Community Health and Preventive Medicine Commons^™

Prevalence Of Low Back Pain Among Adolescents In Relation To The Weight Of School Bags, Fatemah Akbar, Muneera Albesharah, Jumana Al-Baghli, Farah Bulbul, Dana Mohammad, Bann Qadoura, Abdullah Al-Taiar

Community & Environmental Health Faculty Publications

Background

The association between the weight of school bag and Low Back Pain (LBP) amongst students remains under intense debate worldwide. This study aimed to estimate the prevalence of LBP amongst public high school students (14 to 19 years) in Kuwait and to investigate the association between LBP and the weight of school bags.

Methods

An analytical cross-sectional study using multistage cluster random sampling with probability proportional to size was conducted on a total of 950 public high school students from all governorates. Data on LBP were collected through face-to-face interviews using a structured questionnaire. A 0–10 Numeric Pain Rating …

Assessing Knowledge, Attitude And Practices Of Hand Hygiene Among University Students, Linda Afia Mbroh

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Objective: Proper hand hygiene is the key to reducing occurrence of infectious diseases in many different types of communities, including the healthcare settings, daycare centers, and grade schools. College students have been found to inadequately wash their hands, which increases their chances of contracting infectious diseases. The purpose of this research is to assess the knowledge, attitude and practices of hand hygiene among students at a large midwestern university.

Participants and Methods: Using a cross- sectional survey, and three self-reported questionnaires, data were collected from 406 undergraduate students, ages 18 years of age and above enrolled at Minnesota State University, …

What Influences Our Decision To Vaccinate? The Social Amplification Of Risk Framework And Vaccination, Laura B. Carper

International Crisis and Risk Communication Conference

The current study applies the social amplification risk framework to the anti-vaccination movement, specifically to the social factors that influence the likelihood to vaccinate. A total of 264 participants were recruited using Amazon’s Mechanical Turk engine and students from a large southern university. Participants responded to questions about their personal, friend, and family experiences with vaccines, their discussion about vaccines, and trust in vaccine literature (CDC, Facebook, family, etc.). Lastly, participants responded to a modified Duke’s social support scale. Results indicated that the likelihood to vaccinate is impacted by several social factors and that those factors can be amplified based …

My Experience In Swaziland With Give Hope, Fight Poverty, Megan Kaser

Purdue Journal of Service-Learning and International Engagement

Megan Kaser, a recent 2017 alum in the College of Health and Human Sciences at Purdue University, describes her experience with Give Hope, Fight Poverty (GHFP)—a nonprofit organization in Indianapolis, Indiana. She is currently pursuing a master’s degree in physician assistant studies. GHFP’s mission is “to foster philanthropy domestically by designing service-learning programs that engage U.S. college students with rural communities in Swaziland, Africa, and work together to educate, empower, and lift orphaned and vulnerable children—particularly those living in child-headed households— out of poverty” (Give Hope, Fight Poverty, n.d.). By incorporating college students in the implementation of GHFP orphan education …

The Critical Need For Mental Health Education To Be Mandated In New Mexico's Public Schools, Bonnie L. Murphy

Shared Knowledge Conference

Based on a review of research and best practices in mental health awareness and skills, this inquiry project argues for state legislative policies that would require mental health awareness and skills in the K-12 curriculum. Mental health affects individual accomplishments in every stage of people’s lives beginning in early childhood and throughout the life cycle. Prevention and treatment of mental illness plays a key role in the ability of an individual to cope with loss and develop resiliency and perseverance in challenging times and to make better decisions that improve the individual’s life and the lives of those around them. …

School‐Level Body Mass Index Shapes Children's Weight Trajectories, Ashley W. Kranjac

Sociology Faculty Articles and Research

BACKGROUND

Embedded within children's weight trajectories are complex environmental contexts that influence obesity risk. As such, the normative environment of body mass index (BMI) within schools may influence children's weight trajectories as they age from kindergarten to fifth grade.

METHODS

I use 5 waves of the ECLS‐K—Kindergarten Class 1998‐1999 data and a series of multilevel growth models to examine whether attending schools with higher overall BMI influences children's weight status over time.

