Health Equity

Setting standards of excellence for forensic nursing policy and practice

Jennifer Pocock — Thu, 07 Nov 2024 20:30:19 +0000

Setting standards of excellence for forensic nursing policy and practice Jennifer Pocock Thu, 11/07/2024 - 15:30

In This Story

Associate Professor in the School of Nursing Katherine Scafide appointed to the inaugural American Academy of Forensic Sciences Standards Board Forensic Nursing Consensus Body.

Katherine Scafide, Associate
Professor, School of Nursing

Katherine Scafide, associate professor in the School of Nursing, has been appointed a founding member of the Forensic Nursing Consensus Body (CB) of the American Academy of Forensic Sciences Standards Board (ASB). Scafide and a dedicated team will collaborate to advance national forensic nursing standards.

“It is an honor to be a part of the first Forensic Nursing Consensus Body and to elevate the field of forensic nursing, fueled by the shared passion among my colleagues,” said Scafide.

The American Academy of Forensic Sciences (AAFS) is a multidisciplinary professional organization that advances science and its application to the legal system. Consensus Bodies focus on establishing forensic standards in specific disciplines. Each body is dedicated to the widespread formulation, adoption, and enforcement of recognized standards.

The Forensic Nursing Consensus Body will be responsible for developing, reviewing, and voting upon standards, guidelines, technical reports, and best practice recommendations in this discipline of forensic science.

Scafide’s revolutionary research in alternate light source and bruise detection is pioneering inclusivity, justice, and equity for domestic violence survivors of color. Her unique expertise stems from 20 years of experience in forensic nursing practice and research.

Congratulations Dr. Scafide!

Topics

Forensic Sciences Program

Intimate Partner Violence

gender-based violence

Faculty and Staff News

New study shows that university students experienced increased psychological distress during COVID-19, but utilized fewer support services

mthomp7 — Wed, 30 Oct 2024 11:09:35 +0000

New study shows that university students experienced increased psychological distress during COVID-19, but utilized fewer support services mthomp7 Wed, 10/30/2024 - 07:09

Underrepresented students, particularly women of color, were less likely to receive mental health services during the pandemic.

PhD in Public Health candidate Elaine Russell and her mentor Kenneth Griffin, a professor in the Department of Global and Community Health, in ��AV’s College of Public Health, worked with Tolulope Abidogun, also a PhD in Public Health student, and former Global and Community Health professor Lisa Lindley, now of Lehigh University, to analyze data from the American College Health Association National College Health Assessment (ACHA-NCHA III) in an effort to understand how university students’ mental health needs changed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

PhD in Public Health candidate Elaine Russell studied how university students’ mental health needs changed during the COVID-19 pandemic.

“More U.S. college students suffered from mental health concerns during the pandemic, but fewer received necessary mental health treatment,” says Russell.

This study is the first to use a national dataset to examine changes in university students’ psychological well-being and their utilization of mental health services from pre-COVID-19 to peak pandemic. Russell and the research team found that, consistent with prior research related to diverse populations, racial/ethnic, gender, and sexual minority groups were at a greater risk of suffering from poor mental health during the pandemic. Additional findings revealed that, during the pandemic, students of color, especially female students of color, were less likely to receive mental health services.

“When developing innovative approaches to improving mental health outcomes on college campuses, it is important to be culturally sensitive and understand the diverse needs of the specific student population,” says Russell.

The study used data from before the COVID-19 pandemic (Fall 2019 and early Spring 2020) and during the pandemic (Spring 2021) to examine mental health symptoms and utilization of mental health services among university students. The sample was limited to full-time undergraduate students aged 18-24 attending four-year universities in the United States. In addition to analyzing the entire sample of university students, the team examined demographic subgroups based on race/ethnicity, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

Several validated psychological testing scales were used in the study to indicate students’ self-reported levels of psychological distress, loneliness, overall stress, psychological well-being, and resilience. Additional survey questions asked about COVID-19 specific stressors, including the students’ concern over themselves or their loved ones getting COVID-19 and being unable to spend time with the people they care about due to the pandemic lockdowns. Students’ use of mental health services within the 12 months preceding the survey was also assessed.

