Public Health Commons^™

Describing Trends In Virginia's Dentist And Dental Hygienist Workforce: Challenges And Opportunities, Shillpa Naavaal, Yetty Shobo, Barbara Hodgdon

Virginia Journal of Public Health

Purpose: Regular assessment of the dental workforce is essential to improve the population's oral health. This analysis aimed to understand the trends in the distribution of dentists and dental hygienists (DHs) in Virginia.

Methods: Annual survey data (2013-2022) of dentists and DHs from the Virginia Department of Health Professions Healthcare Workforce Data Center was used to examine the trends in provider distribution by age, gender, race/ethnicity, and geography across Virginia.

Results: In 2022, there were 5,720 dentists and 5,290 DH licensees in Virginia. In the dentist workforce, there was a high representation of those aged ≥60 years (23%), males (58%), …

Determinants Of Implementation For Group Medical Visits For Patients With Chronic Pain: A Systematic Review, Isabel Roth, Malik Tiedt, Carrie Brintz, Ariana Thompson-Lastad, Gayla Ferguson, Erum Agha, Jennifer Holcomb, Paula Gardiner, Jennifer Leeman

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Despite the critical need for comprehensive and effective chronic pain care, delivery of such care remains challenging. Group medical visits (GMVs) offer an innovative and efficient model for providing comprehensive care for patients with chronic pain. The purpose of this systematic review was to identify barriers and facilitators (determinants) to implementing GMVs for adult patients with chronic pain.

METHODS: The review included peer-reviewed studies reporting findings on implementation of GMVs for chronic pain, inclusive of all study designs. Pubmed, EMBASE, Web of Science, and Cochrane Library were searched. Studies of individual appointments or group therapy were excluded. The Mixed …

Prediction Of Disease-Free Survival For Precision Medicine Using Cooperative Learning On Multi-Omic Data, Georg Hahn, Dmitry Prokopenko, Julian Hecker, Sharon M Lutz, Kristina Mullin, Leinal Sejour, Winston Hide, Ioannis Vlachos, Stacia Desantis, Rudolph E Tanzi, Christoph Lange

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

In precision medicine, both predicting the disease susceptibility of an individual and forecasting its disease-free survival are areas of key research. Besides the classical epidemiological predictor variables, data from multiple (omic) platforms are increasingly available. To integrate this wealth of information, we propose new methodology to combine both cooperative learning, a recent approach to leverage the predictive power of several datasets, and polygenic hazard score models. Polygenic hazard score models provide a practitioner with a more differentiated view of the predicted disease-free survival than the one given by merely a point estimate, for instance computed with a polygenic risk score. …

Improved Pediatric Icu Mortality Prediction For Respiratory Diseases: Machine Learning And Data Subdivision Insights, Johayra Prithula, Muhammad E H Chowdhury, Muhammad Salman Khan, Khalid Al-Ansari, Susu M Zughaier, Khandaker Reajul Islam, Abdulrahman Alqahtani

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

The growing concern of pediatric mortality demands heightened preparedness in clinical settings, especially within intensive care units (ICUs). As respiratory-related admissions account for a substantial portion of pediatric illnesses, there is a pressing need to predict ICU mortality in these cases. This study based on data from 1188 patients, addresses this imperative using machine learning techniques and investigating different class balancing methods for pediatric ICU mortality prediction. This study employs the publicly accessible "Paediatric Intensive Care database" to train, validate, and test a machine learning model for predicting pediatric patient mortality. Features were ranked using three machine learning feature selection …

Knowledge, Health Beliefs, And Attitudes Toward Dementia Risk Reduction Among Rural Older Adults: A Qualitative Study, Jayanti Ray

Walden Dissertations and Doctoral Studies

Dementia, characterized by compromised memory, reasoning, and problem-solving, is one of the major health concerns for older adults in rural areas. Literature has indicated that there are gaps in knowledge about what older adults in rural communities know about dementia and its risk factors. The purpose of this qualitative study was to explore the knowledge, health beliefs, and attitudes toward dementia and its risk factors among older adults in rural areas. This study aimed to determine gaps in older adults’ knowledge of dementia and its risk factors and to identify their understanding of lifestyle factors and strategies that were likely …