RESULTS

Results show that, net of child, family, and school sociodemographic characteristics, children who attend schools with higher rates of obesity have increased weight compared to children who …

Ua12/2/1 Fit: A Health & Wellness Guide, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Administration Documents

Special magazine of College Heights Herald regarding health and fitness.

• Childress, Nicole. Welcome to Fit
• Southers, Mariah. CVS Shares 4 Ways to Beat the Flu
• Childress, Nicole. Do It Yourself Face Masks
• Goodlett, Ryan. Juices Add Zest to Life
• Southers, Mariah & Bryson Lacasse. Classic Shortcuts – WKU Campus Map
• Wells, Spencer. Little Fox Bakery Offers Sweet Treats for Every Diet
• Southers, Mariah. Turning Up the Heat – Hot Yoga
• Goodlett, Ryan. Iron Woman – Melinda Grimsley-Smith
• Wells, Spencer. Preston Health & Fitness Center: More Than Just a Gym

It's About Communities: The Commitment To Promoting A Culturally Competent Environmental Health Workforce, Clint Pinion Jr., Leslie D. Mitchell, Jason W. Marion

EKU Faculty and Staff Scholarship

Environmental health and public health are profoundly local. The Association of Environmental Health Academic Programs (AEHAP) firmly agrees and for this reason, it is important to have local environmental health experts who know the pulse of their communities. AEHAP believes in supporting the advanced scientific education of environmental health in these communities through people from these communities. Accordingly, AEHAP has sought to promote and support accredited environmental health programs among a diverse cross-section of the U.S. higher education landscape. AEHAP’s students are diverse in many ways, including socioeconomically, racially, ethnically, and culturally. The value of this approach enhances the overall …

A Land Not Forgotten: Indigenous Food Security & Land-Based Practices In Northern Ontario By Michael A. Robidoux And Courtney W. Mason, Tonia L. Payne Ph.D.

The Goose

Review of Michael A. Robidoux and Courtney W. Mason's (eds.) A Land Not Forgotten: Indigenous Food Security & Land-Based Practices in Northern Ontario.

A Characterization Of The Medical-Legal Partnership (Mlp) Of Nebraska Medicine, Jordan Pieper

Capstone Experience: Master of Public Health

This research study was completed at Legal Aid of Nebraska’s Health, Education, and Law Project through the partnership it has formed working with Nebraska Medicine and Iowa Legal Aid. Traditionally, health and disease have always been viewed exclusively as "healthcare" issues. But with healthcare consistently growing towards holistic approaches to help patients, we now know there are deeper, structural conditions of society that can act as strong driving forces of a person's poor daily living conditions that can negatively impact health. The importance of a Medical-Legal Partnership is that it considers a patient's social determinants of health (SDHs). The goal …

Failure-To-Rescue Simulations As A Risk Management Strategy For Registered Nurses, Trena K. Seago

Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Capstones

In the hospital setting, prevention of failure-to-rescue (FTR) events is an important aspect of patient safety. The use of patient simulation as a strategy to educate nurses on the prevention of these events offers two modes of learning: 1) experiential learning through simulation and 2) reflection through debriefing. The act of practicing to recognize a deteriorating patient through experiential learning and reflection may help increase nurses’ self-efficacy in recognizing a similar situation in their future practice. This quasi-experimental, one-group, pretest-posttest pilot study investigated the use of patient simulation among registered nurses (RNs) in the hospital setting as an anticipatory educational …

Pink And Dude Chefs: Effectiveness Of An After-School Nutrition Knowledge And Culinary Skills Program For Middle School Students To Increase Fruit And Vegetable Consumption, Alyssa S. Vaziri

Master's Theses

The rate of overweight and obesity among adolescents aged 12-19 years has more than tripled since 1980, and disproportionately impacts low-income and marginalized populations. Reduction in adolescent obesity rates may result in decreased health risks, decrease healthcare costs, and increased quality of life. Effective intervention methods for adolescent participants have incorporated nutrition knowledge and culinary skill building into afterschool programs. This study examines whether building knowledge, skills, and confidence through a culinary intervention can improve adolescent participants’ choices of healthful foods through increased fruit and vegetable intake.

