Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Early Childhood Support Specialist Evaluation Report, Emilie Swenson Msw, Rachel Gallo Mph

Children, Youth, & Families

The Early Childhood Support Specialist (ECSS) at MaineHealth builds relationships with families who have children aged birth to three, a timeframe when infants and toddlers are rapidly developing, learning, and benefiting from family and community connections. The ECSS assesses a family’s strengths and needs to understand how that family can be supported and connected. The ECSS connects families to resources, provides referrals, coaches families on children’s social and emotional development, and generally serves as a point of contact to assist families with social, emotional, and medical needs. Ultimately, the intended outcome of this model is to increase family connections, decrease …

Preparing To Break Barriers: A Mixed Methods Exploration Of The Knowledge, Attitudes, And Perceptions Of Hiv, Prep, And Hiv Risk Behaviors Among Women Of Color In Miami, Florida, Amanda C. Ichite

FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The U.S. HIV epidemic is characterized by regional, racial, and ethnic disparities. HIV rates are disproportionately higher in the South and Black and Hispanic populations are most impacted. Moreover, the intersectional identity of being a Black or Hispanic woman living in the South has been associated with profound disparities in HIV impact. Prior to the advent of the biomedical HIV prevention tool pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in 2012, women were limited in their options for female-controlled HIV prevention strategies. Despite the proven efficacy of PrEP, utilization in women is significantly lower than other at-risk groups. In the present study, secondary analysis …

Investigating The Covid-19 Pandemic In Your Community, Tanzina Ahmed

Open Educational Resources

In this writing assignment, students will conduct research on statistics about COVID-19 in New York City and their embedded communities using free online databases from the New York City Department of Health (NYC DOH). For questions 1, 2, 3, and 4, students will conduct research on COVID-19 statistics within NYC and their specific neighborhood/community in New York City. In questions 5 and 6, students will analyze the data you have gathered while using your own knowledge of your community. A full set of instructions for accessing NYC DOH databases and a complete rubric for grading the assignment is included.

Four Corners: A Values Clarification Exercise, Montsine Nshom

Open Educational Resources

Four Corners is a values clarification activity that asks participants to stand/show whether they strongly agree to strongly disagree with a specific statement, and reflect on their position during and after the activity. This four corners activity is designed to help students think about and discuss topics that are pertinent to urban community health and public health.

No prior reading or coursework is required; it is a good option for the first day of class to introduce key themes that will be covered during the course as well as practice ground rules and class discussion norms.

Approach To Providing Culturally Sensitive Gynecologic And Obstetric Care For Somali Women, Izabella Ostrowski

Family Medicine Clerkship Student Projects

Many refugees have fled Somalia over the past 30 years due to political instability and civil war. Since 1980, over 8,000 refugees have settled in Vermont, with about 9% of refugees being from Somalia. Community Health Centers of Burlington (CHCB) provides prenatal and primary care to many Somali women in the community. There are known gynecologic and obstetric health disparities for Somali women, such as significantly lower completion rates of mammography and pap smears than non-Somali patients. Research has shown that an understanding of cultural health beliefs and values are crucial for creating tailored prevention programs for refugee women. This …

Review Of Sexual Health Issues Linked With Cardiovascular Disease And Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus In Aboriginal And Torres Strait Islander Males, Veronica Collins, Tamara J. Swann, Jane Burns, Tim Moss, Mick Adams

Australian Indigenous HealthBulletin

There are well established links between male sexual health conditions and chronic disease, particularly cardiovascular disease (CVD) and type 2 diabetes (T2DM). Erectile dysfunction (ED) and low testosterone are two sexual health conditions that are relatively common among the wider male population. However, there is a lack of data specifically about these sexual problems among Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander males.

