Health Communication Commons^™

Building Assets Toolkit: Developing Positive Benchmarks For Adolescent Girls—Resource Manual, Judith Bruce, Sarah Engebretsen, Kimberly Glazer

Poverty, Gender, and Youth

This document contains the Building Assets Toolkit’s Resource Manual, which includes valuable information about building meaningful program content as well as detailed notes on each asset for use in the toolkit’s “Asset Building Exercise.” This exercise is designed to involve multiple stakeholders in determining what assets girls need in order to survive and thrive. The Building Assets Toolkit is an approach for developing programs for specific segments of girls that will prepare them to better face the challenges of growing up. It will help program managers understand the needs of the girls in their community, engage stakeholders at different levels …

Don't Ask, Don't Tell: Coming Out In An Alcoholic Family, Lisa M. Tillmann Ph.D.

Faculty Publications

This piece invites readers inside emotional and relational dynamics of coming

out as gay in an alcoholic family system. Taking an interpretive approach to

research, focused on how participants make sense of and make meaning

from their lived experience, “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” offers a longitudinal and

narrative ethnographic account of family secrecy and disclosure.

The Influence Of Positive And Negative Death Attitudes On Medical Students' Empathy And Attitudes Toward End-Of-Life Care, Elizabeth Palumbo

PCOM Psychology Dissertations

This quantitative study employed a cross-sectional survey research design in order to examine the relationships between medical students’ death attitudes, empathy, and attitudes toward end-of-life care. The participants were 206 medical students currently enrolled in the Doctor of Osteopathic Medicine program at the Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine, Philadelphia campus. Results indicated that there were no significant differences in the level of empathy between medical students who held strong positive death attitudes and medical students with strong negative death attitudes. However, results indicated that significant differences existed in attitudes toward end-of-life care between medical students who held strong positive death …

Diabesties: How Diabetic Support On Campus Can Alleviate Diabetic Burnout, Kassandra E. Martin

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The purpose of this study is to determine what types of supportive communication Type One diabetic students need when entering college to decrease diabetic related distress. A training program for students living with Type One Diabetes was created on the barriers they face to effective disease management on campus. This training plan was developed using Beebe, Mottet, and Roach’s (2013) Needs-Centered Training Model. The main issue that appeared from the Needs Assessment was that students are feeling high distress when it comes to keeping with a strict medical regimen. What they expressed interest in was a need for information from …

Impact Of E-Cigarettes On Physician Recommendations Of Tobacco Use Cessation Pharmacotherapy, Omar El Shahawy

Theses and Dissertations

Introduction: E-cigarettes have been marketed as smoking cessation aids and harm reduction strategies. Prior regional surveys found that physicians are recommending them to patients despite the lack of evidence supporting these industry claims. Yet, little is known about physicians’ beliefs regarding e-cigarettes and whether these beliefs are associated with them recommending e-cigarette use in clinical practice. Methods: This three-manuscript dissertation used a mixed-methods approach including both qualitative and quantitative research methods. The aims were to: (1) Uncover the factors associated with primary care physicians’ (PCPs) decisions to recommend e-cigarettes to their patients for tobacco use cessation; (2) Estimate the prevalence …

Uncertainty Communication Solution In Neutrosophic Key, Florentin Smarandache, Bianca Tedorescu, Mirela Teodorescu

Branch Mathematics and Statistics Faculty and Staff Publications

This study is the first step of a research that points out the solving of uncertainties in process analysis. The research is based on Neutrosophy Theory (Smarandache, 1995), a new concept of states treatment with a generous applicability to sciences, like artificial intelligence (Vladareanu et al, 2014).