“These findings are important to better understand sub-groups who disproportionally suffer from severe psychological distress but may not be accessing the necessary care,” the study reports. While issues such as a lack of access to mental health services and discrimination within the health care system are undoubtedly factors in students’ reluctance to seek mental health care, the stigma surrounding mental health is also prohibitive.

“Improvements in mental health resources must also address stigma and empower students to access necessary care,” Russell says, specifying the use of peer health educators and making efforts to normalize mental health treatment may be effective prevention strategies.

Russell concludes by calling for future research to increase understanding of the barriers to mental health service use among high-risk university students.

“Impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on university students’ psychological distress, well-being, and utilization of mental health services in the United States: Populations at greatest risk” was published online in Frontiers in Public Health in October 2024.

The authors are Elaine Cooper Russell, ��AV; Tolulope M. Abidogun, ��AV; Lisa L. Lindley, Lehigh University; and Kenneth W. Griffin, ��AV.

In This Story

Kenneth W. Griffin, PhD, MPH

Topics

coronavirus; covid-19

College of Public Health

Maughan awarded Jeffress Trust grant to build Virginia school health & equity research consortium

Mary Cunningham — Mon, 19 Sep 2022 13:22:30 +0000

Maughan awarded Jeffress Trust grant to build Virginia school health & equity research consortium Mary Cunningham Mon, 09/19/2022 - 09:22

In This Story

Erin D. Maughan, PhD

Nearly $150,000 partnership-building grant to create collaborative research activities that advance health equity in Virginia schools

School health has been described as a “hidden health care system.” Policies and funding siloes in health and education often exclude school health, causing a gap in meeting the needs of the whole child and perpetuating health inequities. The Thomas F. and Kate Miller Jeffress Memorial Trust, Bank of America, Private Bank, Trustee awarded Associate Professor of Nursing Erin D. Maughan the Research Advancing Health Equity Grant, a two-year $149,868.57 partnership-building grant to address health inequities in Virginia schools.

To do this, Maughan will create the Virginia School Health & Equity Research Consortium (VSHERC), whose goal is to build a strong partnership, provide training for school nurses on health equity, and collect data needed to study root causes of health inequities in schools.

“The ultimate goal of this unique Consortium is to increase the percentage of Virginia K-12 students covered by a school health program that facilitates child health and does not contribute to child health inequities. This will ultimately lead to a healthier, more equitable Virginia,” says Maughan.

The Consortium will be co-led by Maughan and the Virginia Association of School Nurses (VASN), and is also supported by the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE) and the Virginia Department of Health (VDH). They hope to include non-governmental organizations that address children’s health and inequities in the future.

VSHERC will create a network across the commonwealth to examine state and district policies and infrastructures through the lens of health inequities. It will train school nurses and school health personnel and collect baseline information to determine how school health policies perpetuate health inequities, especially among students of color. The baseline data will be used to develop a future action-oriented research proposal.

The Jeffress Trust’s mission is to benefit the people of Virginia by investing in research geared towards improving the health of residents of Virginia while explicitly focusing on addressing health inequities.

Thumbnail photo by RODNAE Productions from Pexels

Topics

Scafide Discusses Alternate Light Source Research on NBC Nightly News

Mary Cunningham — Fri, 12 Aug 2022 14:08:26 +0000

Scafide Discusses Alternate Light Source Research on NBC Nightly News Mary Cunningham Fri, 08/12/2022 - 10:08

In This Story

Katherine Scafide, PhD, RN, FAAN

Dr. Katherine Scafide, associate professor of Nursing, spoke to NBC Nightly News about her research on Alternate Light Sources (ALS). The research helps identify hard-to-see bruising in darker skin tones, where it may otherwise be difficult or impossible to detect.

"By relying just on our eyes to see a bruise, unfortunately, we are creating a disparity in how we are able to detect injuries across diverse populations that can lead to differences in legal outcomes," said Scafide.

Watch the NBC Nightly News segment here or below.

