Minorities are underrepresented in health professions and efforts to recruit minority students into health careers are considered a way to reduce health disparities. There is little research about the effectiveness of these programs, other than satisfaction. This study aimed to measure program effects on student understanding of and interest in health careers.Students took a career interest inventory, completed a scale measuring their self-reported understanding and interest in health careers, and wrote essays about health careers before and after completing a 1 week on campus internship on health careers and after a 9 month follow up distance mentoring program where they continued to interact with university faculty by videoconference about career options. Changes in inventory, scale, and essay scores were analyzed for changes over time using Wilcoxon and Mann-Whitney tests.Inventory scores were unchanged over time, but scale and essay scores trended upward significantly post internship and mentoring.Health career education and mentoring programs can positively affect student knowledge of health careers and their attitudes about them. The study's methods extend measures of program impact beyond satisfaction.
The response to progressive volume expansion with isotonic saline was studied in sham-operated (CS) rats and in rats with reduced nephron mass after unilateral removal of cortical tissue (CX) or amputation of the kidney poles (NX). Glomerular filtration rate (GFR) in CS kidneys was not statistically different from that in control kidneys. CX and NX kidneys had GFR values markedly lower than control and CS kidneys. CX kidneys had FENa similar to that of control and CS kidneys until very high rates of urine flow were reached (volume expansion greater than 15% of body weight), when it was greater in CX than in CS or control kidneys (25 +/- 14% vs. 11 +/- 2%; p less than 0.05). The same relationship was found between NX kidneys and their controls: FENa only exceeded the values in control kidneys at high rates of urine flow. A defect in free water reabsorption was present in CX when compared to CS and control kidneys, while NX kidneys had TcH2O values which were not different from control kidneys. This different response of CX and NX kidneys suggests that the behavior of CX kidneys cannot be attributed simply to a nonspecific reduction of renal mass. Instead, these results suggest a heterogeneity of nephron function between superficial short-loop nephrons and deep long-loop nephrons primarily with respect to water handling.
Abstract Background: Ethnic minority populations are more likely to suffer from chronic comorbidities, making them more susceptible to the poor health outcomes associated with COVID-19 infection. Ensuring COVID-19 vaccination among vulnerable populations, such as cancer patients, is of utmost importance. Thus, we aimed to investigate health behaviors and perceptions related to COVID-19 vaccination among adults with cancer and other chronic comorbidities in Puerto Rico (PR). Methods: This secondary analysis used data from 1,911 participants who completed an online survey from December 2020 to February 2021. The Health Belief Model (HBM) was used to measure perceptions surrounding COVID-19 vaccination among individuals diagnosed with cancer, adults with other chronic comorbidities, and healthy adults. Multivariate logistic regression analyses assessed the associations of disease status (healthy, cancer diagnosis, other chronic conditions/comorbidities [excluding cancer]) with individual HBM constructs and vaccine intent, while adjusting for age, sex, education, income, employment status, influenza vaccine, health literacy, and religiosity. Results: Among study participants, 76% were female, 34% greater than or equal to 50 years old, 5% had a cancer diagnosis, and 70% had other chronic conditions/comorbidities. Participants with a cancer diagnosis had significantly higher odds of getting vaccinated when the vaccine was made available to them compared to healthy individuals (OR: 2.08 95%CI: 1.00-4.30). Compared to healthy participants, those diagnosed with cancer and those with other chronic conditions other than cancer had higher odds of perceiving their chance of getting COVID-19 as high (OR: 1.63 95%CI: 1.01-1.62; OR: 1.39 95%CI: 1.11-1.73), believed getting COVID-19 was a possibility for them (OR: 1.94 95%CI: 1.16-3.25; OR: 1.56 95%CI: 1.24-1.97), perceived they would get very sick if infected with COVID-19 (OR: 4.18 95%CI: 2.30-7.58; OR: 1.83 95%CI: 1.47-2.28), and were afraid of COVID-19 (OR 2.51: 95%CI: 1.18-5.35; OR 1.67: 95%CI: 1.25-2.22). Individuals with other chronic comorbidities also had increased odds of perceiving that COVID-19 side effects would interfere with their usual activities (OR: 1.32 95%CI: 1.06-1.64), worrying about their likelihood of getting COVID-19 (OR: 1.63 95%CI: 1.09-2.44), and taking the vaccine regardless of the information provided (OR: 1.42 95%CI: 1.14-1.77). COVID-19 vaccine safety was the main reason for vaccine hesitancy among all participants. Discussion: Understanding vaccine hesitancy and willingness is essential in creating effective vaccine promotion programs and informing health policy. Our findings elucidate the effect of disease status on health-related decision making and isolate what steps can be taken to increase vaccine uptake among vulnerable ethnic minority populations. Acknowledgements: This work was supported by Award Grant R25CA240120 and RCMI grant U54-MD007600. Citation Format: McClaren Rodriguez, Andrea López-Cepero, Ana Patricia Ortiz, Emma Fernández-Repollet, Cynthia Pérez. Influence of health beliefs on COVID-19 vaccination among patients with cancer and other comorbidities in Puerto Rico [abstract]. In: Proceedings of the AACR Virtual Conference: 14th AACR Conference on the Science of Cancer Health Disparities in Racial/Ethnic Minorities and the Medically Underserved; 2021 Oct 6-8. Philadelphia (PA): AACR; Cancer Epidemiol Biomarkers Prev 2022;31(1 Suppl):Abstract nr PO-158.