She Got Her Period: Men's Knowledge And Perspectives On Menstruation, Ishwari Rajak

All Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Other Capstone Projects

Research show that men and women often do not converse freely about menstruation. Shame, taboos and myths associated with menstruation silence the conversation. Silencing conversations about menstruation have negative consequences on women, including: objectification of women's bodies, stereotyping of women as physically, morally and emotionally inferior to men and to extreme cases women losing their uterus due to unhygienic means of menstrual management. On the one hand, not addressing menstruation openly has devastating consequences on women but on the other hand, most men seem oblivious about the impacts on women. Therefore, it is important to engage in open dialogues about …

Elaborating Patient Agency In Breast-Cancer Care: A Grounded Theoretical Analysis Of Patients Asserting Treatment Preferences, Rachel Sofia Erdman

Dissertations and Theses

Successful physician-patient communication is increasingly being acknowledged as a vital aspect of healthcare today. Research in the field has not examined all aspects of patient-centered care and the aspects that have been studied have not been grounded in actual patient action. The research done in the field has largely been studied quantitatively. The present thesis research attempts to contribute to the gap in the field of physician-patient communication by qualitatively examining patient assertiveness. This thesis examines conversations between women in Portland, Oregon recently diagnosed with breast cancer talking to their surgeons about their diagnoses and treatment options. Using grounded qualitative …

Implementing And Evaluating A Clinical Information Interface Between An Electronic Medical Record And A Patient Classification System, Tanya Osborne-Mckenzie

Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) Projects

As a result of the Affordable Care Act and the Institute of Medicine’s initiatives, hospitals are challenged to improve outcomes as efficiently as possible. How does the national initiative of RNs partnering with other healthcare professionals to improve the quality of patient care at a lower cost, cascade down to individual organizations? One answer may come by focusing on nurse staffing in acute care hospitals. Considering the impact RNs have on patient quality outcomes and the bottom line of hospitals, appropriate management of the RN workforce is one of the most important areas hospitals can focus on in order to …

Combating Hiv/Aids In Marginalized Communities: Papua And West Papua Provinces, Indonesia, Bani Cheema

Master's Theses

My study focuses on foreign aid and local initiatives for HIV/AIDS prevention in eastern Indonesia using the provinces of Papua and West Papua as a case study. The two provinces are home to indigenous tribal groups that are socioeconomically marginalized and most affected by the epidemic. My research investigates behavior change communication as a principal strategy undertaken by multiple organizations for HIV/AIDS prevention in this region. I take a qualitative approach by examining the effectiveness of this strategy in local communities and by revealing social and cultural barriers that impede success. Obstacles that negatively impact prevention efforts include structural violence, …

Launching A Virtual Decision Lab: Development And Field-Testing Of A Web-Based Patient Decision Support Research Platform, Aubri S. Hoffman, Hilary A. Llewellyn-Thomas, Anna N. A. Tosteson, Annette M. Oconnor

Dartmouth Scholarship

Over 100 trials show that patient decision aids effectively improve patients’ information comprehension and values-based decision making. However, gaps remain in our understanding of several fundamental and applied questions, particularly related to the design of interactive, personalized decision aids. This paper describes an interdisciplinary development process for, and early field testing of, a web-based patient decision support research platform, or virtual decision lab, to address these questions.

Identifying Professional Development Opportunities For Remote Healthcare Interpreters On A Shared Network, Suzanne M. Couture

Instructional Design Capstones Collection

Many healthcare organizations are faced with the challenge of complying with an unfunded mandate to provide language services free of charge to individuals with limited English proficiency or those who are deaf or hard of hearing. One method of increasing efficiencies and reducing disparities for these vulnerable populations is to provide access to remote audio/video interpreters on a shared network. The Health Care Interpreter Network (HCIN) is a non-profit organization based in California that comprises more than forty member hospitals and offers service in twenty languages. To support the need for on-going professional development of HCIN’s interpreters, a front-end analysis …

Women's Health And Abortion Culture In China: Policy, Perception And Practice , Naomi Bouchard

Independent Study Project (ISP) Collection

Since China’s implementation of the Family Planning Policy in 1973, much research has been dedicated to analyzing the effects of a policy that strictly controls the reproductive lives of a population now comprisedof 1.35 billion people. Analyses focus on the rise of abortions in China, now at an annual rate of at least 13 million, but offer little insight into the perceptions of the population in regard to China’s new abortion culture. This study aims to shed light on current perceptions through a range of in-person, qualitative interviews conducted in Kunming, China. The study is limited to a sample size …

I Get By With A Little Help From My Friends: A Qualitative Study Of Nurse Close Work Friendship And Social Support, Jennifer Ptacek