Pink and Dude Chefs (PDC) is an afterschool nutrition education and culinary skills …

Radical Social Ecology As Deep Pragmatism: A Call To The Abolition Of Systemic Dissonance And The Minimization Of Entropic Chaos, Arielle Brender

Student Theses 2015-Present

This paper aims to shed light on the dissonance caused by the superimposition of Dominant Human Systems on Natural Systems. I highlight the synthetic nature of Dominant Human Systems as egoic and linguistic phenomenon manufactured by a mere portion of the human population, which renders them inherently oppressive unto peoples and landscapes whose wisdom were barred from the design process. In pursuing a radical pragmatic approach to mending the simultaneous oppression and destruction of the human being and the earth, I highlight the necessity of minimizing entropic chaos caused by excess energy expenditure, an essential feature of systems that aim …

Nativity Differences In Stress Among Asian And Pacific Islander American Women, Brittany N. Morey, Gilbert C. Gee, Salma Shariff-Marco, Gem M. Le, Alison J. Canchola, Juan Yang, Laura Allen, Sandra Lee, Roxanna Bautista, Trish Quema La Chica, Winston Tseng, Pancho Chang, Scarlett Lin Gomez

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

According to the Stress Process Theory, people who are marginalized in society encounter more stress than those in more advantaged positions. Immigrants are one such marginalized group in the United States (US) who may experience greater psychological stress than their US-born counterparts due to (1) severing of social ties; (2) social disadvantage and marginalization; and (3) adaptation to a new environment. This study examines the disparity in stress by nativity, and how social factors contribute to this disparity for Asian and Pacific Islander (API) women. Data come from the Asian Community Health Initiative, which included a sample of 291 foreign-born …

The Predictors Of Juvenile Recidivism: Testimonies Of Adult Students 18 Years And Older Exiting From Alternative Education, La Toshia Palmer

Dissertations

Purpose: The purpose of this descriptive, qualitative study was to identify and describe the importance of the predictors of juvenile recidivism and the effectiveness of efforts to prevent/avoid juvenile recidivism as perceived by previously detained, arrested, convicted, and/or incarcerated adult students 18 years of age and older exiting from alternative education in Northern California. A second purpose was to explore the types of support provided by alternative schools and the perceived importance of the support to avoid recidivism according to adult students 18 years of age and older exiting from alternative education.

Methodology: This qualitative, descriptive research design identified …

The Medical Evaluation Of The Newly Resettled Female Refugee: A Narrative Review, Anne Duckles, Aba Barden-Maja, Julie Caplow

Journal of Refugee & Global Health

The number of forcibly displaced individuals worldwide is increasing each year, reaching 65 million persons by the end of 2015, half of which were women and children. As the population of displaced persons grows, it is every physician’s responsibility to understand these patients and their health needs. Refugee patients and the providers who care for them face many barriers to effective patient care, including language barriers, cultural differences, and systematic inequalities. Female refugees commonly experience gender-based violence, repetitive trauma, stigmatized mental illness, and cultural barriers to women’s healthcare. This review is intended to be a comprehensive guide for the provider …

Observational Study To Identify Best Practices Of Successful Active Science Programs, Elizabeth Egan

Health Sciences Student Work

Introduction: Obesity amongst our nation’s youth is on the rise and has drastically increased in recent decades. This chronic health issue lends to potential risk of developing comorbidity of type 2 diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, an increased risk of premature death and many other serious chronic diseases. Obesity prevention and health promotion programs aimed at targeting obesity, and more specifically childhood obesity, should implement nutrition and/or physical activity components. Effective programs have taken into account moderate- to vigorous-intensity physical activity (MVPA) measurements, class size and class management (if the program utilizes an education or group fitness component), and the demographic …

Health Insurance Enrollment Of Children And Young Adults In Wayne County, Michigan: A Qualitative Evaluation, Kristin Kan, Richard Lichtenstein, Michelle Famulare, Alison Jensen, Theresa Kowalski-Dobson, Joslyn Pettway, Erminia Ramirez, Madiha Tariq, Minal Patel

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

Since the Affordable Care Act went into effect, community outreach to increase health insurance enrollment of young adults and children in low-income families of color has been a priority in Wayne County, Michigan. Our objective was to inform community efforts for improved outreach, we explored perceptions around the importance of health insurance and barriers to enrollment for children and young adults through a qualitative research study. We conducted a focus group with enrollment assisters and nine focus groups with Arab American, Latino/Hispanic, and African American community members. Several themes emerged about community members’ perceptions and experiences: they believe that children …

