Community Health Commons^™

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.

Queering Sexual Health: The Intersection Of Sexual Health And Lgbtq Identities In Worcester, Ma, Sara Richman Davidow

Sustainability and Social Justice

This research examined what support, services, and programming existed at the intersection of sexual health and LGBTQ identities in Worcester MA. The data analyzed were interviews with professionals in sexual health or LGBTQ related fields as well as the public websites of sexual health or LGBTQ organizations. The researcher examined this data, along with literature on the rise of sexual health and LGBTQ communities, to understand (1) how inclusive sexual health resources in Worcester were and (2) what themes still need to be addressed to make gender and sexuality minorities comfortable seeking sexual health medical aid. The findings indicated that …

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 …

Do Healthcare Students Endorsing Stigma Of Mental Illness Screen For Suicidal Ideation? An Evaluation Of Knowledge, Attitudes, And Behaviors, Dannel K. Petgrave

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

The stigma of mental illness endorsed by healthcare professionals has been linked to adverse outcomes. This issue underscores the need for early anti-stigma interventions in the context of professional training. The present study measured stigma change and suicide screening behaviors among medical, nursing, and pharmacy students enrolled in an interprofessional Communication Skills for Healthcare Professionals course. The Mental Health Knowledge Schedule (MAKS; Evans-Lacko et al., 2010), Opening Minds Scale for Health Care Providers (OMS-HC; Modgill, Patten, Knaak, Kassam, & Szeto, 2014), and the Marlowe-Crowne Social Desirability Scale Form C (M-C SDS Form C; Reynolds, 1982) was administered at baseline (T …

A Markov Approach For Increasing Precision In The Assessment Of Data-Intensive Behavioral Interventions, Vincent Berardi, Ricardo Carretero-González, John Belletierre, Marc A. Adams, Suzanne C. Hughes, Melbourne Hovell

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Health interventions using real-time sensing technology are characterized by intensive longitudinal data, which has the potential to enable nuanced evaluations of individuals’ responses to treatment. Existing analytic tools were not developed to capitalize on this opportunity as they typically focus on first-order findings such as changes in the level and/or slope of outcome variables over different intervention phases. This paper introduces an exploratory, Markov-based empirical transition method that offers a more comprehensive assessment of behavioral responses when intensive longitudinal data are available. The procedure projects a univariate time-series into discrete states and empirically determines the probability of transitioning from one …

Evaluation Of A Youth Emergency Room Enhancement Program For Behavioral Health, Anne Thatcher

Dissertations

Problem. Pediatric mental health complaints and subsequent hospitalizations have been steadily increasing. The Behavioral Health Network (BHN) developed an intensive outreach case management program aimed at reducing youth mental health emergency department (ED) visits and inpatient psychiatric admissions. The Youth Emergency Room Enhancement (YERE) program was a process improvement initiative to provide immediate case management to youth and caregivers for mental health care.

Methods. A Plan-Do-Study-Act (PDSA) method utilizing a retrospective case record review occurred over a six-month period. A convenience sample of youth aged 6-20 years presenting to one of eight healthcare facilities for either ED or inpatient hospitalization …

Framing Physical Activity: Weight Control Frames And Physical Activity Motivation, Kristin Spurkland

Dissertations and Theses

Public health institutions and popular media frequently frame weight loss and weight control as primary benefits of physical activity. This exploratory, descriptive study examined how respondents rated statements exemplifying three physical activity frames: a weight control frame, a medical frame, and an active embodiment frame. An anonymous, online survey was conducted in March 2018; respondents rated frame statements in terms of inspiring motivation to engage in physical activity, and in terms of perceived credibility. They also provided anthropometric data and physical activity data. Data were analyzed for the entire sample as well as stratified by multiple variables, including body mass …

Barriers To Dietary Salt Reduction Among Hypertensive Patients, Saruna Ghimire, Naveen Shrestha, Karen E. Callahan

School of Public Health Faculty Research

Background: Despite knowing the ill consequences of high salt intake, many hypertensive patients in Nepal continue to consume high levels of salt in their diet. Hence, this study aims to reveal the barriers to dietary salt reduction among hypertensive patients in Nepal. Methods: A barrier analysis was conducted in the outpatient department of Sahid Gangalal National Heart Center, Nepal among 180 hypertensive patients under physician advice to reduce salt in their diet. A logistic regression modeling was used to calculate odds ratios (ORs) for the barriers...(See full text for complete abstract)

Promoting The Health Of Individuals With Intellectual And/Or Developmental Disabilities Through Community Gardening, Stephanie Brown

Department of Advanced Practice Nursing

No abstract provided.

