Centering Health Equity Through the Social Determinants of Health, Interprofessional Education, and Sustainable Partnerships With Historically Black Colleges and Universities: Envisioning Upstream and Downstream Impacts.

The social determinants of health (SDOH) framework identifies barriers to health care, education, financial stability, and other conditions that exist across socially determined parameters, often to the detriment of Communities of Color. Postsecondary healthcare students must be aware of these disparities. In order to address upstream and downstream healthcare equity, the SDOH framework must be leveraged as a cross-disciplinary curricular innovation to support interprofessional education. Historically Black Colleges and Universities have unrealized potential to develop extraordinary healthcare leaders; partnerships integrating SDOH can be a powerful force to advance health equity in the United States.

Influence of field conditions on quantitative analysis of single crystal thorium dioxide by atom probe tomography.

Atom probe tomography (APT), a 3D microscopy technique, has great potential to reveal atomic scale compositional variations, such as those associated with irradiation damage. However, obtaining accurate compositional quantification by APT for high bandgap materials is a longstanding challenge, given the sensitivity to field evaporation parameters and inconsistent behaviors across different oxides. This study investigates the influence of APT laser energy and specimen base temperature on compositional accuracy in single crystal thoria (ThO2). ThO2 has a broad range of applications, including advanced nuclear fuels, sensors, lasers and scintillators, electrodes, catalysis, and photonics and optoelectronics. The expected stoichiometry of ThO2 is achieved at APT base temperature of 24 K and laser energy of 100 pJ. To overcome mass resolution limitations associated with significant thermal tails, Bayesian methods are applied to deconvolute ion identity within the mass spectra. This approach affirms that the parameters chosen are appropriate for APT analysis of ThO2.

Grade Experience of Online Nurse Practitioner Students: Effects of Taking More Than 1 Clinical Course per Term.

This study examined the grade experience for online nurse practitioner students (N = 3760) who took more than 1 clinical course per academic term as compared with those who did not. Students who had more than 1 clinical course per term had a greater percentage of clinical course failures than other students (2.1% vs 0.8%, P = .001). Nurse practitioner programs should develop clear policies and guidelines for students taking more than 1 clinical course at a time.

African American women share 'real talk' stories about fatigue related to breast cancer treatment.

Fatigue is the most common side effect experienced by women undergoing treatment for breast cancer. The fatigue experience of African American (AA) women who undergo breast cancer treatment has been understudied. The purpose of this qualitative exploratory study is to share stories of 10 AA women who experienced fatigue related to breast cancer treatment. AA women provided real talk descriptors of fatigue. Women expressed how physicians were supportive of their exercising to manage their fatigue. However, many women describe the medications prescribed for fatigue as not very helpful or even making them feel worse. Women shared use of complementary treatment approaches and that their physicians approved of such complementary treatment use. All the participants described how they relied on prayer for their spiritual strength to deal with the overwhelming effects of fatigue on their daily lives. An understanding by health care practitioners of the fatigue and coping experiences related to breast cancer among AA women can provide better ways for health care practitioners to treat and help their AA patients address fatigue symptoms.

Sexual health information seeking on the Internet: comparisons between White and African American college students.

College students are often interested in information about sexual health topics. A study of 149 college students and their use of the Internet for sexual health information was conducted. The study findings indicated that African American college students, as compared to White college students, and women, as compared to men, had greater odds for searching on the Internet for birth control information. Among male college students, a higher internal locus of control was associated with lower odds for looking at birth control information on the Internet. Nurses and healthcare providers working in college settings can use these findings to develop strategies for identifying those who are more likely to reference the Internet to obtain birth control and sexual health information.

Culturally targeted educational intervention to increase colorectal health awareness among African Americans.

BACKGROUND/OBJECTIVES: Colorectal cancer (CRC) is the third cause of cancer deaths for African Americans. OBJECTIVES: 1) increase CRC knowledge, 2) decrease cancer fatalism, and 3) increase colonoscopy screening for CRC among African Americans in North Carolina. METHODS: Churches and community-based organizations were randomized into intervention and control groups. The intervention group received a 90-minute culturally targeted educational program on colorectal health. Pre-test and post-test questionnaires were completed by both groups. RESULTS: A total of 539 African American men and women 50 years of age and older participated in this study. The intervention group had a significantly greater proportion of those receiving a colonoscopy within three months after the educational session than the control group. In the intervention group, CRC knowledge significantly increased and cancer fatalism attitudes significantly decreased. CONCLUSIONS: A culturally targeted faith/community-based educational intervention can increase CRC knowledge, decrease cancer fatalism, and increase screening for CRC among African Americans.

Fatalism revisited.

