Mental and Social Health Commons^™

Cytokine Variations And Mood Disorders: Influence Of Social Stressors And Social Support, Marie-Claude Audet, Robyn J. Mcquaid, Zul Merali, Hymie Anisman

Brain and Mind Institute

Stressful events have been implicated in the evolution of mood disorders. In addition to brain neurotransmitters and growth factors, the view has been offered that these disorders might be provoked by the activation of the inflammatory immune system as well as by de novo changes of inflammatory cytokines within the brain. The present review describes the impact of social stressors in animals and in humans on behavioral changes reminiscent of depressive states as well as on cytokine functioning. Social stressors increase pro-inflammatory cytokines in circulation as well as in brain regions that have been associated with depression, varying with the …

Hospital Discharge Decision Modeling For Mental Health Inpatients, Peiwen Duan

Industrial Engineering Undergraduate Honors Theses

This research addresses the issue of unnecessary treatment and late discharge for mental health inpatients. In this thesis, a dynamic decision model is proposed to determine the optimal timing to discharge a patient from hospital that considers both the impacts of over-treatment and not enough treatment on patients recovery. We measure the reward of making the discharge decisions in terms of hospitalization cost and readmission cost. The objective is to minimize the total expected cost for patients and provides hospital care providers with theoretical methods to assist them to make a better decision about discharge planning and management.

Grant Application: Visual Voices, An Arts-Based Assessment Of The Perceived Identity Of Aging Maine Residents, Collyn Baeder, Zoe Hull, Rebecca Masterjohn, Virginia Sedarski, Adrian Jung, Michaela A. Hoffman, Nicole O'Brien

Visual Voices: An Arts-Based Assessment of the Perceived Identity of Aging Maine Residents

IPEC Mini-grant application for funding of UNE student project Visual Voices: An Arts-Based Assessment Of The Perceived Identity Of Aging Maine Residents. This project was designed to investigate the topics of perception, identity, and aging. Between February and May 2015, over the course of twelve sessions, the UNE team met with six female residents of the Park Danforth senior living community in Portland to have conversations and create art about how the residents perceive themselves in contrast to how they feel perceived by important people in their lives, such as friends, family, and healthcare providers.

Alcohol And Drug Use Amongst College Students In Relation To Sexual Abuse, Christyn Hollingsworth

Honors College Theses

The impact of child sexual abuse (CSA) and traumatic sexual experiences has been the subject of multiple studies in which harm was found. Among these harms are emotional distress, psychological issues, and substance abuse. This research analyzed and compared the responses to questions pertaining to substance use and attitudes regarding sexual interactions between college aged students with and without a history of sexual abuse. The participant’s answers were run through an ANOVA to determine statistical variance. Based on prior research, it was expected that victims consume alcohol and use drugs more frequently than non-victims in significant amounts. The findings in …

Ethnic And Language Matching: Effects On Hispanics' Treatment Perceptions, Carlos Adrian Ojeda Cedeno

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Cultural adaptations to mental health treatment have been recommended to improve treatment outcomes in minorities, including Hispanics (Griner & Smith, 2006). One such adaptation includes matching the therapist to the client on culturally salient variables, such as spoken language or ethnic background. Yet, most investigations about the efficacy of matching have been correlational or have not examined language and ethnic match together (Cabassa, 2007). I investigated the effects of both ethnic and language matching on Hispanics' perceptions of psychological treatment. Participants were 100 Hispanic adults (36 men) randomly assigned to one of four conditions. In each condition, participants read a …

Overview Of Inference About Roc Curve In Medical Diagnosis, Jingjing Yin

Biostatistics: Faculty Publications

Medical diagnosis aims to identify diseased individuals through the evaluation of the measurements of some biomarkers by performing a diagnostic test based on some biomarker measurements. Biomarkers are measured on either discrete or continuous scale and continuous biomarkers are utilized more often in medical practice. This article introduces the most popular tool for evaluating continuous biomarkers: the Receiver Operating Characteristic (ROC) curve.

