Health Policy Commons^™

Understanding And Assessing Demographic (In)Equity Resulting From Extreme Heat Exposure Due To Lack Of Tree Canopies In Norfolk, Va Using Agent-Based Modeling, Virginia Zamponi, Kevin O'Brien, Erik Jensen, Brandon Feldhaus, Russell Moore, Christopher J. Lynch, Ross Gore

VMASC Publications

Prolonged exposure to extreme heat can result in illness and death. In urban areas of dense concentrations of pavement, buildings, and other surfaces that absorb and retain heat, extreme heat conditions can arise regularly and create harmful environmental exposures for residents daily during certain parts of the year. Tree canopies provide shade and help to cool the environment, making mature trees with large canopies a simple and effective way to reduce urban heat. We develop a demographically representative 1 (agent): 1 (person) agent-based model to understand the extent to which different demographics of residents in Norfolk, VA are equitably shaded …

Older Adult Healthcare Utilization Patterns And Receptiveness Towards Healthier Sg Initiative, Micah Tan, Grace Cheong, Wensi Lim, Paulin T. Straughan

ROSA Research Briefs

The Healthier SG (HSG) initiative was launched by Health Minister Ong Ye Kung in March 2022. HSG marks a distinct departure from existing healthcare models as under this new initiative, greater emphasis is placed on preventive healthcare rather than reactive treatments. This shift in approach is envisioned to have a significant influence on the healthcare system in Singapore – for instance, by focusing on “health care” rather than on “sick care” it is hoped by some that this new model will discourage the ‘over-service’ of patients by doctors in Singapore (Lim, 2022). An integral component of the HSG initiative is …

Health Is Political: Public Health Practitioners And Researchers Should Be Trained Accordingly, Claire Pendergrast

Population Health Research Brief Series

Policy has long been considered a core element of public health practice. The COVID-19 pandemic has made clear that public health practice and research exist within a political context that cannot be ignored.

Sex Education In The United States: Implications For Sexual Health And Health Policy, Eliana R. Johnson

The Corinthian

There is much disagreement over what constitutes effective sex education in the United States. There are several reasons why America’s sex education system is outdated and problematic. First, it often advocates only for abstinence, which leaves people unprepared and unable to protect themselves if/when they choose to have sex, leading to higher rates of unintended pregnancies, abortions, and sexually transmitted infections in the U.S. than in any other developed nation in the world. In addition, the culture of fear surrounding sex education leads to negative attitudes among young people about sex. This can not only cause sexual dysfunction and strife …

“En Defensa Por La Salud”: Los Actores Sociales En La Construcción Del Movimiento Social En Chile, Karina Martinez

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

This investigation aimed to describe the construction of the social movement for health demands in the frame of the social outbreak in Chile in October 2019. In addition to identifying the main health demands of this movement, it also had a focus on understanding the role of social organizations in the construction of the movement and placing it within the broader socio-political movement that arises from the social outbreak. The research design was qualitative and descriptive. Having been a remote investigation, it was largely based on literature review with the support of information from a semi-structured interview. Regarding the results, …

The Current State Of Migrant Health In Morocco: Pre-And Peri-Covid-19 Pandemic, Layla Babahaji

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

In the early 21st century, Morocco transitioned from being a predominantly transit migration country into both a transit and destination country for migrants. In 2013, the Moroccan government took significant steps to adapt the healthcare system in better integrating migrants in its policies. The government implemented the National Strategy on Immigration and Asylum that improved access to public health care for migrants. Recently, in March of 2020, Morocco declared a state of medical emergency due to the current COVID-19 pandemic that continues today. This paper addresses the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on the current state of migrant health in …

Individual Bodies, Informed Consent, And Self-Determination: A Rhetorical Analysis Of The Vaccine Refusal Movement, Gretta Richardson

Scripps Senior Theses

This project sought to explore the narratives and rhetorical themes that permeate the anti-vaccination movement. Mass media has portrayed vaccine refusal groups as stupid, as conspiracy theorists, and as radically selfish. However, the data I analyzed from vaccine refusal nonprofits and advocacy groups supports that although these themes may appear to be radical, in reality, each is congruent with already present societal frameworks, particularly neoliberal social discourse and a preoccupation with the individualistic and self-determined health care rather than utilitarian or collective action.

Maternal Immune Activation (Mia) In Mice: A Study To Phenotype Asd-Related Communication Behaviors And Analyze Maternal Health Outcomes In The Us, Komalpreet Gulati

Honors Scholar Theses

Core symptoms of Autism Spectrum Disorders (ASD) include deficits in social/communicative behaviors, and repetitive/stereotyped behaviors. Mouse models are a highly established paradigm used to study the phenotypic deficits that result from various inducible genotypic or environmental risk factors for ASD. Previous studies have demonstrated a link between maternal immune activation (MIA) and ASD-like behaviors in mouse models. In this model, the maternal immune system is activated during pregnancy by injecting the viral mimic poly(I:C). The resulting offspring are phenotyped and analyzed with regards to their communicative behaviors.

