Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Patient Enrollment In Medical Trials: Selection Bias In A Randomized Experiment, Anup Malani

Anup Malani

Self-selection can bias estimates of treatment effects from randomized experiments if one is interested in extrapolating results to the general population. This paper notes that there is an isomorphism between the Roy model for the sorting of workers into sectors and the decision of subjects to participate in randomized experiments. The main implication is that, as the probability of receiving active treatment rises, patients who are less optimistic about new treatment will begin to enroll and estimates of treatment effects will fall. This, in turn, implies that selection bias is positive. These findings are confirmed with data from trials of …

Shelter Care, Richard N. Bradley

Richard N Bradley

Unless exclusively serving an adult population, shelters must ensure that the physical and mental health needs of children are appropriately addressed, and that children remain with their families or caregivers to the maximum extent possible.

On-Line Social Decision Making And Antisocial Behavior: Some Essential But Neglected Issues, Reid Griffith Fontaine

Reid G. Fontaine

The last quarter century has witnessed considerable progress in the scientific study of social information processing (SIP) and aggressive behavior in children. SIP research has shown that social decision making in youth is particularly predictive of antisocial behavior, especially as children enter and progress through adolescence. In furtherance of this research, more sophisticated, elaborate models of on-line social decision making have been developed, by which various domains of evaluative judgment are hypothesized to account for both responsive decision making and behavior, as well as self-initiated, instrumental functioning. However, discussions of these models have neglected a number of key issues. In …

Activating An Activist: Using Metaphors To Study Occupational Transitions., C. Arnold, Lynn Shaw Dr., G. Landry

Lynn Shaw

No abstract provided.

Older Workers With Hearing Loss: Practice Innovations Through Interprofessional Collaboration., Lynn Shaw Dr., M.B. Jennings, D. Fok, M. Cheesman, H. Hodgins, A. Kuchar

Lynn Shaw

No abstract provided.

Mainstreaming Hiv/Aids In Settlement Development Planning, Christine Wamsler

Christine Wamsler

No abstract provided.

Burn Disaster Response Planning: An Urban Region's Approach, Roger W. Yurt, Eliot J. Lazar, Nicole E. Leahy, Nicholas V. Cagliuso

Nicholas V. Cagliuso Sr., Ph.D.

The objective of this study was to describe a draft response plan for the tiered triage, treatment, or transportation of 400 adult and pediatric victims (50/million population) of a burn disaster for the first 3 to 5 days after injury using regional resources. Review of meeting minutes and the 11 deliverables of the draft response plan was performed. The draft burn disaster response plan developed for NYC recommended: 1) City hospitals or regional burn centers within a 60- mile distance be designated as tiered Burn Disaster Receiving Hospitals (BDRH); 2) these hospitals be divided into a four-tier system, based on …

Need For Performance Metrics In Hospital Emergency Management, Eliot J. Lazar, Nicholas V. Cagliuso, Kristine M. Gebbie

Nicholas V. Cagliuso Sr., Ph.D.

An extraordinary number of health care quality and patient safety indicators have been developed for hospitals and other health care institutions; however, few meaningful indicators exist for comprehensive assessment of hospital emergency management. Although health care institutions have invested considerable resources in emergency management preparedness, the need for universally accepted, evidence-based performance metrics to measure these efforts remains largely unfulfilled. We suggest that this can be remediated through the application of traditional health care quality paradigms, coupled with novel analytic approaches to develop meaningful performance data in hospital emergency management.

Important, But Odd And Obscure, Reasons To Use The Library, Maxine G. Schmidt

Maxine G Schmidt

No abstract provided.

Development Of Proportional Reasoning: Where Young Children Go Wrong, Ty W. Boyer, Susan C. Levine, Janellen Huttenlocher

Ty W. Boyer

Previous studies have found that children have difficulty solving proportional reasoning problems involving discrete units until 10 to 12 years of age, but can solve parallel problems involving continuous quantities by 6 years of age. The present studies examine where children go wrong in processing proportions that involve discrete quantities. A computerized proportional equivalence choice task was administered to kindergartners through 4th-graders in Study 1, and to 1st- and 3rd-graders in Study 2. Both studies involved 4 between-subjects conditions that were formed by pairing continuous and discrete target proportions with continuous and discrete choice alternatives. In Study 1, target and …

Mental Health And Business Professionals’ Employment-Related Perceptions Of Individuals With Psychological Disorders, Kevan Mock

