In this talk on cultural competence, we will examine the social construction of disability as distinct from impairment. We will learn about the basics of disability oppression and the response of disability communities in the form of various resistance movements. A review of various hot topics in current U.S. disability culture will be presented. An overview of the guiding principles of empowerment-oriented disability social work practice will be offered before workshop participants will have a chance to explore their own able-bodied privilege. Learning objectives: To discuss social construction of disability To introduce basics of disability oppression To review disability resistance movements To describe hot topics in disability culture To identify guiding principles for empowerment-oriented disability social work practice To explore able-bodied privilege

As technology use increases, self-diagnosis using a symptom checker on the World Wide Web has become a topic of discussion in the health field. Given that many in the United States continue without access to medical care, it is becoming common practice for patients to self-diagnose using information sought on the internet. Health literacy of internet health information is a concern, especially among vulnerable populations, such as immigrants and those without access to health insurance. The aim of this study is to understand the phenomenon of self-diagnosis using the internet as a source of health information among a convenience sample of Salem State University students (N= 150). A survey instrument was used to examine the following: perception of accurate health information sought throughout the internet; follow-up with primary physicians, how much trust is placed in internet self-diagnosis, and how often participants use the internet to self-diagnose. Data was analyzed using thematic coding methods. The internet provides us with access to information, yet among those seeking health-related information, there is a concern that critical health information can either be misinterpreted, unreliable or both. Self-diagnosis using the internet is a particular concern if patients are using the internet in the place of a physician. Results from this study can inform healthcare professionals about college faculty, staff and student perceptions regarding use of the internet to self-diagnose prior to seeing a primary physician, as well as inform future study of this phenomenon.

Myocardial infarction is one of the most significant causes of death worldwide. Factors leading to a patient's risk of having a myocardial infarction are obesity, smoking, high cholesterol, hypertension, and a sedentary lifestyle. If patients knew of these risks, the likelihood of a myocardial infarction occurring could decrease. Because of a lack of information about the topic, many patients unfortunately experience a myocardial infarction before it is preventable. Lack of knowledge about how serious the disease is and treatment is also a reason for not going through with cardiac rehabilitation. People around the world need to be educated about myocardial infarction risks and the positive outcomes of attending cardiac rehabilitation. The aim of this study is to improve the quality of life of myocardial infarction patients by determining the long-term benefits of going through with cardiac rehabilitation. A review of the literature was conducted. CINAHL was used to search articles pertaining to the research topic. Results include the following: a lack of cardiac knowledge led to patients' unawareness of the need for attending cardiac rehabilitation; patients improved both physically and psychologically after attending rehabilitation; individualized education has been the most effective for myocardial infarction patients. Myocardial infarction can potentially be prevented through education of cardiac patients on the benefits and importance of cardiac rehabilitation. Results from this study have implications for helping to decrease morbidity and mortality among this high-risk population.

Dementia is a serious disease that affects 46.8 million elders globally with 9.9 million new cases each year. It is not often understood that dementia is considered a terminal illness, and it is thought that misconceptions about dementia may be a factor of poor quality of care for this vulnerable population at the end of their lives. Nurses are on the front lines of caring for dementia patients, however nurses may lack knowledge of how to best care for dementia patients and their families. A qualitative survey study will be conducted using a convenience sample of Salem State nursing students (N= 100). Specific study aims include: do nursing students know about dementia, advanced directives, and end of life care and treatment options specifically related to the dementia patient? Thematic coding methods will be used to analyze the data. Results from this study will help identify knowledge needs of nursing students related to end-of-life treatment for dementia patients. Understanding knowledge needs of nurses can further inform future educational programs for nursing students in order to increase the quality of care for this population.

Purpose: Dementia is a prevalent problem for older adults and their families. Early intervention and a multidisciplinary approach for treatment have been linked to better quality of life. The primary objective of this study was to discover what information is available to patients with dementia upon diagnosis and how beneficial the information given is perceived by the primary caregivers. Secondary objectives included types of resources most utilized by the caregiver and how caregivers found out about such resources. Methods: A qualitative study design was employed using snowball sampling methods and semi-structured interviews among primary caregivers (n= 5) of patients with Alzheimer’s Disease (n= 3), Lewy Body Dementia (n= 1), and Dementia Unspecified (n= 1) respectively. Thematic coding methods were used to identify potential barriers to accessing timely information regarding disease prognosis and optimal resources. Results: Several themes emerged from caregiver interviews. Central themes found among the caregivers include: 1.) chronic grief 2.) chronic frustrations 3.) chronic guilt 4.) total responsibility of care. Several subthemes emerged that compound upon these caregiver experiences including provider related parries such as lack of quality information, and access barriers including difficulty finding community resources. Conclusion: Caregivers interviewed in this study perceive support from their health care team in general, yet have limited perceived support in navigating how to access community resources. Patients and their families need guidance and support from the health care team upon diagnosis, yet also need ongoing support and education while caring for a loved one with Dementia.