Previous studies have demonstrated that male pups born to dams with immune activation …

Gun Violence: Chicago, Illinois, Kayla Dillon

Global Issues in Public Health

Gun violence has been, and continues to be, a significant problem in Chicago, Illinois. There have been several programs in place that have worked towards improving the level of gun violence. One of the most noticeable being Project Safe Neighborhood, which began in 2001. Part of what makes these programs, and programs similar to it, necessary is that it targets the populations most at-risk of gun violence. By targeting these specific regions of the city, these programs can provide the resources necessary to improve the condition of the city in the long-term, as well as prevent the condition from spreading …

Christians’ Cut: Popular Religion And The Global Health Campaign For Medical Male Circumcision In Swaziland, Casey Golomski, Sonene Nyawo

Anthropology

Swaziland faces one of the worst HIV epidemics in the world and is a site for the current global health campaign in sub-Saharan Africa to medically circumcise the majority of the male population. Given that Swaziland is also majority Christian, how does the most popular religion influence acceptance, rejection or understandings of medical male circumcision? This article considers interpretive differences by Christians across the Kingdom’s three ecumenical organisations, showing how a diverse group people singly glossed as ‘Christian’ in most public health acceptability studies critically rejected the procedure in unity, but not uniformly. Participants saw medical male circumcision’s promotion and …

No More Mind Games: Content Analysis Of In-Game Commentary Of The National Football League’S Concussion Problem, Jeffrey Parker

Theses and Dissertations (Comprehensive)

American (gridiron) football played at the professional level in the National Football League (NFL) is an inherently physical spectator sport, in which players frequently engage in significant contact to the head and upper body. Until recently, the long-term health consequences associated with on the field head trauma were not fully disclosed to players or the public, potentially misrepresenting the dangers involved in gameplay. Crucial to the dissemination of this information to the public are in-game televised commentators of NFL games, regarded as the primary conduits for mediating in-game narratives to the viewing audience. Using a social constructionist theoretical lens, this …

The Long-Term Coercive Effect Of State Community Benefit Laws On Hospital Community Health Orientation, Charles B. Moseley, Jay J. Shen, Gregory O. Ginn

Nevada Journal of Public Health

This study is an examination of the long-term coercive effect of state community benefit laws (CB Laws) on the provision of community health activities in U.S. acute care hospitals. The sample included all the not-for-profit and investor owned acute care hospitals for which 1994 and 2006 AHA Annual Survey data were available. A panel design was used to longitudinally examine the effect that state CB Laws had on hospital community health orientation activities and the provision of health promotion services, after controlling for the influence of other organizational and environmental variables that might affect these activities and services. The authors …

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.

Fitness Tax Credits: Costs, Benefits, And Viability, Daniel M. Reach

Northwestern Journal of Law & Social Policy

As the number of overweight and obese Americans rises, it becomes increasingly clear that Americans need further incentives to stimulate lasting lifestyle changes. Tax incentives focused on exercise, which have been largely unexplored to this point, are an effective response to the growing obesity problem in the United States that would largely avoid the political opposition that tax policies focused on diet have encountered. In addition, they would also provide a more palatable solution for the taxpayer beneficiaries with a relatively low impact on government revenues. Viable tax incentives to encourage greater fitness include tax credits and sales tax breaks, …

Finger Lickin’ Good: An Analytical Investigation Into The Urban Diet, Jennifer T.R. Tomlinson

Jennifer T.R. Tomlinson

In this analysis, the origins, customs and implications of fast-food culture will be explored with important focus on the customs of fast-food urban eating. Research indicates that lower-income urban areas are more likely to consume fast-food. The high consumption of fast-food subsequently results in the development of social and economical implications, which include health implications, economic dilemmas, a disconnection between consumers and their consumption and issues of social classification. This analysis also explores the customs of fast-food culture of Pine Hills, Florida with added emphasis on Pine Hills’ cultural uniqueness.

Finger Lickin’ Good: An Analytical Investigation Into The Urban Diet, Jennifer T.R. Tomlinson

Master of Liberal Studies Theses

In this analysis, the origins, customs and implications of fast-food culture will be explored with important focus on the customs of fast-food urban eating. Research indicates that lower-income urban areas are more likely to consume fast-food. The high consumption of fast-food subsequently results in the development of social and economical implications, which include health implications, economic dilemmas, a disconnection between consumers and their consumption and issues of social classification. This analysis also explores the customs of fast-food culture of Pine Hills, Florida with added emphasis on Pine Hills’ cultural uniqueness.

Worksite Wellness And The 10 Essential Public Health Services, William C. Mcpeck

William C. McPeck

This white paper examines how the 10 Essential Public Health Services being promoted by the CDC relate to worksite wellness.

Las Vegas: A Sustainable Urban Environment For Health?, Nancy Menzel

Nevada Journal of Public Health

The rapid growth of Las Vegas has resulted in negative consequences for the health of its residents to a level that threatens the area’s sustainability. This article reviews key indicators of population health in Las Vegas through the framework of the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Healthy People in Healthy Places and concludes that public health professionals, citizens, businesses, and political leaders must act now to protect and improve population health.

Introduction, James Jennings

Trotter Review

The Summer 1995 issue of the Trotter Review, "Public Health and Communities of Color: Challenges and Strategies," provides a range of essays and two personal commentaries on facets of public health, race, and ethnicity in urban America. The essays are written by scholars and activists familiar with public health and issues of race, access, and diversity. The first article is the Executive Summary of the Institute of Medicine's national report, Balancing the Scales of Opportunity: Ensuring Racial and Ethnic Diversity in Health Professions. This report focuses on the problem of underrepresentation of Blacks, Latinos, and Native Americans in the …

Can The Health Needs Of African American Men Be Met Through Public Health Empowerment Strategies?, Deborah Prothrow-Stith, Eric Whitaker

Trotter Review

Health promotion and disease prevention efforts, which use empowerment strategies and emphasize community control, are essential to overcoming the legacy of medical malfeasance and successfully improving the health status of black males. This discussion depicts the legacy of harm and presents the case for empowerment strategies; it also describes one Boston community-based program example of utilizing an empowerment strategy and concludes with a challenge to all health professionals to become enablers of empowerment rather than obstructions to it.