Theses, Dissertations and Capstones

Mental health and business professionals’ employment-related perceptions of 6 psychological disorders (i.e. alcoholism, insomnia, major depression, social phobia, post- traumatic stress disorder, obesity) were examined. The 33 professionals (n = 18 mental health; n = 15 business) evaluated each disorder on 18 employment-related dimensions (e.g. employability, productivity, trainability). Specifically, they evaluated the perceived likelihood of each of the 18 employment-related dimensions being associated with each of the 6 psychological disorders (1 = not likely; 5 = highly likely). Perceptions of the 33 mental health and business professionals were compared with the perceptions of college students (n = 106) obtained in …

Parent Perceptions Of School-Based Support For Students With Traumatic Brain Injuries, Susan C. Davies, Shari L. Wade, Michelle Wu

Counselor Education and Human Services Faculty Publications

Primary objective: To determine whether parents believe schools provided necessary support to their children who sustained traumatic brain injuries.

Research design: Interview, to determine parent perceptions

Methods and procedure: Sixty-six primary caregivers of school-age children who experienced a TBI within the previous 2 years were interviewed regarding what types of special support were needed by and provided for their children during the 3 months immediately following school reentry. They then rated how difficult it was to obtain support or services from the school and how satisfied they were with the support or services.

Main outcomes and results …

Santa Clara Magazine, Volume 50 Number 3, Winter 2008, Santa Clara University

Santa Clara Magazine

12 - ONE GOLD...AND A HOST OF MEMORIES By Ann Killion. A Beijing Olympic scrapbook.

16 - GOD AND WOMAN AT YALE By Steven Boyd Saum. For more than 300 years, the role of Yale University’s chaplain has never been filled by a woman, a layperson, or a Catholic—until now. Meet Sharon M. K. Kugler ’81.

20 - WITH RENEWED VIGOR AND ZEAL By Michael G. Boughton, S.J. How six decrees define the mission of the Society of Jesus in the years to come.

22 - LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT By Michael S. Malone ’75, MBA ’77. Without meaning to, …

Workplace Alcohol Screening, Brief Intervention, And Eaps: Big (Brief Intervention Group) Initiative, Eric Goplerud, Tracy Mcpherson

Center for Integrated Behavioral Health Policy

No abstract provided.

Hazardous Chemicals And Your Body: Eating Right For A Healthier You, Lisa Gaetke, Carolyn Hofe, Anna G. Hoover, Stephanie Jenkins, Lindell Ormsbee, Ashley Osbourne

Anna G. Hoover

No abstract provided.

Urban Containment Policies And Physical Activity A Time–Series Analysis Of Metropolitan Areas, 1990–2002, Semra Aytur, Daniel A. Rodriguez, Kelly R. Evenson, Diane J. Catellier

Health Management & Policy

Background: Urban containment policies attempt to manage the location, character, and timing of growth to support a variety of goals such as compact development, preservation of greenspace, and efficient use of infrastructure. Despite prior research evaluating the effects of urban containment policies on land use, housing, and transportation outcomes, the public health implications of these policies remain unexplored. This ecologic study examines relationships among urban containment policies, state adoption of growthmanagement legislation, and population levels of leisure and transportation-related physical activity in 63 large metropolitan statistical areas from 1990 to 2002. Methods: Multiple data sources were combined, including surveys of …

Exploring Positive Women's Lives In Namakkal District, India, P. Kousalya, Deepika Ganju

Reproductive Health

This report describes an initiative that was undertaken to document the experiences of HIV-positive ever-married women in Namakkal district, Tamil Nadu, India. The initiative sought to explore the circumstances in which women learned about their HIV status; their feelings on finding out they were HIV-positive; the nature of husband–wife relationships prior to and following disclosure of women’s HIV status; the extent of support or discrimination that women experienced from family members, friends, and neighbors; treatment-seeking behaviors; and women’s perspectives about ways in which the multiple needs of HIV-infected women can be met. Drawing on the testimonies of these women gathered …

Meeting The Family Planning Needs Of Postpartum Women, Ricardo Vernon

Reproductive Health

The first days, weeks, and months after a delivery represent a period of substantial information and service needs for both mother and child, including treatment of hemorrhage and infections, breastfeeding information and support, nutritional complements and micronutrients, immunizations for children and mothers, counseling for managing intimate partner violence and depression, and, most importantly, contraception. In areas of high HIV prevalence, contraceptives and antiretroviral therapy are especially critical elements of postpartum care. Yet despite its strategic importance, few organizations have made it a priority to address women's reproductive health and fertility needs during the year following delivery. The situation is compounded …