Is Postpartum Depression A Disease Of Modern Civilization?, Jennifer Hahn-Holbrook, Martie Haselton

Psychology Faculty Articles and Research

Access to calorie-dense foods, medicine, and other comforts has made modern humans healthier than our prehistoric ancestors in many respects. However, the epidemics of obesity, diabetes, and cardiovascular disease suggest that there are also drawbacks to modern living. Here, we address the question of whether the dramatic cultural changes that have occurred over the past century have inflated rates of postpartum depression, adding postpartum depression to the list of diseases of modern civilization. We review evidence from cross-cultural, epidemiological, and experimental studies documenting associations between postpartum depression and modern patterns of early weaning, diets deficient in essential fatty acids, low …

Understanding Service Utilization Disparities And Depression In Latino Parents And Children: The Role Of Fatalismo, Elizabeth Anastasia

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Research has repeatedly demonstrated a disparity between need and utilization of mental health services for Latino adults and children. The adapted Health Beliefs Model (Henshaw & Freedman-Doan, 2009) provides a useful framework for conceptualizing the roles of perceived severity and therapy expectations in the relation between demographic variables and service utilization. Cultural variations in perceptions of mental illness by Latinos may be linked with lower service utilization rates for Latino parents and children. It was speculated that fatalismo, a cultural construct similar to external locus of control, may be related to perceptions of mental illness and service utilization outcomes for …

Sexual Violence And Sub-Saharan Migrants In Morocco: A Community-Based Participatory Assessment Using Respondent Driven Sampling, Ines Keygnaert, Abdessamad Dialmy, Altay Manço, Jeroen Keygnaert, Nicole Vettenburg, Kristien Roelens, Marleen Temmerman

Obstetrics and Gynaecology, East Africa

Background: The European Union contracted Morocco to regulate migration from so-called “transit migrants” from Morocco to Europe via the European Neighbourhood Policy. Yet, international organisations signal that human, asylum and refugee rights are not upheld in Morocco and that many sub-Saharan migrants suffer from ill-health and violence. Hence, our study aimed at 1) investigating the nature of violence that sub-Saharan migrants experience around and in Morocco, 2) assessing which determinants they perceive as decisive and 3) formulating prevention recommendations.

Methods: Applying Community-Based Participatory Research, we trained twelve sub-Saharan migrants as Community Researchers to conduct in-depth interviews with peers, using Respondent …

La Atención De Mujeres Con Complicaciones Post-Aborto En Un Hospital Público Del Partido De La Matanza: La Perspectiva De Los Profesionales De La Salud / The Perspective Of Health Professionals On The Quality Oftreatment For Women With Complications Post-Abortion Ina Public Hospital In La Matanza, Hannah Collins

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Background: In Argentina, abortion is illegal under all circumstances except for when a woman has been raped, has a mental disability or her life is in danger. There are approximately 500,000 abortions practiced each year in Argentina, and the majority is performed in an unsafe manner, which can result in complications that require medical attention. In 2010, over 50,000 women were hospitalized because of complications post-abortion. These complications can include hemorrhages, infections, or other toxic illnesses. After the International Conference on Population and Development in 1994 they identified post-abortion care as a worldwide problem. Subsequently, Argentina created a guide for …

Cost Effectiveness Of Treating Generalized Anxiety Disorder In Adolescence: A Comparison By Provider Type And Therapy Modality, Kathryn Evelyn Reynolds

Theses and Dissertations

Generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is frequently found in primary care settings and is highly prevalent among adolescents. The purpose of this study was to examine the cost effectiveness by provider type and therapy modality in treating adolescents (ages 13-17) with a GAD diagnosis (DSM-IV 300.02). A national insurance company in the United States provided outpatient and unidentifiable data for adolescent GAD cases (n = 2,932). These cases were used to analyze the cost effectiveness, total cost, treatment length, dropout, and readmission rates for the treatment of adolescents with GAD. Descriptive statistics signify that the mean cost of treatment for GAD …

Factors Associated With Rapid Readmission Among Nevada State Pyschiatric Hospital Patients, Christopher Owen Moore

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Rapid readmission (RR) of psychiatric patients within 30 days of discharge places a costly burden on state psychiatric facilities and may be an indicator of suboptimal service provision. Several studies have previously considered RR to inpatient facilities, but there is a lack of information available about the variables associated with RR of psychiatric patients to state-operated inpatient facilities in Nevada. This study attempts to identify factors associated with RR at a southern Nevada state psychiatric hospital. Participants included 7,177 patients admitted between May 1, 2012 and April 30, 2014. All 12,068 admissions, including 2,220 RR, were reviewed, and rapid readmits …

Training Marriage And Family Therapists In Formal Assessment: Contributions To Students' Familiarity, Attitude, And Confidence, Scott C. Huff, Shayne R. Anderson, Lindsay L. Edwards

Faculty Publications

Studies suggest that few practicing marriage and family therapists use formal assessments and even fewer use systemic assessments. Given the potential value of formal assessment to both clinicians and clients, we surveyed current marriage and family therapy students (N = 91) about their familiarity, attitude, and confidence in training with assessment. Experience using assessments predicted familiarity. Having a supervisor that valued assessments predicted familiarity and confidence in training. The number of courses taken in assessment was not predictive of familiarity, attitude, or confidence. Implications for training and future research are discussed

