Opportunities and Rationale for Asian American Representation in 4th Grade Social Studies TEKS

As retired United States Air Force Major Arthur D. Jacob (n.d.) notes, “Their story must not be forgotten. It deserves to be told. To date, it remains shrouded in history.” As educators, we have the power to change that for our students and help them see themselves in the curriculum. In this paper, the researchers completed a structured vignette analysis to position themselves as they analyzed the 4th grade social studies TEKS for opportunities to combat the hegemonic narrative. We reviewed the TEKS to look for standards that allowed for countering this narrative and emerged with a practitioner plan for implementation that addresses the silenced narrative of Crystal City Japanese Internment Camp in Texas

A Community-Academic Partnership to Improve Access to Healthy Foods in Low-Income Communities

Purpose: Access to healthy foods is often limited in low-income communities and prevents the adoption of a healthy diet needed to meet national dietary recommendations, reduce chronic disease, and prevent obesity. The Healthy Harvest Community Gardening Partnership is a community-based participatory research program between faith-based organizations, academic institutions, local philanthropy, and other non-profit institutions, created in 2009 for improving access to healthy foods and quality of life through a community garden network. Methods: Healthy Harvest uses a social ecological framework combining individual, interpersonal, and community level influences into a single program, and employs a train-the-trainer approach for providing expertise in gardening and community-capacity building to low-income, predominately African American communities. Results: To date, garden sites have been constructed at 4 churches (average church size N=353, 98% African American) and one school (287 students, 98% African American) in an inner city, low-income community. Liaisons from each garden site have attended six monthly trainings on gardening and community-capacity building. Monthly evaluations of gardening activity indicate that a total of 139 individual garden plots have been constructed of which 101 show signs of use, 79 have visible plants, 31 have visible produce of which approximately 300 lbs have been donated to local food pantries. A total of 53 community garden volunteer workdays have been conducted with over 90 volunteers participating in garden maintenance and community outreach. Initial data demonstrate the feasibility of this approach for increasing access to fruits and vegetables in low-income communities. Qualitative data is being collected to evaluate the effect of Healthy Harvest on lifestyle (physical activity and diet) and social (perceptions of neighborhood, feelings of connectedness) variables. Furthermore, Healthy Harvest plans to develop a system for distributing produce, therefore providing access to healthy foods on a broader scale. Conclusions: Overall, this novel community-academic partnership has demonstrated initial feasibility to improve access to healthy foods in low-income communities and could provide a model for other communities to prevent obesity

Care Coordination as Part of the Discharge Plan to Support Community Reintegration of Individuals with Stroke Living in Appalachian Rural Communities

Studies indicate a high incidence of readmission within the first 12 months post-discharge home following stroke. In addition, there is a limited awareness of healthcare services, community resources, and lack of access to information in rural communities. Previous work from our group has demonstrated the need for community-based navigational support during community reintegration for survivors of stroke. The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of providing community health navigation to facilitate continued communications with healthcare providers and linkages to services and community resources for survivors of stroke in Appalachian rural communities

A Pilot Study of the Effects of a Tailored Web-Based Intervention on Promoting Fruit and Vegetable Intake in African American Families

Background: The current study examined the effects of a Web-based tailored parenting intervention on increasing fruit and vegetable intake in African American families. Methods: Forty-seven African American parents (mean age, 41.32±7.30; 93.6% female) with an adolescent (mean age, 13.32±1.46; 59.6% female) participated in a Web-based autonomy-support parenting tailored intervention session to increase both parent and youth fruit and vegetable (F a Web-based information phase, and a goal-setting and action plan phase. Self-reported measures of parenting skills [based on autonomy (choice), support, and communication] and FandV intake (assessed as average daily intake) were assessed at baseline and at a 1-week follow-up session. Results: There was a significant increase in parents' self-reports of daily fruit intake from pretest to the 1-week follow-up. Parent and adolescent combined FandV intake also significantly increased from pretest to 1-week follow-up. Overall, parents reported that the program was easy to navigate and that they enjoyed participating in the Web-based online program. Conclusions: Current findings provide preliminary support for an autonomy-support parent tailored Web-based program for improving dietary intake in African American families.Peer Reviewedhttps://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/140334/1/chi.2013.0070.pd

Care Coordination for Community Transitions for Individuals Post-Stroke Returning to Low-Resource Rural Communities

High rates of hospital readmissions have been shown within 12 months post-discharge from inpatient rehabilitation following stroke. Multiple studies coupled with our previous work indicate a need for care support for stroke survivors’ transitions to the community. The Kentucky Care Coordination for Community Transitions (KC3T) program was developed to provide access to medical, social, and environmental services to support community transitions for individuals with neurological conditions and their caregivers living in Kentucky. This program assessment was conducted to determine the effectiveness of using a specially trained community health worker to support community transitions. Thirty acute stroke survivors were enrolled in this program between July 2015 and May 2016. Data collection included: incidence of comorbidities; access to healthcare, insurance, medical equipment (DME), and medications; type of follow-up education provided; and number of 30-day rehospitalizations and Emergency Department (ED) visits. Participants required navigation in their home and community transition with support in: patient-provider communication; insurance support; accessing follow-up care; education on managing chronic health conditions, the stroke process, transfers and mobility; and accessing DME and essential medications. There were no 30-day ED visits for the KC3T participants and only one 30-day hospital readmission, which was not stroke-related. Individuals returning to rural communities following a stroke require, but often don’t receive, follow-up education on chronic disease management, support in navigating the healthcare system and accessing essential resources. KC3T’s navigator program appears to be effective in supporting the community transitions of individuals poststroke

