Master of Science

thesisAsthma, diabetes, and depression are chronic diseases managed through the Primary Care Clinical Program at Intermountain Healthcare. Primary Care Providers (PCPs) receive monthly reports on their patients with these conditions. The reporting paradigm focuses on individual diseases. PCPs have asked for a consolidated view of chronic disease, one that is patient-centric rather than disease-centric. A clinical decision support tool was developed using data from Intermountain's enterprise data warehouse. A cube was built to report on asthma, diabetes, and depression patients simultaneously. 183, 000 patients were included in the study. The tool measures PCP's adherence to best practices for chronic disease management. It also allows ad-hoc analysis of large data sets as well as actionable reports for PCPs to identify gaps in adherence to best practices. Primary care providers can view their patient populations with asthma, diabetes and depression in a consolidated report. The decision support tool was successfully built as a prototype for chronic disease management. The tool has the potential to scale and include many chronic conditions for reporting. It was demonstrated to executives, directors, and PCPs at Intermountain. Chronic disease management should be done with a patient focus rather than a disease focus. Information technology has an important role to play in the support of iv primary care and the medical home. Clinical decision support tools can be built to improve population-level and patient-level chronic disease management

Keys to Profitable Grain Sorghum Production in the Blackland Prairie and the Grand Prairie.

4 p

Domestic Violence: Not my Job, Not my Problem

The study examines incidences of domestic violence in several communities, police statistics and attitudes of medical professionals. Findings suggest a fundamental ethical dilemma in services for victims of domestic violence: medical professionals view domestic violence as a law enforcement issue, while police view it as a health issue. Victims are confronted by multiple systems each with opposing beliefs and attitudes about their respective roles

Yes we can! Improving medical screening for intimate partner violence through self-efficacy

BACKGROUND: Because individual practitioner's commitment to routine screening for IPV is the greatest predictor that women will be screened and referred for services, it is vital that screeners are dedicated, knowledgeable, and confident in their ability to recognize and assist victims of violence. Self-efficacy has been consistently linked in the literature with successful outcomes. Objectives: Intimate partner violence (IPV) constitutes a major public health problem. In the absence of Federal or State regulation, individual hospitals and systems are left to develop their own policies and procedures. This paper describes the policies and procedures developed by an American domestic violence counseling and resource center. Design: Post test surveys were used. Settings: Hospitals, medical offices, and medical schools surrounding an urban area in Pennsylvania participated. Participants: 320 nurses and medical students participated in training provided by a domestic violence center. METHODS: Post test surveys measured self-efficacy, the perceived usefulness of screening the accessibility of victim services, understanding of obstacles faced by victims, and knowledge-level regarding local IPV services. Participants also self-reported their gender, age, race, and position with the hospital system. RESULTS: Nurses and medical interns exhibit a wide range of self-efficacy regarding their ability to screen victims of intimate partner violence. Intimate partner violence (IPV) training yielded participants who were better informed about IPV services and the obstacles faced by victims. CONCLUSIONS: In the absence of uniform screening guidelines, hospitals, systems, and individual practitioners must be vigilant in screening procedures. Partnerships with women's centers may provide valuable resources and training that may ultimately improve patient care

Equilibrium operating performance of axial-flow turbojet engines by means of idealized analysis

A method of predicting equilibrium operating performance of turbojet engines has been developed, with the assumption of simple model processes for the components. Results of the analysis are plotted in terms of dimensionless parameters comprising critical engine dimensions and over-all operating variables. This investigation was made of an engine in which the ratio of axial inlet-air velocity to compressor-tip velocity is constant, which approximates turbojet engines with axial-flow compressors. Experimental correlation of the theory with data from several existing axial-flow-type engines was good and showed close correlation between calculated and measured performance

The Pursuit of Happiness

A thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Fine Arts at Virginia Commonwealth University

Aquatic Insects of Upper Three Runs Creek, Savannah River Plant, South Carolina. Part II: Diptera

As discussed in detail in Part I of this series (Morse et al. 1980), aquatic insects were collected biweekly from six locations on Upper Three Runs Creek, Savannah River Plant near Aiken, South Carolina, from September 1976 through August 1977, using light traps and semi-quantitative benthic sampling methods. See part I (Morse et al. 1980) for site and habitat descriptions and for a discussion of the methods used. In that publication, faunistic results were provided for all insect taxa except Diptera and relative abundance data for all but Diptera and non-dryopoid Coleoptera

Aquatic Insects of Upper Three Runs Creek, Savannah River Plant, South Carolina. Part 1: Orders other than Diptera

Upper Three Runs Creek and its tributary sources, located mostly on property of the Savannah River Plant near Aiken, South Carolina (Fig. 1), is well-known as an unpolluted, blackwater drainage system which is probably typical of smaller, Sandhills waterways of primeval southeastern North America. Probably no other stream at the Plant\u27s Flowing Stream Laboratory (or Thermal Effects Laboratory) has been documented by a research team from the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia (A.N.S.P.)