The Inception Of A Prediabetes Prevention Program In County Government, Gregory R. Grier

Education Dissertations and Projects

With the increasing prevalence and high cost of treatment, diabetes places an enormous demand on economic resources. To combat this issue and rising health care costs,Cleveland County Government took a proactive approach and partnered with its local YMCA. The YMCA was contracted to provide Prediabetes Prevention and Diabetes Control program classes to County employees. The programs were designed to (a) decrease the A1c level of program participants, (b) lower health care costs for the County, and (c) provide education about prevention and maintenance.

The ultimate goal of the program was to assist county administration and staff in their efforts to …

Advancing Global Health Outcomes Through International Collaboration & Education, Olivia Catolico, Leandra Wallace, Jane Anyango, Kati Bell

Nursing | Faculty Conference Presentations

Study abroad opportunities for students are readily integrated into higher education. Curricular challenges exist for professional programs regulated by state & national accrediting bodies. However, mission driven values at the broader institutional level facilitate implementation of these learning opportunities.

Institutional learning outcomes at Dominican University foster intercultural understanding. Global education outcomes of Dominican University further delineate levels of intercultural competencies to be achieved through coursework and service. The Dominican Department of Nursing seeks to prepare nurses who are competent, culturally sensitive, & ethically grounded within a global community.

The Bwindi School of Nursing mission seeks to improve the health of …

Using The Health Belief Model To Assess Undergraduate College Students Knowledge And Perceptions Of Human Papillomavirus In Order To Better Understand Vaccine Intentions, Kelly Mcmahon

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

According to the Centers for Disease control and Prevention (CDC)(2016b), Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is the most commonly sexually transmitted infection in the United States. HPV is so prevalent that nearly all sexually active people will obtain a strain of HPV at some point in their lives (CDC, 2016d). Approximately one in four Americans are currently infected in the United States with HPV, and approximately 14 million new infections of HPV spread each year in the United States (CDC, 2016b).

Ultimately the HPV vaccination is a form of cancer prevention. With the vaccination uptake, the burden of HPV related health problems …

Concerning Trends In Allopathic Medical School Faculty Rank For Indigenous People: 2014–2016, Erik Brodt, Amanda Bruegl, Erin K. Thayer, M. Patrice Eiff, Kelly L. Gonzales, Carlos J. Crespo

OHSU-PSU School of Public Health Faculty Publications and Presentations

Background: Trends in faculty rank according to racial and ethnic composition have not been reviewed in over a decade.

Objective: To study trends in faculty rank according to racial and ethnicity with a specific focus on Indigenous faculty, which has been understudied.

Methods: Data from the Association of American Medical Colleges’ Faculty Administrative Management Online User System was used to study trends in race/ethnicity faculty composition and rank between 2014 and 2016, which included information on 481,753 faculty members from 141 US allopathic medical schools.

Results: The majority of medical school faculty were White, 62.4% (n = 300,642). Asian …

Community Development Projects In Moldova, Berkend Pura

Capstone Collection

This Independent Practitioner Inquiry Capstone (IPIC) aims to provide relevant information, from a Peace Corps (PC) Volunteer (PCV) standpoint, on a renovation project that was implemented in the village of Vorniceni, Republic of Moldova. At its core, this was a community development project that involved the active participation of the community of Vorniceni, providing local resources and knowledge towards the goal of building a healthier sanitation facility on the second floor of the local kindergarten.

The results of this effort indicate that the involvement of the client (people) is crucial to sucess in implementing projects, and it also shows that …

Impacts Of Active School Design On Schooltime Sedentary Behavior And Physical Activity: A Pilot Natural Experiment, Jeri Brittin, Leah Frerichs, John R. Sirard, Nancy M. Wells, Beth M. Myers, Jeanette Garcia, Dina Sorensen, Matthew J. Trowbridge, Terry Huang

Interior Design Program: Faculty Scholarly and Creative Activity

Background Children spend a significant portion of their days in sedentary behavior (SB) and on average fail to engage in adequate physical activity (PA). The school built environment may influence SB and PA, but research is limited. This natural experiment evaluated whether an elementary school designed to promote movement impacted students' school-time SB and PA.

