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Biomedical subjects

P J Marty

Publications and source records attributed to P J Marty.

At least 19 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed1998

Hepatitis B immunization in a university student population.

In the United States, hepatitis B virus infection occurs predominantly among adolescents and young adults, despite the availability of an effective vaccine. Immunization status and hepatitis B virus (HBV) vaccine acceptance among 505 students visiting the student health services of a large southern university were investigated. Only 58 students had received HBV vaccine. The cost of the vaccine was paid by the students personally (35.5%) or by their parents (34.5%) or employers (31.0%). Nearly half of the students (45.7%) did not know their vaccination status. Lower immunization percentages were found among Hispanics, men, persons of lower education levels, and students aged 25 years and under. Being immunized was related to the perception that the vaccine was affordable, although most students (95.7%) said that the cost of HBV vaccine was excessive. Health professionals' emphasis on the need for HBV vaccination and a reduction in the price of the vaccine could improve HBV immunization rates among university students.

Adult↗
PubMed1996

Florida tobacco prevention and control program: building capacity through collaboration.

Florida has an aggressive program of tobacco prevention and control. The Tobacco-Free Florida Coalition has been a leading force; however, numerous other partners have also participated in this effort. The development of various programs, strategies and activities has occurred because several key agencies in the state were willing to collaborate on agreed upon goals and reduce the traditional barriers of turf and territory in working with each other. As a result a comprehensive tobacco prevention and control effort has been established in Florida, and several large federal and private grants have been secured to support this initiative. This effort was accomplished in about four years in the absence of a dedicated tobacco tax increase which has benefitted at least two states in the country, California and Massachusetts. The infrastructure is now in place for a great deal of future success with this initiative. Continual assessment will be needed to ensure that the objectives of this program are achieved as the Tobacco-Free Florida Coalition moves ahead with its action plans over the next few years.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1995

Effectiveness of health instruction provided by student nurses in rural secondary schools of Zimbabwe: a feasibility study.

This demonstration project used student nurses (n = 12) on community deployment to provide health instruction among rural school-age populations in Zimbabwe. A quasi-experimental (pre- and post-test), non-equivalent control group design was used and consisted of 141 school pupils in the intervention group and 144 pupils in the comparison group (N = 285). The curriculum focused on prevention of STDs, HIV/AIDS and drugs (alcohol, tobacco and marijuana). A gain in health knowledge scores among the intervention group was reported at post-test. More than 70% of the pupils who received health instruction from student nurses gave a high approval rating of student nurses' performance. Further, student nurses, teachers and tutors all support school health instruction by student nurses although tutors and teachers differ on teaching about condoms.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1993

The relationship between youth substance use and area-specific self-esteem.

A cross-sectional survey design investigated the relationship of school and home self-esteem to history of substance use, membership in alternative education (non-mainstream) school programs, gender, and race. Self-esteem was assessed using the Hare Self-Esteem Scale. Four hundred eleven sixth grade students completed the survey. Results revealed home self-esteem related inversely to tobacco use (F = 15.39, df = 2,343, p < .0001), alcohol use (F = 12.08, df = 2,343, p < .0001), and use of other drugs (F = 12.28, df = 2,338, p < .0001). Similarly, school self-esteem related inversely to tobacco use (F = 15.47, df = 2,354, p < .0001), alcohol use (F = 8.74, df = 2,353, p = .0002), and use of other drugs (F = 9.30, df = 2,350, p < .0001). Regardless of type of drug, recent users had the lowest self-esteem scores on both subscales and never users had the highest scores. Subjects enrolled in non-mainstream programs had significantly lower home and school self-esteem scores than did subjects in mainstream classes. Race and gender were not associated significantly with self-esteem. Implications for youth substance use prevention and research are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Drug use and anticipated parental reaction among rural school pupils in Zimbabwe.

Study participants included 285 secondary school pupils in Zimbabwe who responded to a questionnaire assessing alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana use, and anticipated parental reaction to the pupil's drug-taking behavior. Results showed nearly 17% of the sample had used alcohol, 8% used tobacco, and 5% had used marijuana during the past seven days prior to questionnaire administration. Results regarding intentions to use alcohol, tobacco, and marijuana in the future show pupils' interest highest in using alcohol. Nearly 34% indicated intentions to use alcohol during the next year, while 16% reported intentions to use tobacco, and 12.9% indicated intentions to use marijuana. Nearly 17% reported they felt their parents would be favorable to their use of alcohol. Anticipated parental approval for tobacco and marijuana was 13.6% and 10.8%, respectively. Though current use and future intentions among the sample are not as high compared to similar populations in developed countries, this study suggests Zimbabwe should consider expanding its drug education effort in the school setting. Research to identify effective educational strategies to curb further increases in adolescent drug taking behavior also needs to be explored and identified.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1992

Multiple correlates of cigarette use among high school students.

A cross-sectional survey research design measured factors related to cigarette use among 2,212 senior high school students. Results showed 14.3% of the sample smoked cigarettes at least occasionally, with 5.3% reporting they were daily smokers. About 12.8% indicated they were ex-smokers. Males and females smoked at almost equal rates, and the percentage of 10th grade student smokers was slightly higher (16.4%) than the percentage of juniors and seniors who smoked. Approximately 22% of Hispanic students, 15% of Caucasian students, and 4.5% of African-American students reported smoking cigarettes at least occasionally. An initial regression analysis used 21 variables to predict cigarette smoking. A more parsimonious regression model (R2 = .28), using variables from the initial regression analysis with significance levels of .01 or less, indicated the most important predictors of cigarette use were ethnic group, attitude toward females who smoke, close friends' use of cigarettes, personal use of marijuana, best friend's use of cigarettes, personal use of alcohol, and school self-esteem. Implications for school health programs are addressed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1990

Health behavior correlates of depression in a sample of high school students.