Supervision In Community Mental Health: Understanding Intensity Of Ebt Focus., Leah Lucid, Rosemary Meza, Michael D Pullmann, Nathaniel Jungbluth, Esther Deblinger, Shannon Dorsey

Rowan-Virtua School of Osteopathic Medicine Departmental Research

The goal of the present study was to examine clinician, supervisor, and organizational factors that are associated with the intensity of evidence-based treatment (EBT) focus in workplace-based clinical supervision of a specific EBT, Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (TF-CBT). Supervisors (n = 56) and clinicians (n = 207) from mental health organizations across Washington State completed online self-report questionnaires. Multilevel modeling (MLM) analyses were used to examine the relative influence of nested clinician and supervisor factors on the intensity of EBT focus in supervision. We found that 33% of the variance in clinician report of EBT supervision intensity clustered at the …

Dose-Response Of Cotton Dust Exposure With Lung Function Among Textile Workers: Multitex Study In Karachi, Pakistan, Naureen Akber Ali, Asaad Ahmed Nafees, Zafar Fatmi, Iqbal Azam Syed

School of Nursing & Midwifery

Background: Cotton dust exposure among textile mill workers lead to impaired lung function. However, only few studies have investigated the dose-response relationship between cotton dust and lung function.
Objective: To determine the dose-response relationship between cotton dust exposure and lung function among textile workers.
Methods: This cross-sectional survey was conducted from January to March 2016 and included 303 adult male textile workers from spinning and weaving sections of 5 mills in Karachi, Pakistan. We collected data through a translated version of the American Thoracic Society respiratory questionnaire (ATS-DLD-78A) and using spirometry. Mill-level airborne cotton dust was measured …

Health Care Provider Personal Religious Preferences And Their Perspective On Advance Care Planning With Patients, Marjorie A. Bowman, Sarah St. Cyr, Adrienne Stolfi

Population and Public Health Sciences Faculty Publications

Objective:

To understand how health-care providers’ (HCPs) religious preferences influence their willingness to undertake advance care planning (ACP) with patients and their acceptance of other HCP’s involvement.

Methods:

Online anonymous survey distributed to HCPs in hospital, ambulatory offices, and hospice settings in Dayton, Ohio. We evaluated the associations of HCP religion with their personal ACP, willingness to facilitate ACP, and acceptance of other HCPs’ ACP participation.

Results:

704 respondents: nurses (66.2%), physicians (18.8%), other HCPs (15.0%), white (88.9%), and primarily Catholic (23.3%) or Protestant (32.0%). “No religion” was marked by 13.9%. Respondents were favorable to ACP with patients. Religious respondents …

Variation In Airborne Pollen Concentrations Among Five Monitoring Locations In A Desert Urban Environment, Tanviben Y. Patel, Mark P. Buttner, David Rivas, Chad L. Cross, Dennis A. Bazylinski, Joram S. Seggev

Environmental & Global Health Faculty Research

The urbanization of the Las Vegas Valley has transformed this part of the Mohave Desert into a green oasis by introducing many non-native plant species, some of which are allergenic. Typically, one monitoring station is established per city to obtain pollen counts for an entire metropolitan area. However, variations in pollen concentrations could occur among different microenvironments. The objective of this study is to measure and compare pollen concentrations in five locations in Las Vegas to determine if there are significant differences between microenvironments within the city. Air samples were collected from five sites across the Las Vegas Valley over …

Adapting Medical Guidelines To Be Patient-Centered Using A Patient-Driven Process For Individuals With Sickle Cell Disease And Their Caregivers, Robert M. Cronin, Tilicia Mayo-Gamble, Sarah-Jo Stimpson, Sherif M. Badawy, Lori E. Crosby, Jeannie Byrd, Emmanuel J. Volanakis, Adetola A. Kassim, Jean L. Raphael, Velma Mcbride Murry, Michael Debaun

Health Policy & Community Health: Faculty Publications

Background: Evidence-based guidelines for sickle cell disease (SCD) health maintenance and management have been developed for primary health care providers, but not for individuals with SCD. To improve the quality of care delivered to individuals with SCD and their caregivers, the main purposes of this study were to: (1) understand the desire for patient-centered guidelines among the SCD community; and (2) adapt guideline material to be patient-centered using community-engagement strategies involving health care providers, community -based organizations, and individuals with the disease.