Exploring The Lived Experiences Of Rural Texas School Counselors Working With Students’ Mental Health After The Covid-19 Pandemic, Lanessa K. Allman

Doctoral Dissertations and Projects

The purpose of this qualitative descriptive phenomenological study was to describe the lived experiences of rural Texas counselors when working with students’ mental health in the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic. The study aims to answer questions of what school counselors describe as the mental health environment for students in rural Texas schools prior, during, and after the COVID-19 pandemic and the changes in the mental health environment of rural students. Most existing research has been focused on how COVID-19 changed school counselors’ roles and responsibilities and how the pandemic affected students’ mental health. The current study concentrated on the …

Assessing Health Needs In A Dominican Republic Community During An Interprofessional Service-Learning Trip, Gabriela Andonie, Hanna Rotundo, Ashanti Jones, Logan Dugas, Shylon Francis

Journal of Interprofessional Practice and Collaboration

Purpose: International medical missions may increase access to medicines and care, but international teams must understand local needs to implement appropriate services. In 2023, a multidisciplinary team from our institution partnered with a nonprofit organization in the barrio of Cienfuegos, Dominican Republic with the goal of strengthening local health services. The primary objective of this study was to identify health-related needs in Cienfuegos from the perspective of community members and local health care workers.

Methods: A qualitative study was conducted as part of a service-learning initiative. After obtaining informed consent, the investigators conducted individual semi-structured interviews facilitated by multi-lingual interpreters. …

The Covid-19 Vaccine Challenge Innovation Sprint: The Utility Of Active Learning In Fostering Interdisciplinary Collaboration In The Hypothetical Development Of A Covid-19 Vaccination Campaign, Jennifer Shaffer Foster, Gabriel N. Attallah, Ritika Bhajiawala, Steven J. Gabriel, Ray Huang, Parveen Attai, Maisha Rahman, Maia Weiss, Sadia M. Rifah, Oluwademilade Daniel Aguda, Dean S. Seneca, Lina Mu

The SUNY Journal of the Scholarship of Engagement: JoSE

In this paper, we discuss the design, goals, and outcome of the COVID-19 Vaccine Challenge Innovation Sprint, which provided an extracurricular, active learning opportunity for undergraduate and graduate students in Fall 2020. The design of the competition drew elements from both innovation sprints, commonly employed in technology and entrepreneurship, and global health case competitions which are largely used in academic settings. Interdisciplinary, multi-level teams of students were tasked with advancing an equitable (and at the time, hypothetical) COVID-19 immunization program with the goal of reaching as many people as possible in the region surrounding the university. We provide student participants’ …

Occupational Fatality Surveillance Data: Communication Issues, Misunderstandings, And Misuses, Roger C. Jensen

Safety Health & Industrial Hygiene

Every occupational fatality is a tragedy for the person, family, fellow employees, and the employer. Efforts for preventing these deaths involve a multi-faceted approach, one of which is tracking the cases in order to increase understanding of the circumstances involved in the fatal incident. In the United States, the Bureau of Labor Statistics maintains an extensive collection of data on occupational fatalities and publishes the information in multi-page spreadsheets. When properly used, fatality data can be useful for setting research priorities and documenting the importance of particular fatality-related subject matter. For justifying research on prevention, the most useful data involves …

The Use And Effectiveness Of Diet And Physical Activity As Interventions For Polycystic Ovary Syndrome. A Review., Caroline C. Jones, Jinkyung Park

The Corinthian

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome (PCOS) is a hormonal disorder that is common among women who are of reproductive age, most commonly in ages between 15 and 44 years of age (Moran et al., 2010). While the exact cause of PCOS is unknown, it is widely believed by many experts that genetic factors including excess levels of insulin and excess androgen are attributing factors (Moran et al., 2010) . Women with PCOS experience several different signs and symptoms including; infrequent or prolonged menstrual periods leading to infertility and the development of cysts (Iatrakis et al., 2006). Some other common symptoms of PCOS …