Methods Accelerometers measured SB and PA at pre and post time-points in an intervention group who moved to the new school (n = 21) and in a comparison group experiencing no school environmental change (n = 20). Difference-in-difference (DD) analysis examined SB and PA outcomes …

Journal Conversations: Building The Research Self-Efficacy Of An Aboriginal Early Career Academic, Michelle L. Dickson

The Qualitative Report

This paper shows how I used my research journal mainly as a reflective tool throughout the process of applying for and completing a PhD. Embarking on a PhD can be daunting for anyone and I was challenged by my lack of academic self-efficacy. In the absence of a formal academic mentor my research journal became my confidante, a tool that helped me make progress at times when barriers to research seemed insurmountable. It helped me decrease the cognitive dissonance I was experiencing about issues of subjectivity/objectivity and the positioning of my self in the research. This paper shares research journal …

The Relationship Between Bmi & Mandated Physical Education Requirements Of Elementary Schools, Kathryn Fairlamb

The Eleanor Mann School of Nursing Undergraduate Honors Theses

The physical activity policies of elementary schools in Arkansas and correlations between physical activity requirements and body mass index have been studied. Examination of the policies at the individual school, district, or state level were noted. The statewide BMI database was consulted. Interviews with physical education teachers was conducted to assess policy implementation. Results may provide schools and policy makers with insight on future physical activity policies.

Interns Matter: Maximizing Integration Of Interns Into Community Agencies, Valerie Garcia

Capstone Projects and Master's Theses

Hope Services is a non-profit agency serving individuals with developmental disabilities in six counties. Over the years, there have been many agencies that have formed connections with Hope Services. One of these collaborative partnerships has been with CSU Monterey Bay’s (CSUMB) integration of interns through their field placement program. However, recently former Hope Services South District Manager, Greg Dinsmore, witnessed a lack of utilization and integration of interns across all Hope Services agencies. Through firsthand experience as a mentor, he witnessed the benefits of utilizing interns and saw the need for further advocacy and support for the integration of interns …

Knowledge, Attitudes, And Behaviours Of New Zealand Youth In Surf Beach Environments, Stacey M. Willcox-Pidgeon, Bridget Kool, Kevin Moran Ph.D.

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

New Zealand youth are over-represented in drowning statistics yet little is known about their understanding of water safety, especially in surf beach context. This study aimed to ascertain current youth surf safety knowledge, specifically rip current awareness, explore self-reported competencies and confidence when surf swimming, and examine youth behaviour when at the beach. A cross-sectional survey was conducted among senior high school students (n = 599) in Auckland, New Zealand. Over half (58%) reported they were unable to swim > 100 m in a pool. Males and students of European-New Zealand and Maori (New Zealand’s indigenous population) heritage were most …

Student Pharmacists Provide Tobacco Use Prevention Education To Elementary School Children: A Pilot Experience, Jared L. Ostroff, Marissa L. Wolff, Christina Andros, Eric C. Nemec

Physician Associate Studies Faculty Publications

Background and purpose: The purpose of this article is to describe a service learning experience involving tobacco prevention education and to measure the education's effect on the learners' knowledge of tobacco products.

Educational activity and setting: Student pharmacists planned and presented a 40-min tobacco prevention education program using the Tar Wars curriculum to fourth and fifth grade students at three suburban elementary schools in Western Massachusetts. Mean scores on a five-question assessment given to school age children before and after the presentation were compared. A total of 206 elementary school students in ten classrooms participated.

Findings: The average survey score …

Rock-Based Fisher Safety Promotion: A Decade On, Kevin Moran Ph.D.

International Journal of Aquatic Research and Education

In the 10 years from 2006 - 2015, seven percent of all drowning fatalities in New Zealand were the consequence of land-based fishing activity (Water Safety New Zealand, 2015). In 2006, a collaborative campaign was launched in the Auckland, New Zealand entitled the West Coast Fisher Safety Project. This paper reports on the findings of annual surveys from 2006-2015 to determine what impact, if any, the safety promotion has had. The most emphatic change in fisher behavior in the intervening decade has been the more frequent self-reported use of lifejackets (2006, 4%; 2015, 40%), and a gradual shift in …