Topics

Alternate Light Source

Fall Church (VA) Patch: Picks up the News Desk piece about NIHCM grant recipients Dr. Alison Cuellar and Dr. Leah Adams and their research on health equity and Medicaid telehealth policy.

eander6 — Thu, 10 Feb 2022 16:07:31 +0000

Fall Church (VA) Patch: Picks up the News Desk piece about NIHCM grant recipients Dr. Alison Cuellar and Dr. Leah Adams and their research on health equity and Medicaid telehealth policy. eander6 Thu, 02/10/2022 - 11:07

In This Story

Alison Evans Cuellar, PhD, MBA

��AV: NIHCM Grant Recipients Takes Collaborative Approach On Health Equity, Medicaid Telehealth Policy.

Topics

College of Health and Human Services

College of Health and Human Services Department of Health Administration and Policy

Social Work Faculty Rome Publishes New Textbook about Promoting Voting Rights

Anonymous — Tue, 18 Jan 2022 20:01:39 +0000

Social Work Faculty Rome Publishes New Textbook about Promoting Voting Rights Anonymous (not verified) Tue, 01/18/2022 - 15:01

Promote the Vote: Positioning Social Workers for Action asserts that supporting political participation is integral to social work practice.

The publication of a new book by Sunny Harris Rome, a professor in the Department of Social Work, comes at a critical time when voting rights are at risk in Virginia and around the nation. Her book details why social workers should be invested in promoting voter participation in the United States and how to support civic participation, particularly among low-turnout groups.

Promote the Vote: Positioning Social Workers for Action is the first social work textbook with a sole focus on voting. It asserts that empowering underrepresented communities to participate in the American political process is integral to social work practice.

Sunny Harris Rome, MSW, JD

“Engaging in voter education and mobilization is a great way for us as social workers to translate into action our commitment to social and economic justice,” says Rome, emphasizing the importance of her book’s timely publication. “We [as social workers] have an ethical mandate to be involved in social and political action and to involve others.”

The book lays out many of the current social and economic realities that define the United States in 2022. These include gun violence, hate crimes, and racial injustice, in addition to voter suppression and intimidation.

Furthermore, Promote the Vote, provides a brief history of voting right in the U.S. This section discusses key policies that expanded voting rights as well as setbacks that kept populations such as African Americans and women from the polls.

Connecting history to the present, Rome dedicates another section to current voting patterns and trends in the U.S. This chapter reveals that despite increased voter turnout in recent elections, huge disparities remain. Rome explores different theories to explain what motivates people to vote and how various characteristics such as political party affiliation, race, income, geography, and more influence the way an individual votes.

Additionally, Rome’s book offers research findings, practical information, and case examples from her own students on expanding civic participation. For example, a Master of Social Work student created informational flyers in English and Spanish on voting for an agency serving people in poverty. The flyers were included in about 6,000 food baskets distributed to low-income households throughout Washington, D.C.

Another one of Rome’s students, who worked at an adult detention center in Virginia, developed a workshop about voting rights for people who are incarcerated. Through this, many of the men at the detention center became aware of their eligibility.

The many real-world examples in the book illustrate the countless ways one can support equal participation in the voting process. Furthermore, Rome notes that another important strategy is to advocate for more voter-friendly policies.

“I believe we are in a moment of crisis. We are at a historical crossroads,” Rome says. “And the only way forward is to push back against voter suppression. Now more than ever, it’s really important that we all get involved.”

Rome notes there’s a long list of marginalized groups that remain underrepresented at the polls including people of color, people with disabilities, immigrants, those experiencing homelessness, LGBTQ+ people—particularly those who are transgender—and survivors of domestic violence. Since members of these groups are often social work clients, her book devotes a section to understanding their unique challenges as voters and suggests actionable solutions.

“Research shows that people who vote have better health and mental health outcomes,” says Rome about the positive impact of civic participation. “Communities are more cohesive. They experience less crime. Voter participation strengthens both individuals and communities.”

Topics

Jhumka Gupta Receives Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Evidence for Action Grant to Study Intimate Partner Violence in Forcibly Displaced Populations

Anonymous — Mon, 07 Jun 2021 19:49:06 +0000

Jhumka Gupta Receives Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Evidence for Action Grant to Study Intimate Partner Violence in Forcibly Displaced Populations Anonymous (not verified) Mon, 06/07/2021 - 15:49

In This Story

Jhumka Gupta, ScD

George Mason and the International Rescue Committee (IRC) awarded grant to help foster social empowerment and gender equity among forcibly displaced populations (FDPs).

