The COVID-19 pandemic's effect on established Chinese ethnic enclaves, which faced socio-economic disruptions as well as anti-Asian sentiment, is unknown. We compared the pandemic's effect on social capital among residents and non-residents of Chinese ethnic enclaves in Philadelphia. Despite declines in group participation and citizenship activity (joining with others or speaking with local officials to address a neighborhood problem), the pandemic increased support received from other individuals and cognitive social capital (e.g., neighborhood trust and sense of belonging), with more pronounced changes in enclaves. Our findings provide evidence of both greater vulnerability and resilience in terms of social capital among Chinese immigrants during the pandemic. Understanding the pandemic's effects on social capital in different neighborhood contexts can underscore communities' strengths, and ways to improve resilience to future challenges.
Chinese Americans are at increased risk for hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection. To reduce or eliminate disparities in HBV-related infection rates, participation in scientific investigations of HBV risk and treatment, including biospecimen sampling, is important. However, Asian Americans have low rates of participation in biospecimen research, and little is known about how educational interventions affect knowledge and participation in HBV-related biospecimen research.Eight Chinese community-based organizations participated in a quasi-experimental, two-group design with education assessments at pre- and postworkshop and a 3-month follow-up. Four sites were randomly assigned to receive the intervention (n = 175) and four sites to receive general health education (control; n = 240).Participant knowledge about biospecimen research increased from pre- to posteducation in the intervention but not in the control condition. Of intervention participants, 83.4% (146/175) donated one tube of blood for future HBV biospecimen research, and 50.9% (89/175) donated another tube of blood for HBV testing. In contrast, only 1.1% of participants in the control condition reported donating a blood sample at follow-up assessment.The intervention program significantly increased knowledge of and participation in HBV biospecimen research among Chinese Americans. Community-based participatory research (CBPR) methods featured active support by community leaders, a culturally specific curriculum, and convenient, immediate access to blood sampling, which resulted in high donation rates.HBV-related morbidity and mortality is an urgent problem faced by Chinese Americans. CBPR provides a model for engaging communities in early detection, vaccination, and treatment that can reduce this health threat.
Despite approval of a vaccine found to be very effective in preventing human papillomavirus infection and related cancers, many young people have not yet been vaccinated. Because health behaviors tend to co-occur, the purpose of the current study was to examine relationships among human papillomavirus vaccine uptake and other health behaviors among adolescents.Fifty-nine high school students completed a paper-and-pencil pilot survey regarding human papillomavirus vaccine knowledge and attitudes as well as human papillomavirus vaccination and other health behaviors.The authors found that human papillomavirus vaccination was significantly associated with health-promoting behaviors among girls (eg, not smoking, P = .02), whereas vaccination willingness was associated with health risk behaviors among boys (eg, higher sugar diet, P = .03).Effective interventions to promote human papillomavirus vaccination among adolescents may benefit from a simultaneous focus on multiple health behaviors and/or health in general. Interventions tailored by gender may also be beneficial.
Health Psychology has received numerous papers over the past several months on topics related to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of them concern depression, anxiety, stress, or other forms of distress in the general population or in health care workers. We have received far fewer papers on COVID-related health behaviors and health communications-factors that have played central roles in the spread of the pandemic and that are major topics in health psychology. Our experience is consistent with the published scientific literature on the pandemic. A Medline search that we conducted in late September yielded over 23,000 English-language articles pertaining to COVID-19. Over 1,400 of them concerned topics that are within the scope of Health Psychology. As shown in Table 1, COVID-related mental disorders comprised the largest category. Many other studies concerned other forms of stress or emotional distress. At least 248 articles addressed the profound ethnic and racial disparities in COVID-19 infection and death rates and in access to health care that are accentuating longstanding health inequities; 22 (9%) of these articles addressed behavioral or psychosocial aspects of COVID-19 health disparities. Thus, the literature on the behavioral and psychosocial aspects of the pandemic has been dominated, so far at least, by research on stress or distress. Fewer reports have been published so far on critical COVID-related health behaviors, health communication, or health disparities. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
Background: Palliative care improves symptoms and coping in patients with advanced cancers, but has not been evaluated for patients with curable solid malignancies. Because of the tremendous symptom burden and high rates of psychological distress in head and neck cancer (HNC), we evaluated feasibility and acceptability of a palliative care intervention in patients with HNC receiving curative-intent chemoradiation therapy (CRT). Methods: This was a prospective single-arm study in HNC patients receiving CRT at a single center in the United States. The intervention entailed weekly palliative care visits integrated with oncology care with a focus on symptoms and coping. The primary outcome was feasibility, defined as a >50% enrollment rate with >70% of patients attending at least half of the visits. To assess acceptability, we collected satisfaction ratings post-intervention. We also explored symptom burden, mood, and quality of life (QOL). Results: We enrolled 91% (20/22) of eligible patients. Patients attended 133 of 138 palliative care visits (96%); all 20 attended >85% of visits. Eighteen of 19 (95%) found the intervention "very helpful" and would "definitely recommend" it. QOL and symptom burden worsened from baseline to week 5, but subsequently improved at one-month post-CRT. Overall, patients valued the one-on-one format of the intervention and receipt of additional care. Conclusions: Our palliative care intervention during highly morbid CRT was feasible and acceptable with high enrollment, excellent intervention compliance, and high patient satisfaction. Future randomized studies will further explore the impact on patient-reported outcomes and health care utilization.