Methods: From May–December 2016, a volunteer sample of 107 individuals with SCD and their caregivers gave …

Life Satisfaction Among Elderly Patients In Nepal: Associations With Nutritional And Mental Well-Being. Health And Quality Of Life Outcomes, Saruna Ghimire, Binaya Kurmar Baral, Isha Karmacharya, Karen E. Callahan, Shiva Raj Mishra

School of Public Health Faculty Research

Nepal’s demography is aging rapidly, yet few studies to date have examined how this has affected the health and well-being of the elderly, defined as those above 60 years in Nepal’s Senior Citizen Act (2006). Our study, abbreviated NepEldQOLII, aims to assess perceived life satisfaction, and evaluate its relationship with nutritional health and mental well-being among the burgeoning Nepalese elderly population...(See full text for complete abstract)

Use Of A Unique Farmers’ Market Program Targeting Lower-Income Community Members, Brittany Lawrence, Anna E. Greer, Anne Marie Zimeri, Daphne C. Hernandez, Sangnam Ahn, Shaakira Jones, Matthew Lee Smith

Public Health Faculty Publications

We examined use of a farmers’ market that leverages community partnerships to provide free produce to lower-income persons. Participants (n = 422) were asked to complete a questionnaire and given an ID number, which was used to track market use from 2014 to 2015. Chi square tests were used to examine associations between 2014/2015 market use and reasons for market use, financial support received, and how attendees had learned about the market. Ordinal regression was used to identify household characteristics associated with increased market attendance. Although the proportion of lower-income attendees declined over the study period, a substantial proportion of …

The Effect Of Mantram Repetition On Qol In Low-Income, Urban Dwelling Older Adults, Marissa Katerina Mackiewicz

Dissertations

Background: Quality of life is an important concept of increasing significance for the healthcare in the United States, especially when taken in perspective of the aging population. Low-income, urban dwelling older adults are challenged in a number of ways that may negatively impact their QOL. This unique group is prone to report lower QOL, therefore, interventions targeted to improve QOL are timely. The purpose of this study was to describe the effect of mantram repetition (MR) on QOL in a sample of low-income, urban dwelling older adults.

Methods: A quasi-experimental pre-posttest study was conducted using a sample population of low-income …

A Critical Analysis Of The Mental Health First Aid Educational Intervention Developed By The National Council For Behavioral Health, Padma P. Tadi Uppala

Adventist Human-Subject Researchers Association

In Berrien County, Michigan, the priority health need identified among students was mental health. The objective of this study is to critically analyze the Mental Health First Aid educational intervention developed by the National Council of Behavioral Health for family members and health professionals. Spirituality was identified as a negative factor affecting mental health on the survey. It is important for mental health professionals to acknowledge the protective role of spirituality against mental illness as pointed out in the scientific literature.

A Program Evaluation Of A Drug And Alcohol Family Treatment Program, Katrina Ramirez

Doctoral Dissertations

The current study is a program evaluation at John Muir Behavioral Health, Center for Recovery. The research determined the effectiveness of the program at Center for Recovery that is offered to patients that struggle with substance use disorder and their families. The purpose of this study is to assess patients’ behavioral, cognitive and social/environmental factors as it relates to their commitment to sobriety and examine how the involvement of family members influences the patient’s recovery process. I utilized a mixed methodology of quantitative and qualitative interviews of patients and family members. The findings suggest depressive symptoms were negatively correlated with …

Perceived Importance Of Substance Use Prevention In Juvenile Justice: A Multi-Level Analysis, Jessica M. Sales, Gail Wasserman, Katherine S. Elkington, Wayne Lehman, Sheena Gardner, Larkin Mcreynolds, Tisha Wiley, Hannah K. Knudsen

Behavioral Science Faculty Publications

Background: Youth under juvenile justice (JJ) supervision are at high-risk of adverse outcomes from substance use, making prevention important. Few studies have examined prevention-related attitudes of JJ employees, yet such attitudes may be important for implementing prevention programs. Attitudes toward prevention may reflect individual characteristics and organizational contexts.

Methods: Mixed effects regression was used to analyze data from 492 employees in 36 sites participating in the Juvenile Justice-Translational Research on Interventions for Adolescents in the Legal System (JJ-TRIALS) cooperative agreement. JJ employees' perceived importance of substance use prevention was measured. Staff-level variables included attitudes, job type, and demographic characteristics. Site-level …