Urgent Care Program Influences On An Integrated Health Care System, Craig H. Carter

Dissertations and Theses

The Veterans Health Administration (VHA) is the most extensive integrated health care delivery system in the world with over 20,000 physicians, 1,600 facilities, and more than 400,000 employees, caring for nine million veterans. The health care provided covers traditional outpatient and hospital-based services such as primary care, surgery, critical care, mental health, orthopedics, pharmacy, radiology, and physical therapy. Most VHA facilities offer additional medical and surgical specialties such as audiology, speech pathology, dermatology, dental, geriatrics, urology, oncology, podiatry, prosthetics, and vision care. Some of the more extensive VHA facilities offer advanced health care services, such as organ transplants and plastic …

Mainehealth Cancer Care Network Ticket Intake Process, Lauren Couture, Brett Cropp, Gavin Carr, Ashok Kunche, Heather Boulier, Evelyn Taylor

Operations Transformation

The MaineHealth Cancer Care Network informatics team is manually submitting most reporting tickets for oncology customers. The current intake ticket process includes various communication channels to the business intelligence developers [BID] when a reporting need is identified resulting in workflow deficiencies and redundancies. As of FY23, MaineHealth has moved to a new ticket reporting system called ServiceHub which includes new customer self-service tools that have not yet been utilized.

Creating Capacity To Accommodate Additional Cardiac Catheterization Procedures, Kristin Anthony

Operations Transformation

Patient access to diagnostic outpatient (OP) cardiac catheterization is limited by a perceived lack of capacity. Outpatient cardiac cath pts flow through the ACU for pre/post procedure care. Current schedule limits pts that may be scheduled through the ACU to two OP procedures/day. Cardiologists request the ability to schedule beyond the two procedures/day allowed. Significant variation in pre/postoperative care orders exist amongst cardiologists resulting in variability in length of stay. Cardiac procedures are booked either as 60/90/120 minutes – Epic case averaging technology is not active in the cath lab. As a result, the case minutes in the cath lab …

Community Needs Assessment Collaboration Following The July 2022 Flooding In Eastern Kentucky, Melissa Slone Dsw, Frances Feltner Dnp, William M. Baker Rn, Anthony S. Lockard Msw, Csw, Angela Raleigh Rd

Journal of Appalachian Health

Rapidly rising waters due to flash floods and thunderstorms on the night of July 27, 2022, resulted in hundreds of water rescues throughout 14 rural Appalachian Kentucky counties. Lives were lost, thousands were injured, homes and property were damaged or destroyed, and many roadways were unpassable. Community partners serving these counties collaborated to design and conduct an assessment to gain a better understanding of the needs of individuals residing in certain remote sections within the communities. The assessment, conducted three months after the flood, collected information regarding flooding impact on housing, physical and behavioral health, transportation, work, and finances.

Disasters And Impacts In Appalachian Kentucky: A Behavioral Health Analysis, Walter David Mathews Phd, Joseph M. Clark, Amy S. Potts

Journal of Appalachian Health

Introduction: Major disasters continue to occur in Appalachian Kentucky with devastating consequences. A major disaster, defined by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) as an event too large for a community to manage without outside help, involves emergency responders from the local, state, and federal disaster agencies, plus national volunteers.

Purpose: This paper reports on recent disasters in eight southeast Kentucky counties, the changing nature of these disasters, and the behavioral health impact on the people affected.