Operant Assessment of Visual Acuity in the Profoundly Retarded

72 leaves. Advisor: Dr. Kenneth E. LloydThe problem. Traditional subjective visual acuity tests are not effective in testing nonverbal, profoundly retarded individuals. The present paper investigated the use of operant conditioning procedures in determining threshold crossings and compared the effectiveness of the staircase and descending series stimulus presentation methods, using a two-response paradigm. Procedure. Three profoundly retarded and two mildly retarded individuals were trained to discriminate between a right-facing E and an upward-facing E, using stimulus fading and reinforcement procedures. The participants indicated the presence of a given stimulus by responding on one of two levers or drawing the E as displayed. Correct responses resulted in praise and an edible reinforcer. Incorrect responses were followed by a 10 second time-out and the reinforcer was withheld. Findings. Correct responses reached the established criterion during the right-facing E versus blank card condition only after the implementation of instructions and time-out procedures. The upward-facing E was faded onto the blank card and the distance from the participants was increased to ten feet without significant difficulties. The threshold crossings obtained with three participants were reliable within and across the type of stimulus presentation method used. The threshold crossings produced with the staircase method were similar to or lower than those produced with the descending-series method. The threshold estimations obtained with the present procedures were similar to or lower than those obtained by an ophthalmologist using the Snellen chart. Conclusions. The instructions and time-out procedures appeared to be significant variables in obtaining stimulus control over responding. The present procedures must be further refined before application to applied settings due to the extended time spent in training. Recommendations. Procedures for testing visual acuity in the profoundly retarded must include a means to promote attention to the stimuli. Future research should investigate the significance of simple instructions and time-out procedures and testing between sessions (Test B) in visual acuity assessments

Losartan improves exercise tolerance in patients with diastolic dysfunction and a hypertensive response to exercise

AbstractOBJECTIVESThe aim of the study was to test the hypothesis that angiotensin II (Ang II) blockade would improve exercise tolerance in patients with diastolic dysfunction and a marked increase in systolic blood pressure (SBP) during exercise.BACKGROUNDDiastolic dysfunction may be exacerbated during exercise, especially if there is a marked increase in SBP. Angiotensin II may contribute to the hypertensive response to exercise and impair diastolic performance.METHODSWe performed a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study of two weeks of losartan (50 mg q.d.) on exercise tolerance and quality of life. The subjects were 20 patients, mean age 64 ± 10 years with normal left ventricular systolic function (EF >50%), no ischemia on stress echocardiogram, mitral flow velocity E/A <1, normal resting SBP (<150 mm Hg), and a hypertensive response to exercise (SBP >200 mm Hg). Exercise echocardiograms (Modified Bruce Protocol) and the Minnesota Living With Heart Failure questionnaire were administered at baseline, and after each two-week treatment period, separated by a two-week washout period.RESULTSResting blood pressure (BP) was unaltered by placebo or losartan. During control, patients were able to exercise for 11.3 ± 2.5 (mean ± SD) min, with a peak exercise SBP of 226 ± 24 mm Hg. After two weeks of losartan, baseline BP was unaltered, but peak SBP during exercise decreased to 193 ± 27 mm Hg (p < 0.05 vs. baseline and placebo), and exercise time increased to 12.3 ± 2.6 min (p < 0.05 vs. baseline and placebo). With placebo, there was no improvement in exercise duration (11.0 ± 2.0 min) or peak exercise SBP (217 ± 26 mm Hg). Quality of life improved with losartan (18 ± 22, p < 0.05) compared to placebo (22 ± 26).CONCLUSIONSIn patients with Doppler evidence of diastolic dysfunction at rest and a hypertensive response to exercise, Ang II receptor blockade blunts the hypertensive response to exercise, increases exercise tolerance and improves quality of life

Pre-Operative Education for Total Knee Replacement: A Pilot Survey

Purpose: The structure of preoperative education programs used nationally for patients prior to total knee replacement (TKR) surgery has not been identified previously, thus hospitals across the United States lack a common standard for this preoperative education to ensure best patient outcomes. The purpose of this pilot survey study was to describe the content, providers, and delivery methods currently utilized to deliver preoperative education for total knee replacement in the United States. Method: Data were collected using an online survey developed by the authors based on review of literature and 3 preoperative programs and was distributed through the Research Electronic Data Capture (REDCap). The survey consisted of 16 questions, including 12 closed-ended and 4 open-ended items. Participants were identified through convenience sampling using contacts of the first author and an Internet search of hospitals that provided preoperative education. Seven professional participants from nursing, physical therapy, and occupational therapy completed the survey. Descriptive statistics were used for data analysis of the 12 quantitative questions to determine frequency and percentages of responses. Responses on the 4 open- ended survey items as well as participant responses of “other” for question items were recorded and collated from individual survey responses. Results: Preoperative education provider teams for total knee replacements most frequently consisted of nursing, physical therapy, and occupational therapy staff. Most education programs were provided 2 weeks prior to surgery in a group format with the majority of programs being delivered in a single session, lasting between 1 and 1.5 hours. Verbal and written instruction were the most commonly utilized methods to deliver education. Individual patient programs included a variety of topics, ranging from the expectations while in the hospital, self-care, adaptive equipment, and home safety, being some of the most commonly included content. Conclusions: With this pilot study, we have provided a framework to describe the structure of preoperative total knee replacement education nationally, which can be used to guide a future large-scale survey to fully describe the content, providers, and delivery methods of preoperative education for this population across the United States, using a representative sample