary logistic regression, and multicollinearity analyses were used to …

The Lived Experience Of African American Young Adult Men With Hiv And Self-Care Collaborative Management, Barbara A. Moore

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractAfrican American young adult (AAYA) men living with HIV often lack interventions that address the influence that HIV has on their quality of life, especially their relationships. Self-care collaborative management (SCCM) concerns related to disclosure and stigmatization complicate social, psychological, and SCCM behaviors. Intervention programs addressing these concerns should be based on relevant, accurate information, but this information is lacking for AAYAs. The purpose of this research was to explore and describe the lived experiences of male AAYAs with HIV and their use of SCCM. The study method was qualitative; Husserl’s transcendental phenomenology was the design. The individual family self-management …

Effectiveness Of Cancer Survivorship Plans On The Emotional, Psychosocial, And Physical Well-Being Of Breast Cancer Survivors, Amber Renee Purdie

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractCancer survivorship is essential for the longevity of all cancer survivors, and breast cancer survivorship has become the focus of public health organizations to help address the unmet needs of breast cancer survivors. This quantitative cross-sectional study explored the impact on the Quality of Life (QoL) and health outcomes of female breast cancer survivors in cancer survivorship programs or tertiary care. The ages of the survivors in the study sample ranged from 18 to 80, and all participants were at least 6 months into their cancer survivorship journey. Surveys used were the European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer’s …

Relationship Among Health Literacy Superstitious Beliefs And Self-Care Among Diabetic Patients In Warri, Nigeria, Nkemakolam Simpson Ukpabi

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

AbstractDiabetes imposes significant burdens in medical expenditures, medication use, outpatient visits, and treatment of its chronic complications. Self-care behaviors such as medication adherence and foot care have been shown to reduce hospitalizations and complications, and high health literacy levels have been positively associated with self-care adoption. However, the effect of superstition on this relationship has not been studied among diabetic patients in Warri, Nigeria. This study was conducted to determine the moderating effects of superstitious or cultural beliefs on the relationship between health literacy and self-care adoption among diabetes patients in Warri, Nigeria. A quantitative, observational, cross-sectional design guided this …

Predictors Of Hiv Testing Amongst Women Of Childbearing Age In Nigeria, Hassana Bashir Yakasai

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

HIV infection is still a public health issue in Nigeria. One of the sustainable development goal targets is to eliminate new HIV infections by the year 2030. Women of childbearing age are a vital group to focus on in eliminating new infections because HIV infection can be transmitted from women to their partners and their children. Nigeria accounts for about one-third of the cases of mother-to-child infections in the world. The purpose of this three manuscript dissertation was to investigate socioecological factors, demographic factors and knowledge of mother-to-child transmission of HIV infection (MTCT) as they relate to HIV testing in …

Access To Preventive Health Care Services And Effects On Health Outcomes For Hispanic Older Adults With Type 2 Diabetes, Shafa Al-Showk

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Despite elevated prevalence of diabetes among Hispanic, Hispanic older adults face challenges in self-control and management of their glucose levels, and they have less access to preventive health care services. The purpose of this retrospective quantitative cross-sectional study was to examine the associations between access to preventive health care services and Type 2 diabetes outcomes among Hispanic adults aged 65 years and older. The social-ecological model provided the framework for the study. The research question for this study examined the extent to which doctor visits, diabetes education and blood sugar checks correlate with HbA1c levels. Data were collected from 566 …

Social Support, Substance Use, And Mental Health Services Utilization Among African Americans, Thomas Symche Bendu

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Mental illness is more prevalent among African Americans than their Non-Hispanic White counterparts; however, this population is less inclined to receive behavioral treatment. The purpose of this study was to examine the association between perceived social support, substance use, and gender with mental health care services utilization among African Americans. The social ecological model and social support theory grounded this study. The research design was a quantitative cross-sectional analysis of the 2016 Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance Survey. The sample consisted of 486,3030 African American adults that represented the U.S. population using weighted estimates. The overall logistic regression models for the …

Experiences Of Married, First-Time Pregnant Adolescents When Seeking Care In Kano State, Yashua Alkali Hamza

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Kano State in Northern Nigeria has very high maternal mortality rates. Early marriage and early pregnancies between 15 to 18 years of age are two of the most significant factors in the high maternal mortality rates in Kano State. This phenomenological qualitative research study focused on young first-time mothers’ experiences of seeking care between the ages of 15 and 18. The study’s theoretical framework was the feminist theory of intersectionality. Colaizzi’s seven-step method was the means used for data analysis. This study found that young adolescent first-time pregnant women in Kano City faced significant barriers at home and in health …