Methods: In this large-scale disaster survey in the Appalachian counties in Southeast Kentucky, over 3,500 people were asked about their recent disaster experiences …

A Microcosting Approach For Planning And Implementing Community-Based Mental Health Prevention Program: What Does It Cost?, Sharmily Roy, Henry Shelton Brown, Lisa Sanger Blinn, Sarah Carter Narendorf, Jane E Hamilton

Faculty, Staff and Student Publications

BACKGROUND: Estimating program costs when planning community-based mental health programs can be burdensome. Our aim was to retrospectively document the cost for the first year of planning and implementing Healthy Minds Healthy Communities (HMHC), a mental health promotion and prevention multi-level intervention initiative. This Program is among the first to use the Community Initiated Care (CIC) model in the US and is aimed at building community resilience and the capacity for communities to provide mental health support, particularly among those disproportionately impacted by COVID-19. Our objective is to share our methods for costing a program targeting 10 zip codes that …

Impact Of The Department Of Defense Maternity Leave Policy Change On Retention And Postpartum Depression And The Air Force Postpartum Physical Fitness Policy Change On Physical Readiness Outcomes, Minette S. R. Herrick

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

Understanding the implications of health policy is paramount to support continued execution and further wide-spread distribution. The Department of Defense has made many recent family friendly policy changes in effort to improve the health and morale of the force. Two such policies were analyzed in this study. The first was the change in maternity leave, in 2016, from allotting women six weeks time off to twelve weeks time off in the postpartum period. The second was executed by the Air Force to permit postpartum women a longer duration for their required physical fitness assessment (an increase from six months to …

Lay Advisor Interventions For Hypertension Outcomes: A Systematic Review, Meta-Analysis And A Re-Aim Evaluation, Sonal J. Patil, Leila Bushweller, Eno-Obong Udoh, Irina Todorov, Robert Saper, Kurt C. Stange, Shari Bolen

Faculty Scholarship

Introduction: Lay advisor interventions improve hypertension outcomes; however, the added benefits and relevant factors for their widespread implementation into health systems are unknown. We performed a systematic review to: (1) summarize the benefits of adding lay advisors to interventions on hypertension outcomes, and (2) summarize factors associated with successful implementation in health systems using the Reach, Effectiveness, Adoption, Implementation, Maintenance (RE-AIM) framework. Methods: We systematically searched several databases, including Ovid MEDLINE, CINAHL, PsycINFO from January 1981 to May 2023. All study designs of interventions delivered solely by lay advisors for adults with hypertension were eligible. If both arms received the …

Employing Digital Pcr For Enhanced Detection Of Perinatal Toxoplasma Gondii Infection: A Cross-Sectional Surveillance And Maternal-Infant Outcomes Study In El Salvador, Mary K. Lynn, Marvin Stanley Rodriguez Aquino, Pamela Michelle Cornejo Rivas, Xiomara Miranda, David F. Torres-Romero, Hanson Cowan, Madeleine M. Meyer, Willber D. Castro-Godoy, Mufaro Kanyangarara Ph.D., Stella Coker Watson Self Ph.D., Ms, Berry A. Campbell, Melissa Nolan Ph.D., Mph

Faculty Publications

Toxoplasma gondii is a parasitic infection that can be transmitted in utero, resulting in fetal chorioretinitis and other long-term neurological outcomes. If diagnosed early, pregnancy-safe chemotherapeutics can prevent vertical transmission. Unfortunately, diagnosis of acute, primary infection among pregnant women remains neglected, particularly in low-and-middle-income countries. Clinically actionable diagnosis is complex due to the commonality of infection during childhood and early adulthood which spawn long-last antibody titers and historically unreliable direct molecular diagnostics. The current study employed a cross-sectional T. gondii perinatal surveillance study using digital PCR, a next generation molecular diagnostic platform, and a maternal-fetal outcomes survey to ascertain …

Global Age-Sex-Specific Mortality, Life Expectancy, And Population Estimates In 204 Countries And Territories And 811 Subnational Locations, 1950–2021, And The Impact Of The Covid-19 Pandemic: A Comprehensive Demographic Analysis For The Global Burden Of Disease Study 2021, Austin E. Schumacher, Hmwe Hmwe Kyu, Catherine M. Antony, Aleksandr Y. Aravkin, Gulrez Shah Azhar, Catherine Bisignano, Katrin Burkart, Kelly M. Cercy, Eunice Chung, Kaleb Coberly, Haley Comfort, Ewerton Cousin, Garland T. Culbreth, Matthew Cunningham, Nicole Davis Weaver, Louisa Degenhardt, Lee Deitesfeld, M. Ashworth Dirac, Kara Estep, Valery L. Feigin, Abraham D. Flaxman, Luisa S. Flor, Lisa M. Force, John E. Fuller, Veincent Christian Pepito