One of the most important findings of research regarding the links between sexual health and chronic disease is that ED can be a risk marker for future CVD or undiagnosed T2DM. Understanding these links can lead to more holistic …

County-Level Factors That Influenced The Trajectory Of Covid-19 Incidence In The New York City Area, Ashley Wendell Kranjac, Dinko Kranjac

Sociology Faculty Articles and Research

More than a century of research has shown that sociodemographic conditions affect infectious disease transmission. In the late spring and early summer of 2020, reports of the effects of sociodemographic variables on the spread of COVID- 19 were used in the media with minimal scientific proof attached. With new cases of COVID-19 surging in the United States at that time, it became essential to better understand how the spread of COVID-19 was varying across all segments of the population. We used hierarchical exponential growth curve modeling techniques to examine whether community socioeconomic characteristics uniquely influence the incidence of reported COVID-19 …

Indoor Cooking Practices And Associated Health Factors Among Participants In The Dominican Republic And Nicaragua: A Collaborative Study Between Respiratory Therapy Students And Comunidad Connect, Rachel Culbreth, Rachel Trawick, Jon Thompson, Douglas S. Gardenhire

Internet Journal of Allied Health Sciences and Practice

The purpose of this study is to determine factors associated with indoor cooking practices and specific vital signs across two middle-income countries, Dominican Republic and Nicaragua. This study used data from Nicaragua (n=76) and Dominican Republic (n=62) (collected in 2018-2019). Multivariable linear regression was utilized to determine factors associated with carbon monoxide levels and systolic blood pressure. Among all participants (n=138), approximately half lived in Nicaragua (n=76, 55.1%) and half lived in Dominican Republic (n=62, 44.9%). The overall smoking prevalence in each country was low (9.2% in Nicaragua and 4.8% in Dominican Republic). Age was associated with higher carbon monoxide …

Coh-2000 - Community Health Interventions, Jose Nanin

Open Educational Resources

This syllabus includes OER materials and college policies for a fully online course that exposes students to a range of health promotion and disease prevention and management strategies used by health specialists to address community health challenges. Through readings and videos, as well as online course assignments and discussions, students learn about planning and designing interventions to improve the health of specific priority populations and communities-at-large.

Predictors And Missed Opportunities For Blood Glucose Screening Among African Americans: Implications For Church-Based Populations, Alexandria G. Bauer, Jannette Berkley-Patton, Carole Bowe Thompson, Kelsey Christensen

Journal of Health Disparities Research and Practice

African Americans (AAs) are disproportionately diagnosed with prediabetes, diabetes, and related complications. Guidelines for prediabetes/diabetes screening emphasize reaching at-risk adults. The AA church has potential to increase reach of BGS with AA church members and community members. The current study identified predictors of blood glucose screening (BGS) and individuals with missed opportunities for BGS among church-affiliated AA adults. Participants were drawn from a previous pilot study (Project Faith Influencing Transformation) conducted in six AA churches over eight months. Eligibility criteria included self-identifying as AA and being aged 18 or older. Participants who had previously been diagnosed with diabetes were excluded, …

Increasing Low-Income Residents’ Access To Fresh Produce Through A Local Mobile Pantry, Laura E. Wasson, L. Lanier Nalley, Mechelle Bailey, Laura Hill

Discovery, The Student Journal of Dale Bumpers College of Agricultural, Food and Life Sciences

Seeds that Feed (STF) is a mobile food pantry located in Fayetteville, Arkansas. STF receives produce from local farmers to distribute to residents in low-income housing sites throughout Northwest Arkansas. According to Feeding America, food insecurity affected 14.3% Washington County, Arkansas’ population in 2016. The purpose of this study was to determine if STF’s model is an effective way to increase individuals’ access to fresh fruits and vegetables and increase their potential to meet the United States Department of Agriculture’s Food Patterns (USDA-FP) for to fruit and vegetable consumption. Twenty-three participants from three sites completed the study. A survey was …

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 …

The Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center Giving Garden At Coogan Farm: A Practitioner Report On Community Gardens For Health And Regional Food Security, Emma Sutphen

International Development, Community and Environment (IDCE)

The Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center (DPNC) is a community organization that, through its various programming, works to perpetuate a vision of humans as part and parcel of the world. In 2013, when the Nature Center acquired the Coogan Farm property, the organization built a community garden called the Giving Garden to serve surrounding communities, expanding services to the foodservice sector educational programming around sustainable agriculture. DPNC’s partnership with the Robert G. Youngs Family Foundation, United Way of Southeastern Connecticut, and Gemma E. Moran mobile food pantry, forged in 2014, has allowed the garden to minimize area food insecurity through its …