Women participate in an event to launch an anti-domestic violence campaign sponsored by the IRC in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.

Jhumka Gupta, ScD, MPH, associate professor from ��AV Department of Global and Community Health and Jessica Dalpe, LMSW, from the International Rescue Committee (IRC) have been awarded a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Evidence for Action grant to help foster social empowerment and gender equity among forcibly displaced populations (FDPs). The IRC -developed Economic and Social Empowerment (EA$E) intervention has shown promise in reducing intimate partner violence and improving gender equity in Cote d’Ivoire. The program aims to reduce intimate partner violence among FDPs by looking at women’s sources of income and job opportunities as well as men’s perceptions of women’s value to the household (See Figure 1). Gupta and fellow principal investigator, Dalpe, will study whether the EA$E intervention can be adapted to FDPs in the United States. The investigators seek to identify programmatic components that are perceived as acceptable/not acceptable and to better understand and address potential barriers to implementing the intervention. Findings will lead to the formulation of data-informed recommendations for adapting EA$E for US-based FDPs.

“We look forward to further studying the relationship between economic and social empowerment and intimate partner violence – and how we can promote gender equity in US-based families who have been forcibly replaced. This project builds on my prior intervention research on the EA$E intervention with the IRC, and I am excited about adapting innovative gender equity interventions from abroad to the US context,” said Gupta.

“From listening to women and communities through IRC’s responses to conflict and crises we know that women face unique challenges in achieving gender equity within societies and within their homes. Women are less likely than men to have power in household decision-making while they continue to bear the weight of unpaid and unacknowledged caregiving in society. Through this partnership and support from Robert Wood Johnson Foundations’ Evidence for Action Approaches to Gender Equity Around the Globe, the IRC will work with ��AV to assess the viability of existing equity frameworks for women, and identify new interventions to ensure gender equity for women in displaced communities,” said Dalpe.

Adapting Economic and Social Empowerment (EA$E) gender equity groups for forcibly displaced populations

Disclaimer: Support for this work was provided by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of the Foundation.

Topics

Women's Health

Global Health

Health Equity

College of Health and Human Services Department of Global and Community Health

College of Health and Human Services

faculty spotlight

CHHS News

MPR News (audio): Dr. Len Nichols discusses the need for health care reform and equity.

Anonymous — Wed, 24 Mar 2021 18:30:22 +0000

MPR News (audio): Dr. Len Nichols discusses the need for health care reform and equity. Anonymous (not verified) Wed, 03/24/2021 - 14:30

Health economist Len Nichols on the ongoing need for health reform and equity

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In the Media

Health Equity

College of Health and Human Services Department of Health Administration and Policy

College of Health and Human Services

Health Equity

Setting standards of excellence for forensic nursing policy and practice

In This Story

Associate Professor in the School of Nursing Katherine Scafide appointed to the inaugural American Academy of Forensic Sciences Standards Board Forensic Nursing Consensus Body.

Topics

New study shows that university students experienced increased psychological distress during COVID-19, but utilized fewer support services

In This Story

Related Stories

Topics

Maughan awarded Jeffress Trust grant to build Virginia school health & equity research consortium

In This Story

Nearly $150,000 partnership-building grant to create collaborative research activities that advance health equity in Virginia schools

Thumbnail photo by RODNAE Productions from Pexels

Topics

Scafide Discusses Alternate Light Source Research on NBC Nightly News

In This Story

Watch the NBC Nightly News segment here or below.

Topics

Fall Church (VA) Patch: Picks up the News Desk piece about NIHCM grant recipients Dr. Alison Cuellar and Dr. Leah Adams and their research on health equity and Medicaid telehealth policy.

In This Story

Topics

Social Work Faculty Rome Publishes New Textbook about Promoting Voting Rights

Promote the Vote: Positioning Social Workers for Action asserts that supporting political participation is integral to social work practice.

Topics

Jhumka Gupta Receives Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Evidence for Action Grant to Study Intimate Partner Violence in Forcibly Displaced Populations

In This Story

George Mason and the International Rescue Committee (IRC) awarded grant to help foster social empowerment and gender equity among forcibly displaced populations (FDPs).

Topics

MPR News (audio): Dr. Len Nichols discusses the need for health care reform and equity.

Topics