Promoting Healthy Timing And Spacing Of Births In India Through A Community-Based Approach, M.E. Khan, Mary Philip Sebastian, Usha Sharma, Rukma Idnani, Kaushal Kumari, Bharati Maheshwari, Shahid Ashraf

Reproductive Health

The Indian Family Welfare Program, though successful in increasing contraceptive use among couples who have achieved their desired family size, has failed in educating people about the importance and need of using contraceptive methods for spacing births. With its Indian collaborators, the Population Council’s Frontiers in Reproductive Health (FRONTIERS) program undertook a study to test a model to increase use of postpartum contraception among young pregnant women with a parity of 0 or 1. The study showed that the Behavior Change Communication (BCC) model developed to promote Healthy Timing and Spacing of Pregnancy (HTSP) was effective in promoting the lactational …

Dominican Republic, Haiti, Nicaragua: Women Living With Hiv Have Unmet Family Planning Needs, Population Council

Reproductive Health

Women living with HIV in the Dominican Republic, Haiti, and Nicaragua are marginalized in many ways, including their access to family planning (FP) services. Making FP services accessible to persons living with HIV (PLWH) is one of four key strategies that WHO promotes in its comprehensive approach to prevent HIV infections in infants and young children. This strategy also increases the coverage and quality of FP services among a population commonly underserved and at high risk of unplanned pregnancy. Expanded access to antiretroviral therapy in many developing countries has improved the life expectancies and health of many PLWH who are …

Profile Of Abortion Seekers In Ghana And Their Decision-Making Processes, Philomena Nyarko, Cletus Adohinzin, Saumya Ramarao, Placide Tapsoba, Ayorinde Ajayi

Reproductive Health

In 2006, a consortium of agencies, including the Population Council, came together to provide technical and financial support to the Government of Ghana in the rollout of comprehensive abortion care (CAC) services. The consortium collaborated with the government in expanding women’s access to modern family planning and CAC. The consortium’s program, Reducing Maternal Mortality and Morbidity (R3M), aims to reduce unwanted pregnancy and severe complications and deaths caused by unsafe abortion. The formative research in this report was undertaken to provide a profile of beneficiaries, their needs for information and services, their decision-making process in seeking care, and the quality …

High Plantar Pressures And Foot Pain: Are They Contributing To Falls In Older Adults?, Karen J. Mickle, Bridget J. Munro, S. R. Lord, Hylton B. Menz, Julie R. Steele

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Falls, the leading cause of injuries in older adults, typically occur during ambulation. As such, gait and balance abnormalities are frequently cited as falls risk factors. During normal gait, the foot is the only source of direct contact with the ground and, therefore, it plays a substantial role in maintaining stability and balance. Foot pain has been found to impair balance and gait in women (Leveille, 1998), and has been shown to be falls risk factor in institutionalised elders (Menz, 2006), however it unknown whether foot pain is a risk factor for falling in community-dwelling older adults. As foot pain …

Can Reductions In Bra Band Pressure Increase Comfort During Exercise In Lumpectomy Patients?, S. A. Gho, J. R. Steele, Bridget J. Munro

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Breast cancer is a prevalent, life-impacting disease. With increasing incidence rates and a growing number of survivors, greater efforts must be directed towards improving the physical functioning and quality of life (QoL) of women living with a diagnosis of breast cancer. Although exercise interventions have been reported to provide these benefits, without the development of adverse events. many impediments to exercise exist (Rogers, 2007). While several psychosocial or physical capacity impediments to exercise have been investigated, a recent study found that a substantial proportion (70.3%) of women living with a breast cancer diagnosis reported experiencing bra discomfort during exercise (Gho, …

Dietary (N-3) Long Chain Polyunsaturated Fatty Acids Inhibit Ischemia And Reperfusion Arrhythmias And Infarction In Rat Heart Not Enhanced By Ischemic Preconditioning, G. G. Abdukeyum, A. J. Owen, P. L. Mclennan

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Ischaemic preconditioning is a powerful cardioprotective phenomenon. Cardioprotection afforded by (n-3) polyunsaturated fatty acids (PUFA) also suggests preconditioning-like effects. This study examined the effects of dietary fish oil on heart function and injury during myocardial ischemia and reperfusion and interactions between diet and ischemic preconditioning (IP). Male Wistar rats were fed diets containing 10% fat by weight including either 7% fish oil + 3% olive oil (n-3) PUFA); 5% sunflower seed oil + 5% olive oil ((n-6) PUFA); or 7% saturated fat-rich beef tallow + 3% olive oil (SF) for 6 weeks. Isolated perfused hearts subjected to 30min regional ischemia …