Perceptions Of Peer Sexual Behavior: Do Adolescents Believe In A Sexual Double Standard?, Michael Young, Susan Cardenas, Joseph Donnelly, Mark J. Kittleson

Department of Public Health Scholarship and Creative Works

BACKGROUND

The purpose of the study was to (1) examine attitudes of adolescents toward peer models having sex or choosing abstinence, and (2) determine whether a “double standard” in perception existed concerning adolescent abstinence and sexual behavior.

METHODS

Adolescents (N = 173) completed questionnaires that included 1 of 6 randomly assigned vignettes that described male and female peer models 3 ways: (1) no information about model's sexual behavior, (2) model in love but choosing abstinence, and (3) model in love and having sex. Participants read the vignette to which they had been assigned and responded to statements about the peer …

Facilitating Effective Communication Between First Responders And Older Adults During Fall Incidents: An Educational Intervention, Krystin M. Beeman, Erica L. Berger, Isabel A. Cabezas, Nicole M. Mathews

Dissertations, Masters Theses, Capstones, and Culminating Projects

PURPOSE. The purpose of this project was to provide first responders with communication strategies for older adults that may help when responding to fall- related calls. General information was also provided to First Responders on working with older adults with a focus on the aging process, fall risk factors, and communications strategies.

METHODS. A series of educational sessions to first responders at a local fire district were developed and presented by occupational therapy students. Materials were developed by presenters from evidence-based resources and tailored to the target population. Each presentation focused on statistics about older adults, the aging process, fall …

How Will Public Health And Primary Care Come Together In Massachusetts?, Javier Crespo

Public Affairs Capstones Collection

The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act aims to place public health and prevention practice closer to the clinical care delivery system by mandating basic preventive services and creating a national prevention plan. The Massachusetts health care system has a number of elements that can help foster closer linking of public health practices in the primary care setting. This research set out to examine whether the current healthcare system in Massachusetts will enable public health and primary care integration as intimated upon by the Affordable Care Act. This study will assess the current connection between public health and primary care …

Institute For Community Inclusion (Ici) Leadership Education In Neurodevelopmental Disabilities (Lend) Partners With Community-Based Organizations (Cbos), David Helm, Institute For Community Inclusion, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Office of Community Partnerships Posters

This Interdisciplinary Leadership Education in Neurodevelopmental and Related Disabilities (LEND) and Maternal and Child Health Bureau (MCHB) funded-program aims at providing long-term, graduate level interdisciplinary training to health professionals and family members. The purpose of this project is to develop leadership potential to improve the health status of infants, children, and adolescents with or at risk for neurodevelopmental and related disabilities and to enhance the systems of care for these children and their families.

Dental Hygienists' Contributions To Improving The Nation's Oral Health Through School-Based Initiatives From 1970 Through 1999: A Historical Review, Gayle B. Mccombs, Cynthia C. Gadbury-Amyot, Rebecca S. Wilder, Karen O. Skaff, Margaret Lappan Green

Dental Hygiene Faculty Publications

PURPOSE: The purpose of this literature review is to document the contributions dental hygienists have made over the past 3 decades to improve the nation's oral health. This historical review encompasses selected literature that acknowledged dental Hygienists' direct involvement in U.S. school-based or school-linked oral health programs from 1970-1999.

METHODS: Five researchers independently searched MEDLINE, PubMed, and other electronic databases to identify relevant literature for the years 1970-1999. The search aimed to locate articles authored by or that documented dental Hygienists' involvement as "service provider" in U.S. school-based oral health programs. For the purpose of this review, service provider was …

Fluoridation For Your Community And Your State (1969), American Dental Association, Donald R. Mcneil Phd

Patient Dental Health Education Brochures

No abstract provided.

Fluoridation Facts: Answers To Criticisms Of Fluoridation (1967), American Dental Association

Patient Dental Health Education Brochures

No abstract provided.