Through a systematic review of literature, this research project explores a family approach to postnatal depression (PND). Within the first year of giving birth, seven to 15 percent of woman experience postnatal depression. Postnatal depression does not solely affect new mothers, but also fathers and babies. In conducting a systematic review of Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL), Boston Public Library Electronic Resources, and Education Resources Information Centre Database (ERIC), along with Google and Google Scholar, nine peer-reviewed studies were ultimately selected for inclusion in this review. The systematic literature review revealed the benefits of a family approach to postnatal depression. Three main themes emerged from the research: 1) social and relationship support; 2) paternal PND; and 3) PND stigma. According to the results found in this review, teaching about PND should be focused on the all-new families in addition to the new mother. These results demonstrate teaching interventions should occur during the prenatal and postnatal time to reduce PND instances in both women and men.

Background: 1 out of every 4 American adults currently have a form of mental illness, while 50% of others will develop a mental disorder at some point in time. Mental illness not only emotionally deteriorates a person; it impairs one’s ability to function daily. Mental illness is highly correlated with other chronic diseases, such as diabetes, cardiac conditions and obesity, as well as homelessness and drug and alcohol dependency. The mentally ill are less likely to access healthcare for treatment due to experienced stigmatization, negative attitudes and stereotypes due to their diagnosis. The aim of this study is to detect and understand the negative attitudes towards the mentally ill, and to recognize how to work towards facilitating change in health care. Methods: CINAHL databases were searched to identify studies performed relating to the stigmatization of mental illnesses and how negative stereotypes affected patients’ quality of care. Results included data from qualitative and quantitative studies. Out of 171 reviewed papers, 11 met the criteria to perform this literature analysis. Results: Stigma towards the mentally ill is a prominent theme identified within the literature. Evidence based changes to eliminate stigma and negative attitudes towards mental disorders must be taken to improve quality of care. Understanding experienced stigma among the mentally ill is a first step to promote much-needed changes to health care delivery.

Background and Significance: Today across the globe, children are still being born with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) contracted from their mothers. Although the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that all women be screened for HIV during each pregnancy, women are still failing to meet this goal. Research shows that women who understand the benefits of HIV screening for their developing child in utero are more likely to receive an HIV screen during pregnancy. Furthermore, research has shown that women who perceive themselves as “low-risk” are less likely to receive and HIV screen prenatally. Methodology: The nursing student and faculty advisor composed a survey with questions on demographics, HIV transmission knowledge and a self-evaluation tool to assess women’s perception on their own knowledge of HIV transmission, screening, and benefits of screening. Results: Nearly 70% of women indicated of how much they themselves believed to known about HIV transmission with a range of scores from 27 to 100. Women’s responses to the VAS for knowledge of benefits of prenatal treatment for the developing fetus were much more discouraging than the previous VAS scale results. For this scale, there was a mean of only 34.1 with a range of 0-93. The standard deviation among responses was 27.1, meaning there was high variability among samples. Finally, the last VAS scale asked women to rate their knowledge of the fact that HIV transmission from mother to child can be prevented over 98% with the proper treatment. Women’s mean for this scale was only 44.7 with a range of 0-96 and the standard deviation among responses was 30.8, meaning there was also high variability among responses. Education level had absolutely no correlation to women’s knowledge of HIV transmission, screening, or treatment benefits during pregnancy. Of equal importance, results show that the majority of HIV transmission questions that were answered incorrectly were related to oral transmission. Implications: Education about HIV transmission and screening during pregnancy needs to be spread to women of all educational levels. Further research can focus on how best to educate women and how to promote prenatal HIV screening for all women during every pregnancy.

By examining how participants view their own resiliency, this study looked to explore how people view resiliency and if they believe they make a choice to be, or not be resilient in the face of stress or trauma. By examining past moments of participant resilience, this study explored the possibility of a choice component that may impact resiliency. This study utilized a questionnaire of 28 questions to survey Salem State University students (N=113). 71% felt there was a “tipping point” to a person being resilient or not. 75% of the participants also believed that there is a choice made for a person to be resilient. In addition, 85% of participants believe that they are aware of a choice that is made when looking at lesser adverse situations. The implications of these findings on the topic of resilience is discussed.

United States healthcare is experiencing a growing need for medical interpretation among diverse populations. Of note, the Hispanic population is steadily growing reaching upwards of 17% of the US population. The Hispanic patient experience and perception of care is poorly understood in the context of patient to provider communication in the US, despite 62% of Hispanics primarily speaking Spanish and limited English. A review of the literature was conducted, the Cumulative Index of Nursing and Allied Health Literature (CINAHL) database was exhaustively searched for English language research published between 2000 and October 2014 that identified disparities between Spanish-speakers and English-speakers regarding their healthcare experiences. Keyword searches included the following: Spanish speaking patients, patient satisfaction, and health disparity. Of twenty-five articles initially yielded by the search strategy, seventeen articles were selected that met inclusion criteria for further analysis and review. Within these articles, it appeared that patients generally did experience a lower rate of satisfaction as compared to English-speaking patients regarding their healthcare providers and the language utilized. Contrastingly, an article described a population of Spanish-speaking patients whose language barrier was not reported as an issue when being assessed for domestic violence. Limited research exists which targets the Hispanic patient population and language barriers faced when communicating with their health care providers. This presents an important gap in the literature to consider for this patient population specifically their experiences and perceptions of how care is delivered in the US. Culturally relevant research is needed in order to appropriately change the way in which health care is delivered to this population, which will ultimately improve patient to provider communication and health literacy.