A Self-Administered Dietary Assessment Website For Use In Primary Health Care: Usability Testing And Evaluation, Y. C. Probst, Linda C. Tapsell

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

A dietary assessment website for use in the primary healthcare setting has been developed. The website allows patients, referred from their GP, to self-report their dietary intake. Data from the website feeds to a dietitian who develops individualised dietary advice for the patient. The aim of this paper is to describe the usability testing of the dietary assessment website with its potential users. Testing was broken into two phases. Forty-two free-living adults with metabolic syndrome volunteered, 17 completed phase one and 10 completed phase two, with a 64% rate of completion. Phase one participants spoke aloud as they progressed through …

The Effects Of Antipsychotics On The Density Of Cannabinoid Receptors In The Dorsal Vagal Complex Of Rats: Implications For Olanzapine-Induced Weight Gain, Katrina Weston-Green, Xu-Feng Huang, Mei Han, Chao Deng

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Some atypical antipsychotics clinically used to treat schizophrenia induce weight gain by unknown mechanisms. The dorsal vagal complex (DVC) of the brainstem and the endogenous cannabinoid system are implicated in the regulation of appetite signalling and food intake. We investigated whether antipsychotic drugs alter cannabinoid receptor-binding density in the DVC. Female Sprague–Dawley rats were treated with olanzapine, haloperidol, aripiprazole or vehicle for 1 wk (short-term) or 12 wk (chronic). Quantitative autoradiographic methods were employed to investigate the binding density of cannabinoid receptors in the DVC using a highly sensitive Beta Imager. Short-term olanzapine induced a significant 39% decrease in cannabinoid …

A Volunteer Feeding Assistance Program Can Improve Dietary Intakes Of Elderly Patients – A Pilot Study, K. Walton, P. Williams, J. Bracks, Q. Zheng, L. Pond, R. Smoothy, Linda C. Tapsell, M. Batterham, L. Vari

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Malnutrition is prevalent in elderly hospitalised patients and has been associated with longer lengths of stay (LOS), higher rates of complications and increased hospital costs. Feeding assistance has traditionally been the role of nurses, however with an ageing population and an ever-increasing workload there may not be sufficient time to ensure the nutritional care of all patients. A program in which trained volunteers assist, socialise and feed nutritionally vulnerable patients at lunch on weekdays has been initiated in a major suburban hospital in Sydney. The pilot study reported here aimed to evaluate the lunchtime assistance program in terms of dietary …

The Visual System And Primary Care Optometry - Encounters With The Extraordinary, Tommy Cleary, Melissa Lee, Binita Natha, Nuong Turner

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

This paper will examine three primary care presentations of disease at different levels of the basic visual pathway encountered over the last year at OPSM Wollongong. This approach will serve to engage the reader with both revision of the nature of vision and an open ended evidence based approach to optometry practice and education. Professional educational development is fundamental to our role as health professionals and this paper’s collaborative effort briefly explores and expresses the group dynamic as a team of optometrists approach this responsibility. The authors hope that this thematic group based approach is repeatable in other teams of …

The Importance Of Omega-3 Fatty Acids In Children's Diets, Barbara J. Meyer

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

The 3 main types of fat in our diet are saturated fat, monounsaturated fat and polyunsaturated fat. Saturated fatty acids do not contain any carbon double bonds, as the fatty acid is fully saturated with hydrogens. Monounsaturated fatty acids, as the name suggests contain fatty acids with one carbon double bond (i.e. mono meaning one) and likewise polyunsaturated fatty acids contain two or more carbon double bonds.

Computerized Dietary Assessments Compare Well With Interviewer Administered Diet Histories For Patients With Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus In The Primary Healthcare Setting, Y. C. Probst, S. Faraji, M. Batterham, D. G. Steel, Linda C. Tapsell

Faculty of Health and Behavioural Sciences - Papers (Archive)

Using a context-based case-control trial, 41 adults with type 2 diabetes mellitus were randomized into four groups to complete dietary assessments (computerized or interviewer administered) at 0, 2 and 8 weeks and food records at 0 and 2 weeks. Repeatability of reported energy, total fat, saturated, polyunsaturated and monounsaturated fatty acids between the computerized and interviewer administered methods were assessed using repeated measures ANOVA. Paired t-tests and Pearson's correlations determined relative validity of the assessments.