Necrosis of the outer two-thirds of the cortex (CN) was induced with boiling water in the left kidney of rats. Two days afterward, morphological damage was shown to be limited to the superficial cortex; deep nephron population was well-preserved. Glucose reabsorption under basal and glucose loading conditions, and extraction of p-aminohippurate, used as indices of proximal tubule integrity, were normal in control and experimental kidneys 48 h after cortical necrosis. Basal fractional water and electrolyte excretion did not differ between control and experimental kidneys. Calculated mean single-nephron glomerular filtration rate (GFR) and plasma flow for superficial (SupGFR and SupNPF) and juxtamedullary nephrons (JMGFR and JMPF) were similar to those obtained by micropuncture and Hanssen's technique for SupGFR, and for JMGFR by Hanssen's. Volume expansion led to a 27% increase in calculated SupGFR, but no change in JMGFR. The JMPF increased by 81%, whereas SupNPF increased by only 23%, suggesting that, in this model, GFR of deep nephrons may be independent of plasma flow. The results indicate that deep nephrons retain their functional integrity 48 h after cortical necrosis. After volume expansion fractional excretion of sodium was greater, and fractional water reabsorption less, in CN than in control kidneys. Thus handling of sodium and water by superficial and deep nephrons under basal conditions was similar, but reabsorptive capacity for deep nephrons of CN was lower during volume expansion. The present studies suggest that deep nephrons can maintain relatively normal function in cortical necrosis.
Residents of Puerto Rico bear a significant burden of mental health disorders, which the COVID-19 pandemic may have exacerbated. However, age-specific data on these disorders during the pandemic in Puerto Rico are scarce. This study evaluated age-related differences in the self-reported diagnosis of depression and anxiety among adults ≥18 years residing in Puerto Rico during the pandemic. An anonymous online survey was administered from December 2020 to February 2021 via Google Forms to measure self-reported sociodemographic and behavioral characteristics and physician-diagnosed mental health disorders. Multivariable logistic regression models were conducted for each self-reported mental health diagnosis after adjusting for sex, education, income, marital status, chronic diseases, and smoking. Out of 1945 adults, 50% were aged 40 years and over. Nearly 24% of responders self-reported an anxiety diagnosis, whereas 15.9% reported depression. Compared to individuals 50 years and over, those 18-29 y, 30-39 y, and 40-49 y had significantly higher odds of an anxiety diagnosis (OR = 1.84, 95% CI = 1.34-2.55; OR = 1.50, 95% CI = 1.09-2.07; and OR = 1.37, 95% CI = 1.01-1.87, respectively). However, no association between age and depression diagnosis was found. Despite anxiety and depression being frequent disorders during the pandemic in this sample, younger adults bear a higher burden of anxiety. Further research is needed to allocate appropriate mental health resources during emergencies according to population subgroups.
Ciencia Puerto Rico, a non-profit organization dedicated to promoting science, research and scientific education among Latinos, organized an educational symposium to provide college science majors the tools, opportunities and advice to pursue graduate degrees and succeed in the STEM disciplines. In this article we share our experiences and lessons learned, for others interested in developing large-scale events to recruit underrepresented minorities to STEM and in evaluating the effectiveness of these efforts.