<p class="Pa7"><strong>Objective: </strong>Chinese immigrants in the United States undergo a transition to increased chronic disease risk commonly attributed to acculturative changes. Longitudinal data to confirm this are lacking. We examined acculturation in relation to insulin resistance in a sample of Chinese immigrant women to determine differences by level of education and possible mediation by anthropometry and diet.</p><p class="Pa7"><strong>Design: </strong>Longitudinal study.</p><p class="Pa7"><strong>Setting</strong><em>: </em>Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.</p><p class="Pa7"><strong>Participants: </strong>305 Chinese immigrant women recruited October 2005 to April 2008 and followed until April 2010.</p><p class="Pa7"><strong>Main Outcome Measures</strong><em>: </em>Association of acculturation, measured using the General Ethnicity Questionnaire – American version (GEQA), with homeostasis model assessment (HOMA) score as an indicator of insulin resistance, modeled using generalized estimating equations to account for repeated measures over time.</p><p class="Pa7"><strong>Results: </strong>GEQA was associated with log HOMA score, but only in women with <9 years of education (beta [SE] = .09 [.04], <em>P</em>=.02; interaction <em>P</em>=.02). The association persisted with adjustment for body mass index, waist circumference, and dietary variables.</p><p><strong>Conclusions: </strong>These findings provide longitudinal evidence that insulin resistance increases with acculturation. However, the association was apparent only in less-educated immigrants and may be mediated by a pathway other than changes in anthropometry and diet. <em>Ethn Dis. </em>2015;25(4):443-450; doi:10.18865/ed.25.4.443</p>
African American (AA) individuals experience food insecurity at twice the rate of the general population. However, few patients are screened for these measures in the oncology setting. The primary aim of this study was to evaluate associations between food insecurity and dietary quality in AA patients with gastrointestinal (GI) malignancies. The secondary aim was to evaluate differences in dietary quality and the level of food insecurity between the participants at Temple University Hospital (TUH) vs. Fox Chase Cancer Center (FCCC). A single-arm, cross-sectional study was conducted, in which 40 AA patients with GI malignancies were recruited at FCCC and TUH between February 2021 and July 2021. Participants completed the US Adult Food Security Survey Module to assess the level of food security (food secure vs. food insecure). An electronic food frequency questionnaire (VioScreen
1Department of Public Health, College of Health Professions, Temple University, 1301 Cecil B Moore Avenue, 913 Ritter Annex, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA 2Center for Asian Health, College of Health Professions, Temple University, 1415 N. Broad Street, Suite 116, Philadelphia, PA 19122, USA 3Fox Chase Cancer Center, Cancer Prevention and Control Program, 333 Cottman Avenue, Philadelphia, PA 19111, USA 4Biostatistics Program, Cancer Prevention Research Program, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Department of Biostatistics, University of Washington, P.O. Box 19024, Seattle, WA 98109, USA 5Asian Community Health Coalition, 1106 Buttonwood Street, Unit A, Philadelphia, PA 19123, USA 6Vietnamese Women Association of Eastern Region, 3 Coventry Circle East, Marlton, NJ 08053, USA
