Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Informing The Design And Deployment Of Health Information Technology To Improve Care Coordination, Diego A. Martinez

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

In the United States, the health care sector is 20 years behind in the use of information technology to improve the process of health care delivery as compared to other sectors. Patients have to deliver their data over and over again to every health professional they see. Most health care facilities act as data repositories with limited capabilities of data analysis or data exchange. A remaining challenge is, how do we encourage the use of IT in the health care sector that will improve care coordination, save lives, make patients more involved in decision-making, and save money for the American …

Patient Populations, Clinical Associations, And System Efficiency In Healthcare Delivery System, Yazhuo Liu

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The efforts to improve health care delivery usually involve studies and analysis of patient populations and healthcare systems. In this dissertation, I present the research conducted in the following areas: identifying patient groups, improving treatments for specific conditions by using statistical as well as data mining techniques, and developing new operation research models to increase system efficiency from the health institutes’ perspective. The results provide better understanding of high risk patient groups, more accuracy in detecting disease’ correlations and practical scheduling tools that consider uncertain operation durations and real-life constraints.

Metal Organic Frameworks (Mofs) And Porous Organic Polymers (Pops) For Heterogeneous Asymmetric Catalysis, Youngran Ji

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The administration of enantiopure drugs brings advantages such as improved efficacy, more predictable pharmacokinetics and reduced toxicity from the point of view of the pharmaceutical area.[1] For this reason, a tremendous amount of supply and demand for enantiomeric pure compounds has been shown not only in market, but industry and academia.[^2-4] According to the industry publication Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology News (GEN) in 2014, 22 billion dollars were accounted for enantiopure form of drugs such as Sovaldi® (Sofosbuvir), Crestor® (Rosuvastatin), and Advair® (fluticasone/salmeterol).

The fact that one enantiomer can be pharmacologically effective whereas the other enantiomer can be …

Sound Attenuation Performance Of Fiber-Reinforced Polymer Composite Circumaural Hearing Protection Devices, Steven Christopher Augustine

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Personnel who work on the flight deck of an aircraft carrier are exposed to extreme levels of jet engine noise often in excess of 140 decibels (dB). The current circumaural hearing protective devices (CAHPD) employed by flight deck crewmen are inadequate for the level of protection required for these extreme levels of noise. Fiber-reinforced thermoset polymer composite (FRPC) materials such as aramid fibers used in body armor, have high theoretical values of acoustic impedance due to a fundamentally high modulus of elasticity and may offer a superior level of hearing protection over original equipment (OE) thermoplastic CAHPDs. The objective of …

Assessment Of Public Health Risks Associated With Petrochemical Emissions Surrounding An Oil Refinery, Erin L. Pulster

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Refinery operations have been associated with a wide variety of atmospheric emissions consisting of criteria air pollutants, volatile organic components, hazardous air pollutants as well as other pollutants. With approximately 100 oil refineries in the Wider Caribbean region (WCR), hydrocarbons in this region pose significant environmental and human health risks. One of the oldest and largest refineries in the WCR is the Isla Refineriá, which is located on the island of Curaçao, and has been the basis of historical debates and conflict between the public and the local government over the environmental and human health risks. This research aims to …

Endocrine-Disrupting Compounds: Measurement In Tampa Bay, Removal From Sewage And Development Of An Estrogen Receptor Model, Monica Mion Cook

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The significance of endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs) in the environment has only recently come to the forefront of scientific research, policy debates, water utilities management and public awareness. EDCs have the ability to interfere with the normal functioning of the endocrine system of humans and other animals. Numerous chemicals are included in the class of compounds known as EDCs, and exposure is widespread. These compounds are found in a variety of environmental matrices (e.g., marine and freshwater systems, sediment, soil), transported there primarily through sewage effluent discharge and recycling of sewage sludge for topical fertilizer use. This transport to the environment …

Effects Of Solids Retention Time And Feeding Frequency On Performance And Pathogen Fate In Semi-Continuous Mesophilic Anaerobic Digesters, Nathan Daniel Manser

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Anaerobic digestion is a biochemical process in which organic carbon is biodegraded in an oxygen free environment through a microbial consortium. Engineered biological systems used for resource recovery often utilize anaerobic digestion to treat anthropogenic organic wastes by reclaiming the carbon as energy (methane gas) and a soil amendment (biosolids). Small-scale, or household, semi-continuous anaerobic digesters have been used in developed and developing countries for many decades to produce biogas from human and livestock waste, which is used for heating, lighting, and cooking. This application has been shown to improve the quality of life of the user. Although there is …