Identifying Sexual and Labor Exploitation among Sheltered Youth Experiencing Homelessness: A Comparison of Screening Methods

Human trafficking is a significant and growing public health concern. Subgroups of adolescents and young adults are particularly vulnerable to human trafficking, especially youth who are unstably housed or homeless. While youth experiencing trafficking come into contact with the healthcare system, they are often not identified during routine assessment due to lack of specific inquiry and low disclosure. Therefore, we utilized a mixed-methods study design to assess the differences in the identification of human trafficking among youth experiencing homelessness (n = 129) between a standard psychosocial assessment tool and a human trafficking specific assessment tool. Findings indicate that the tool developed to specifically assess for human trafficking was more likely to identify youth experiencing sexual and labor exploitation, as well as the risk factors for human trafficking. Secondly, youth reported that mistrust of the system, fear of involving the police if reported, not wanting to interact with the mental healthcare system, and stigma are barriers to disclosing human trafficking. In conclusion, healthcare providers caring for youth experiencing homelessness should adopt improved screening tools for human trafficking to reduce the risk of missed opportunities for prevention and treatment among this high-risk population of youth.

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MyHEARTSMAP: development and evaluation of a psychosocial self-assessment tool, for and by youth

BMJ Paediatrics Open ◽

10.1136/bmjpo-2019-000493 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 3 (1) ◽

pp. e000493 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Punit Virk ◽

Samara Laskin ◽

Rebecca Gokiert ◽

Chris Richardson ◽

Mandi Newton ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Assessment Tool ◽

Phase 1 ◽

Community Sample ◽

Mental Healthcare ◽

Cross Sectional Study ◽

Psychosocial Assessment ◽

Management Tool ◽

Phase 2 ◽

Cross Sectional ◽

Health Related

BackgroundPaediatric mental health-related visits to the emergency department are rising. However, few tools exist to identify concerns early and connect youth with appropriate mental healthcare. Our objective was to develop a digital youth psychosocial assessment and management tool (MyHEARTSMAP) and evaluate its inter-rater reliability when self-administered by a community-based sample of youth and parents.MethodsWe conducted a multiphasic, multimethod study. In phase 1, focus group sessions were used to inform tool development, through an iterative modification process. In phase 2, a cross-sectional study was conducted in two rounds of evaluation, where participants used MyHEARTSMAP to assess 25 fictional cases.ResultsMyHEARTSMAP displays good face and content validity, as supported by feedback from phase 1 focus groups with youth and parents (n=38). Among phase 2 participants (n=30), the tool showed moderate to excellent agreement across all psychosocial sections (κ=0.76–0.98).ConclusionsOur findings show that MyHEARTSMAP is an approachable and interpretable psychosocial assessment and management tool that can be reliably applied by a diverse community sample of youth and parents.

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Ultrasound or Sectional Imaging Techniques as Screening Tools for Hepatocellular Carcinoma: Fall Forward or Move Forward?

Journal of Clinical Medicine ◽

10.3390/jcm10050903 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 10 (5) ◽

pp. 903

Author(s):

Zeno Sparchez ◽

Rares Craciun ◽

Cosmin Caraiani ◽

Adelina Horhat ◽

Iuliana Nenu ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Hepatocellular Carcinoma ◽

Imaging Techniques ◽

Standard Of Care ◽

Safety Net ◽

Screening Strategy ◽

Screening Tools ◽

High Risk Population ◽

Screening Methods ◽

Current Standard ◽

Curative Intent

Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC) is probably the epitome of a screening target, with a well-defined high-risk population, accessible screening methods, and multiple curative-intent treatments available for early disease. Per major societies guideline consensus, biannual ultrasound (US) surveillance of the at-risk patients is the current standard of care worldwide. Yet, despite its documented success in the past decades, this standard is far from perfect. While the whole community is working to further tighten the knots, a worrying number of cases still slip through this safety net. Consequently, these patients lose their chance to a curative solution which leads to a high disease burden with disproportionate mortality. While US will probably remain the fundamental staple in the screening strategy, key questions are seeking better answers. How can its caveats be addressed, and the technique be improved? When are further steps needed? How to increase accuracy without giving up on accessibility? This narrative review discusses the place of US surveillance in the bigger HCC picture, trying to navigate through its strengths and limits based on the most recent available evidence.

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Psychosocial Assessment Tool

PsycTESTS Dataset ◽

10.1037/t01764-000 ◽

2001 ◽

Author(s):

Anne E. Kazak ◽

Alice Prusak ◽

Mary McSherry ◽

Steven Simms ◽

David Beele ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Assessment Tool ◽

Psychosocial Assessment

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Lessons Learned from Development of a Mobile App for Cardiovascular Health Awareness

Sustainability ◽

10.3390/su13115985 ◽

2021 ◽

Vol 13 (11) ◽

pp. 5985

Author(s):

Bryan Weichelt ◽

Jeffrey VanWormer ◽

Yin Xu ◽

Chris Kadolph ◽

Simon Lin

Keyword(s):

Cardiovascular Disease ◽

Health Information ◽

Healthcare System ◽

Disease Risk ◽

Cardiovascular Disease Risk ◽

The United States ◽

Mobile App ◽

Lessons Learned ◽

Health Concern ◽

Development Processes

Cardiovascular disease (CVD) is a major public health concern in the United States. In response to the federally sponsored Million Hearts Risk Check Challenge, a team of programmers, software developers, health-information technologists, and clinicians in an integrated healthcare system in Wisconsin collaborated to develop Heart Health MobileTM (HHM), designed to improve awareness of cardiovascular disease risk and promote risk factor control among users. This paper outlines the development processes and highlights key lessons learned for mobile health applications. An agile project management methodology was used to dedicate adequate resources and employ adaptive planning and iterative development processes with a self-organized, cross-functional team. The initial HHM iOS app was developed and tested, and after additional modifications, gamified and HTML 5 versions of the app were released. The development of an iOS app is low in cost and sustainable by a healthcare system. Future app modifications to enhance data security and link self-reported cardiovascular risk assessment data to patient medical records may improve performance, patient relevance, and clinician acceptance of HHM in the primary-care setting. Legal and institutional barriers regarding the capture and analyses of protected health information must be mitigated to fully capture, analyze, and report patient health outcomes for future studies.