Ateneo School of Medicine and Public Health Publications

Background

Estimates of demographic metrics are crucial to assess levels and trends of population health outcomes. The profound impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on populations worldwide has underscored the need for timely estimates to understand this unprecedented event within the context of long-term population health trends. The Global Burden of Diseases, Injuries, and Risk Factors Study (GBD) 2021 provides new demographic estimates for 204 countries and territories and 811 additional subnational locations from 1950 to 2021, with a particular emphasis on changes in mortality and life expectancy that occurred during the 2020–21 COVID-19 pandemic period.

Methods

22 223 data sources …

Lyme Disease In The Northeast: The Unintended Consequence Of Suburban Development, Hayden Neubert

Student Theses 2015-Present

This paper addresses the role of suburban development in the suburbs of the Northeastern United States in increasing human Lyme disease infection. Over the past 50 years, Lyme disease has become the most common vector-borne disease in the United States. In 2021, the two states with the most Lyme disease cases were New York and New Jersey, with a collective 6,524 cases, with Connecticut still representing 541 total cases. It is not a coincidence that case numbers are concentrated in suburban areas with high forest fragmentation. Chapter 1 of this essay analyzes how human land development disrupts bioregulatory ecosystem actors …

Artistic Expression Of Medical Experiences Of Mothers Of Color: Perspectives Using Art Therapy, Lauren Barrett

Expressive Therapies Dissertations

The purpose of this study was to qualitatively examine perspectives of mothers of color living in the US and their experiences in the healthcare system through art therapy. The study aimed to further identify personal narrative experiences of mothers of color navigating the healthcare system, promote individual voices, and acknowledge disparities impacting those within marginalized communities. The participants in this study included a total of eight identified mothers of color (non-White) living in the US. Participants took part in four weeks of consecutive art therapy sessions either in 60-minute group or individual virtual meetings. One art therapy directive was provided …

What Is The Effect Of Telehealth And The Internet Of Medical Things (Iomt) On Outcomes When Used In At-Risk Pregnancies: A Scoping Review Of The Components Of Remote Maternal Monitoring For Hypertensive Disorders That Can Successfully Be Done Via Digital Technology?, Leighton Pitter

MUSC Theses and Dissertations

IoMT (Internet of Medical Things) is an emerging technology that facilitates individualized remote e-health services to improve patient's quality of life and satisfaction while decreasing healthcare expenditures. The objective of this scoping review is to explore the usage of IoMT and remote patient monitoring (RPM) in at-risk pregnancies for hypertensive disorders to mitigate pregnancy-related complications. IoMT and other devices in an intelligent health system can meaningfully ameliorate maternal care management in the United States (U.S.). Wearables and nearables, subcategories of IoMT, can be utilized to facilitate patient-centered care and promote excellence in health maintenance/management through a holistic continuum of care …

Crafting Community Solar Programs To Alleviate Energy Burdens And Empower Communities In Virginia, Elizabeth Anne Sekelsky

Master's Projects and Capstones

Low to moderate-income (LMI) groups usually suffer from high energy burdens and community solar is a renewable energy strategy that can save LMI groups on their monthly electricity bills. This research explores the intersection of renewable energy and energy justice, specifically the potential for community solar, energy efficiency, and home weatherization to alleviate Virginia's energy burdens. Included is an analysis of incentives, programs, and Greenhouse gas emission goals for the state, investigations on how low-income groups are receiving aid and what is available to them from programs and utilities, suitable sites for solar based on groups in need, and comparisons …

Supporting South Korea’S Aging Population: How Ai And Iot Acceptance Connects The Young And Old, Bobby Im