OBJECTIVES: To review the concept of fatalism among African Americans by discussing how religiosity/spirituality may guide them in seeking cancer care in a positive rather than a fatalistic way. DATA SOURCES: Nursing, social science, and medical journals. CONCLUSION: Using culturally targeted faith-based interventions to educate African Americans about cancer can serve as a strategy to increase cancer knowledge, decrease cancer fatalism, and ultimately increase cancer screening and treatment resulting in cancer activism. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING PRACTICE: Nurses should advocate for faith-based initiatives to help address fatalism in the African American community, and to assist them in developing a more proactive role in cancer screening, treatment, and survivorship.

Underrepresentation of African Americans in online cancer support groups.

The Internet is increasingly important for many cancer survivors because it provides access to the latest information on cancer treatments and also allows them to receive support by participating in online cancer support groups. Unfortunately, little is known about why African-American cancer survivors are underrepresented in online cancer support groups. This article reviews the relevant literature and discusses three possible explanations for why African Americans are underrepresented in online cancer support groups: the digital divide/digital inequality, preferences for face-to-face support or culture-specific online support, and trust concerns. We conclude that a health inequity exists with regard to the utilization of information that can be obtained from online cancer support groups. However, with regard to the potential benefits of the psychosocial and emotional support aspect of online cancer support groups, a health inequity may not exist, as African Americans have other preferred avenues for obtaining needed support, and there is no evidence that this is detrimental to their health.

Strategic enhancement of nursing students information literacy skills: interdisciplinary perspectives.

Nursing students are required to keep abreast of evolving new health care information. It is important for nursing students to develop the skills and knowledge to access nursing and medical databases for their professional growth and development to perform evidence-based practice. A collaborative approach between faculty and librarians is one way to ensure the success of students in acquiring the skills on how to access and use new health care information. The collaborators of this paper discuss strategies of how to conduct database searches for research articles. This paper is written in collaboration with faculty, librarians, and a doctoral student who have experience teaching nursing students at a historically black college and/or university, or at minority serving institutions.

African American women with breast cancer and their spouses' perception of care received from physicians.

Several studies have been conducted which have examined the communication patterns and interpersonal relationships among minority patients and their physicians. These studies suggest that there are differences in the care received from physicians based on the racial and cultural background of the patient. However, little is known about the interpersonal relationships and communication patterns of AA couples coping with a breast cancer diagnosis and their physicians. This report presents the outcomes of a qualitative study undertaken to examine the perceptions of breast cancer care rendered by physicians to African American couples. The AA couples involved in the study reported that the care they received was compassionate, competent, comprehensive and comparable to other women. Each of these qualities was identified by as being essential to quality patient care.

Spiritual well-being, religious coping, and the quality of life of African American breast cancer treatment: a pilot study.

There is a dearth of knowledge about the quality of life of African American women during the breast cancer treatment phase. This pilot study explored spiritual wellbeing, religious coping, and the quality of life of African American women during the breast cancer treatment phase. The sample included a total of 11 African American women from the mid-Atlantic and southeastern United States. The Roy Adaptation Model (Roy & Andrews, 1999) served as a guide for this study. This pilot study used a descriptive cross-sectional design. Data were analyzed utilizing descriptive statistics and the Spearman rho correlational analysis. African American women used more positive religious coping than negative religious coping. Significant relationships were found between spiritual well-being and the QOL domains of physical, emotional, and functional well-being. These findings suggest that nurses should incorporate spiritual and religious support in the care of African American women during the breast cancer treatment phase.

African American couples merging strengths to successfully cope with breast cancer.

PURPOSE/OBJECTIVES: To explore the process of coping with breast cancer among African American women and their spouses. DESIGN: Exploratory, qualitative study using grounded theory methods. SETTING: Large metropolitan area in the mid-Atlantic United States. SAMPLE: 12 African American couples (N = 24). METHODS: African American women and their spouses were asked to complete a background data sheet and participate in a face-to-face semistructured interview. Qualitative data were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. Themes were identified using the constant comparative method. Quantitative data were analyzed with descriptive statistics. MAIN RESEARCH VARIABLES: The process of coping with breast cancer among African American couples. FINDINGS: The basic social concern was living through and beyond a breast cancer diagnosis. The core variable was merging strengths to cope with and survive a breast cancer diagnosis. Six main categories emerged to describe how African American couples actively worked together to cope with a breast cancer diagnosis: walking together, praying together, seeking together, trusting together, adjusting together, and being together. CONCLUSIONS: African American couples described the importance of combining their strengths and working together as a couple to cope with a breast cancer diagnosis. IMPLICATIONS FOR NURSING: Nurses must understand the importance of developing culturally sensitive and culturally relevant interventions to assist African American couples with effectively coping with a breast cancer diagnosis. When providing care to African American couples, nurses should incorporate the six categories of walking, praying, seeking, trusting, adjusting, and being together to help couples cope with the various phases of the breast cancer experience.