Masters Theses

The nursing profession is laden with numerous job, emotional labor, and communication stressors, which come from both patients and healthcare organizations. These frequent and simultaneous pressures can result in nurse burnout and turnover (Tracy, 2009). Socially supportive workplace communication has been identified as a solution to reducing nurse stress, burnout, and turnover (Apker & Ray, 2003), but has not specifically considered social support in nurse work friendships. A mixed qualitative method study was conducted with five nurse best friend pairs, using job observations of participants’ work friendship communication and individual and joint interviews. Two major communication themes emerged from the …

Social Media Marketing For The Medical Industry: Best Practices To Avoid Legal And Ethical Issues, Jessica Padilla

Journalism

This study analyzes the best social media practices for medical industry professionals and the proper and ideal uses for social media. It analyzes the public relations functions of social media—relationship building, reputation management, and crisis communication. With the constant rise of social media as a widely-used medium for marketing comes increased potential for damage to a medical business’ reputation, loss of medical licensing, or lawsuits if practitioners do not act within the lines of legal and ethical standards. Medical offices must have an online presence to remain relevant and build and keep relationships with new and current patients. This study …

Testing A Risky Sex Behavior Intervention Pilot Website For Adolescents, Randall Starling, Don Helme, Jessica A. Nodulman, Angela D. Bryan, David B. Buller, Robert Lewis Donohew, W. Gill Woodall

Communication Faculty Publications

BACKGROUND AND PURPOSE: Each year, teenagers account for about one-fifth of all unintended pregnancies in the United States. As such, delivering sexual risk reduction educational materials to teens in a timely fashion is of critical importance. Web-based delivery of these materials shows promise for reaching and persuading teens away from risky sexual and substance abuse behaviors. The purpose of this study was to pilot test a web-based program aimed at reducing risky sexual behavior and related outcomes among adolescents in a high school setting.

METHODS: A beta-test of the website was conducted in three public schools in New Mexico, USA …

Impact Of An Interprofessional Communication Course On Nursing, Medical, And Pharmacy Students’ Communication Skill Self-Efficacy Beliefs, Nicholas E. Hagemeier, Rick Hess, Kyle S. Hagen, Emily L. Sorah

ETSU Faculty Works

Objective. To describe an interprofessional communication course in an academic health sciences center and to evaluate and compare interpersonal and interprofessional communication self-efficacy beliefs of medical, nursing, and pharmacy students before and after course participation, using Bandura’s self-efficacy theory as a guiding framework.

Design. First-year nursing (n=36), first-year medical (n=73), and second-year pharmacy students (n=83) enrolled in an interprofessional communication skills development course voluntarily completed a 33-item survey instrument based on Interprofessional Education Collaborative (IPEC) core competencies prior to and upon completion of the course during the fall semester of 2012.

Assessment. Nursing students entered the course with higher interpersonal …

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 …

Enhancing Patient Experience By Training Local Trainers In Fundamental Communication Skills, Calvin L. Chou, Laura Cooley, Ellen Pearlman, Maysel Kemp White

Patient Experience Journal

Medical centers have a vested interest in improving patient experience through enhancing communication skills. The American Academy on Communication in Healthcare has helped institutions across the country establish internal expertise through delivering train-the-trainer programs. The phases of the program include preparing for implementation of the program, having program participants undergo a fundamental communication skills workshop and then understanding the theoretical and practical rationales underlying the workshop, setting up practice sessions for participants to achieve mastery, and ensuring long-term viability of a communication skills improvement initiative. Outcomes for participants include increased self-assessed personal communication skill, optimism about rolling out a communication …

Assessing Technologies For Information-Seeking On Prostate Cancer Screening By Low-Income Men, Susan W. Mcroy, Emily M. Cramer, Hayeon Song

Journal of Patient-Centered Research and Reviews

Purpose: This paper presents a multipart investigation of the benefits and challenges in deploying automated question-answering as an alternative to web-based searching to provide information about prostate cancer screening for low-income men age 40 years and older.

Methods: The study comprised: 1) a survey assessing current use of the Internet, mobile phones and texting; 2) a controlled observational study of both web-based searching and automated question-answering for information about prostate cancer; and 3) a formative field study in which subjects interacted with a health department nurse using text messages.

Results: Survey results suggest the target population has greater access to, …