Frequency of symptoms of depression and selected health-related practices and events were measured in a sample of 219 high school students. Students reported numerous symptoms of depression. Relative proportions of boys and girls reporting symptoms of depression were not significantly different. However, girls reported experiencing more severe depression than their male counterparts. Depression correlated significantly with several of the 22 health practices and states of affect examined. Both the determinants and manifestations of depression in adolescent cohorts require in-depth investigation. Possible implications for school health personnel are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1987

Effects of the bogus-pipeline on enhancing validity of self-reported adolescent drug use measures.

This study examined effects of a bogus objective measure (bogus-pipeline) on self-reports of experimentation, frequency, intentions, beliefs, and attitudes related to alcohol, tobacco, and other drug use. One hundred ninety-one adolescents (means age = 11.74 years) were assigned randomly to one of three conditions: a bogus-pipeline with saliva collection, a bogus-pipeline only, or a questionnaire only control. A significantly greater percentage of participants in the questionnaire only condition (28%) reported having experimented with alcohol, compared to those in the bogus-pipeline only condition (22%), and the bogus-pipeline with saliva condition (21%). No differences were found across conditions for subject experimentation with other drugs, frequency of drug use, intentions to use drugs, and beliefs and attitudes related to drug use (p greater than .05). The discrepancy among studies suggesting a validity enhancing effect due to bogus-pipeline procedures and those indicating no effect may be accounted for by variables including age, experimental setting, population under study, and drug types. The broad, unquestioned application of the bogus-pipeline in tobacco, alcohol, and other drug use prevention programs, or epidemiological studies of drug use, cannot be recommended at present.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Smokeless tobacco use among rural high school students in Arkansas.

This study determined the prevalence of smokeless tobacco use among high school students in selected rural communities in Arkansas, and identified factors associated with initiation and maintenance of use. A questionnaire was distributed to 1,237 students in 13 rural high schools in different educational service regions of Arkansas during spring 1985. Results indicated 34.5% of males and 2.5% of females reported regular use of smokeless tobacco. The factor contributing most to initiation of this practice was the influence of a parent who used smokeless tobacco products. Comparisons to other recent studies and implications for health educators are discussed.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1986

Patterns of smokeless tobacco use in a population of high school students.

We assessed the prevalence of smokeless tobacco use by 901 high school students in two Arkansas communities, and identified factors associated with initiation and maintenance. Results showed that 36.7 per cent of males and 2.2 per cent of females currently used smokeless tobacco. Modal responses indicated that if smokeless tobacco was used at all, it was used with frequency on an almost daily basis. Health professionals need to monitor this phenomenon closely and take appropriate preventive actions.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1985

Improving the practice of breast self-examination through assessment of alternative teaching formats.

College females (n = 186) in four different treatment groups completed questionnaires concerned with breast self-examination (BSE) at the beginning and end of a college semester. Analysis of data indicated that students who participated in small group instruction (which included modeling and guided practice) performed BSE more frequently and indicated greater confidence in their ability to perform the procedure than students in other groups. The results seem to indicate that the small group approach may be an effective supplement to regular classroom instruction.

Adult↗
PubMed1984

Seeking an effective strategy for promoting breast self-examination among women.

Breast self-examination (BSE) may be effective in the early detection of breast cancer, but women must be aware of both the benefit of the procedure and the need for regular practice. The purpose of this study was to ascertain the effects of modeling plus rehearsal with respect to knowledge, attitudes, and subsequent frequency of BSE among women. The sample for this study consisted of 292 college students randomly assigned to one of two groups and exposed to: a facilitator-conducted program using modeling plus rehearsal (treatment group); or pamphlets addressing breast cancer and BSE (comparison group). A posttest-only comparison-group design was used. At completion of the programs, subjects responded to knowledge and attitude inventories. Three months later, a questionnaire requesting information on BSE practice was mailed to all subjects. Performance on the knowledge inventory indicated no group differences (P = 0.05). However, there were significant differences between groups in practice frequency and in selected attitudes (P less than 0.05). At three-month follow-up, significantly more members of the treatment group indicated practicing BSE at least once since exposure to the educational program. Conclusions support those of earlier investigations and indicate that modeling with rehearsal can be a useful method for promoting the practice of BSE.

Breast Neoplasms↗
PubMed1983

Teaching about testicular cancer and testicular self-examination.

Testicular cancer is one of the most commonly diagnosed cancers in young men. Because some 5,300 new cases of this disorder may be diagnosed annually, with an accompanying 950 deaths from complications, it is important that young males become informed about this potentially dangerous condition. In an effort to meet the educational needs of school health personnel and secondary school pupils, the authors of this paper review the pathology and epidemiology of testicular cancer, the technique of testicular self-examination, and some suggestions for teaching about this subject.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1981

A conversational information computer system for health and safety operation: the occupational surveillance interactive system (OSIS).

Collection, storage and retrieval of health and safety information is critical in occupational settings in making decisions about safety of employees and the healthful nature of the work environment. Computer surveillance programs have been utilized previously, but have been too complicated, too mathematical, and not directly accessible to health and safety personnel. This paper discusses the Occupational Surveillance Interactive System (OSIS), a conversational system which utilizes English instead of a computer language, and which provides immediate feedback to the health and safety practitioner through fact retrieval and statistical inference. Additionally, an algorithm is introduced which provides a predictive cueing for the development of some disease processes. The hypothetical example illustrated herein introduces a prototypal computer surveillance system, operating under an interactive mode, to provide the health and safety professional with a decision-making tool in occupational settings.

Computers↗