Hearing The Patient Voice: Using Video Intervention/Prevention Assessment To Understand Teens With Cystic Fibrosis, Susan Horky Lscw, Laura E. Sherman Msw, Julie Polvinen, Michael Rich Md

Patient Experience Journal

This qualitative study asked two questions: 1) How do teens with cystic fibrosis (CF) feel about their treatments; and 2) What factors lead teens to adhere, or not adhere, to treatments. To answer these questions we used an innovative approach (Video Intervention/Prevention Assessment or VIA), to learn about the experiences of teens with CF. We loaned video camcorders to teens with CF and asked them to create visual narratives of their lives. Researchers logged and coded videotapes, identifying themes that arose from the material. A primary theme was “Doctors don’t understand.” Participants also highlighted the value of routines and parental …

Ohio Department Of Youth Services: Juveniles And Their Mental Health Issues, Danya E. Gregory

Learning Showcase 2014

During the 1960’s, an explosion of interest in child abuse and neglect became prominent and it all came together with the case of Gerald Frances Gault, gained national attention to the plight of juveniles. Gerald and his friend were making obscene phone calls and he was taken to jail without the benefit of is parents being notified, being detained until his hearing and charges being lodged against him, convicted and sent to a juvenile correctional facility until his 21st birthday. Until this case became prominent, many youth were not given legal counsel, and just being sent to away because it …

Tai Chi And Stress Reduction In Premedical Students, Joseph G. Weber, Suzanne Coleman, Mark Johannsson, Libby Hill

Learning Showcase 2014

A randomized, controlled pilot study was performed to determine the correlation between the practice of Tai Chi exercise and anxiety scores, among full-time pre-med undergraduate students who reside in college campus housing. The sample (N = 14) was recruited from 70 pre-med students enrolled at Lake Erie College (LEC) located in Painesville, Ohio. Participants included: (a) full-time LEC pre-med students; (b) between 18 and 25 years old; and (c) residents of either on-campus housing or within two miles of the college campus. Participants were randomly assigned to one of two groups: (a) Tai Chi (n = 8); (b) control (n …

Exploring The Use Patterns Of A Mobile Health Application For Alcohol Addiction Before The Initial Lapse After Detoxification, Ming-Yuan Chih

Health and Clinical Sciences Faculty Publications

How patients used Addiction-Comprehensive Health Enhancement Support System (A-CHESS), a mobile health intervention, while quitting drinking is worthy exploring. This study is to explore A-CHESS use patterns prior to the initial lapse reported after discharge from inpatient detoxification programs. 142 patients with alcohol addiction from two treatment agencies in the U.S. were included. A comprehensive set of A-CHESS use measures were developed based on a three-level system use framework and three A-CHESS service categories. In latent profile analyses, three A-CHESS system use patterns-inactive, passive, and active users-were found. Compared to the passive users (with the highest chance of the initial …

Prescription Drug Abuse And Misuse In Southern Appalachia: An Epidemiologic Perspective, Billy Brooks

ETSU Faculty Works

No abstract provided.

Developing An Animal Model Of Polysubstance Abuse In Adolescence: The Role Of Nmda Receptors In Alcohol/Cocaine Reward, Adriana Rebecca Uruena-Agnes

USF Tampa Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Repeated exposure to drugs of abuse conditions individuals to anticipate the behavioral consequences of drug use specifically in the presence of a drug-associated context. In rodents, preferences and aversions for alcohol and cocaine have been conditioned; however, the mechanisms underlying the expression of these conditioned effects remain unknown. Given that alcohol and cocaine polysubstance abuse is prevalent in young individuals, with more than 50% of these polysubstance abusers reporting to be under the age of 21, it is important to understand the mechanisms contributing to the behavioral effects of alcohol and cocaine co-dependency. Aim 1 determined if age differentially impacted …

Rethink #, Kayla A. Britt

SURGE

Watching anyone struggle with mental health disorders should never be funny- and yet, in some instances, that’s exactly how it is viewed. Recently, celebrity Amanda Bynes was involuntarily committed to psychiatric hold for the second time in a year. This was following a series of very public tweets which clearly show instability in her mental health. One tweet in particular regarding a microchip she believes was implanted in her brain is markedly delusional. The media and public, however, have been sensationalizing and demoralizing her condition by treating it as just another piece of shocking celebrity news. Headlines like “Amanda Bynes’ …