Master's Projects and Capstones

In 2024, South Korea surpassed every other nation by becoming the country with the lowest fertility rate (below 0.7%). Population decline will hinder future ability to care for their aging population and although the government and private corporations are investing millions of dollars on developing Artificial Intelligence-Internet of Things (AI-IoT) devices to support the aging, the acceptance levels and the amount of family support required is undervalued. By examining AI-IoT’s current use and role in South Korea’s public health system this paper shows how intergenerational support helps optimize existing procedures and equipment, increases the level of acceptance and use, and …

The Impact Of Female Political Leadership On Intimate Partner Violence In India, Khushboo Patel

Master's Theses

Abstract:

This study employs an instrumental variable approach to examine the impact of female political leadership on women’s experiences of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). It finds that in rural areas with more female leaders, incidents of sexual and psychological IPV increase. The analysis investigates the drivers behind this impact, revealing that entrenched gender norms and expectations, such as a husband’s preference for more sons, may exacerbate IPV. Additionally, despite the increase in female leaders, attitudes toward violence remain largely unchanged. These findings highlight the need for research and policy initiatives that not only encourage female political participation but also specifically …

Matrilineal Ethnic Affiliation And Female Empowerment: Investigating Attitudes Towards Female Autonomy And Health In Ivorian Households, Martine Hind Stølan

Master's Theses

Kinship structure is a fundamental aspect of anthropology, however, there is still a gap in literature on its impact on economic research, particularly regarding female autonomy and health. This study aims to address this gap by examining the influence of matrilineal ethnic affiliation on attitudes towards female autonomy and health within Ivorian households. Using data from the 2011 IPUMS Demographic and Health Survey for the Ivory Coast, using female responses, this study investigates the complex dynamics shaping attitudes towards female autonomy and access to health care. Analysis on these aspects is done using ordinary least squares (OLS) and logistic estimations. …

Impact Of Temperature On Children’S Nutrition: A Comparative Study Of Three Ecological Regions Of Nepal, Prakriti Shakya

Master's Theses

Nutrition obtained during the growth period of childhood significantly influences long-term well-being and overall productivity, ultimately contributing to the economy of a society. However, weather shocks can wreak havoc by damaging crops, changing yields of important crops and disrupting market access, which directly impacts the food intake of both adults and children. When these adverse events occur during childhood, short term and long term inadequacy in nutrition as well as disease incidence can cause malnutrition leading to stunted growth and cognitive impairment that may persist into adulthood, affecting the labor market and increasing health expenditure. To address this issue, we …

Transition To Adult Care For Bleeding Disorders: Building A Multidisciplinary Tool, Leslie Larson, Ekaterina Funk, Dana Grass, Felicia Munster, Eric Larsen, Louise Baca, Glen Roy, Sara Artinyan

Operations Transformation

Youth with chronic illnesses often have poorer health outcomes after transitioning to adult care. Maine Health Bleeding Disorders is a Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA) grant funded Hemophilia Treatment Center (HTC) that serves patients with congenital bleeding disorders. We provide multidisciplinary specialty care throughout the lifespan which includes pediatric and adult hematologists, family nurse practitioners, nurses, physical therapists, social worker, dietitian, genetic counselor, and research coordinator. In 2022, HRSA mandated all federally funded HTCs increase by 25 percent from baseline the number of individuals ages 12 to 26 years seen in a comprehensive clinic that have a health care …

Implementation Of Lymphedema Education Toolkit For Nurse Coordinators, Heather Gee

Master's Projects and Capstones

Problem: Lymphedema is a chronic condition that develops secondary to cancer treatments such as chemotherapy, radiation, and surgical removal of affected lymph nodes. This swelling in patient’s limbs can cause discomfort and limit mobility, however lymphedema is often not detected until later stages, delaying treatment and patient education.

Context: This quality improvement project was conducted at Hospital S Women’s Cancer Center, an outpatient center specializing in advanced treatments for breast and gynecological cancers. This center has a multidisciplinary team focusing on both the medical and surgical aspects of oncology treatment.

Interventions: An evidence-based lymphedema education toolkit was created for nurse …