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The Epidemiology and Predictors of Outcomes Among Confirmed COVID-19 Cases in a Large Community Healthcare System in South Florida

Journal of Community Health ◽

10.1007/s10900-020-00957-y ◽

2021 ◽

Author(s):

Shenae Samuels ◽

Jianli Niu ◽

Candice Sareli ◽

Paula Eckardt

Keyword(s):

Healthcare System ◽

South Florida ◽

Health Concern ◽

Community Healthcare ◽

Logistic Regression Models ◽

Icu Admission ◽

Large Community ◽

Increased Risk ◽

Predictors Of Outcomes ◽

Novel Coronavirus

AbstractThe novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) continues to be a major public health concern. The aim of this study was to describe the presenting characteristics, epidemiology and predictors of outcomes among confirmed COVID-19 cases seen at a large community healthcare system which serves the epicenter and diverse region of Florida. We conducted a retrospective analysis of individuals with lab-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection who were seen, from March 2, 2020 to May 31, 2020, at Memorial Healthcare System in South Florida. Data was extracted from a COVID-19 registry of patients with lab-confirmed SARS-CoV-2 infection. Univariate and backward stepwise multivariate logistic regression models were used to determine predictors of key study outcomes. There were a total of 1692 confirmed COVID-19 patients included in this study. Increasing age was found to be a significant predictor of hospitalization, 30-day readmission and death. Having a temperature of 38 °C or more and increasing comorbidity score were also associated with an increased risk of hospitalization. Significant predictors of ICU admission included having a saturated oxygen level less than 90%, hypertension, dementia, rheumatologic disease, having a respiratory rate greater than 24 breaths per minute. Being of Hispanic ethnicity and immunosuppressant utilization greatly increased the risk of 30-day readmission. Having an oxygen saturation less than 90% and an underlying neurological disorder were associated with an increased likelihood of death. Results show that a patient’s demographic, underlying condition and vitals at triage may increase or reduce their risk of hospitalization, ICU admission, 30-day readmission or death.

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Mental healthcare in older adults with schizophrenia: results from 118 French public psychiatric departments

International Psychogeriatrics ◽

10.1017/s1041610215001064 ◽

2015 ◽

Vol 27 (10) ◽

pp. 1749-1750 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Delphine Raucher-Chéné ◽

Nicolas Hoertel ◽

Céline Béra-Potelle ◽

Sarah Terrien ◽

Sarah Barrière ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Older Adults ◽

Bipolar Disorder ◽

Life Expectancy ◽

Healthcare System ◽

Psychiatric Illness ◽

Mental Healthcare ◽

Geriatric Psychiatry

The increased life expectancy in people with severe and persistent psychiatric illness, such as schizophrenia or bipolar disorder, has been predicted to substantially affect mental healthcare system (Bartels et al., 2002) that must adapt to meet the needs of older adults (Jeste et al., 1999). Development of specialized geriatric psychiatry services is thus needed.

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Does the use of the revised Psychosocial Assessment Tool (PATrev) result in improved quality of life and reduced psychosocial risk in Canadian families with a child newly diagnosed with cancer?

Psycho-Oncology ◽

10.1002/pon.3386 ◽

2013 ◽

Vol 23 (2) ◽

pp. 165-172 ◽

Cited By ~ 23

Author(s):

M. Barrera ◽

K. Hancock ◽

A. Rokeach ◽

E. Atenafu ◽

D. Cataudella ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Quality Of Life ◽

Assessment Tool ◽

Psychosocial Risk ◽

Psychosocial Assessment ◽

Newly Diagnosed

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A Scoping Review of Human Trafficking Screening and Response

Trauma Violence & Abuse ◽

10.1177/15248380211057273 ◽

2021 ◽

pp. 152483802110572

Author(s):

Rebecca J. Macy ◽

L. B. Klein ◽

Corey A. Shuck ◽

Cynthia Fraga Rizo ◽

Tonya B. Van Deinse ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Human Trafficking ◽

Scoping Review ◽

Service Providers ◽

Work Conditions ◽

Screening Tools ◽

Specific Response ◽

Governmental Organizations ◽

Non Governmental Organizations ◽

Scoping Reviews ◽

The U.S

Service providers are increasingly asked to identify individuals who are experiencing trafficking and to connect them with resources and support. Nonetheless, identification is complicated by the reality that those who are experiencing trafficking may rarely self-identify, and providers may fail to identify individuals who are experiencing trafficking due to lack of guidance on how to screen for trafficking capably and sensitively. With the aim of guiding practice, we undertook a scoping review to search for and synthesize trafficking screening tools and response protocols. Following the PRISMA extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR), we located 22 screening tools contained in 26 sources. We included any documents that described or tested human trafficking screening tools, screening or identification protocols, response protocols, or guidelines that were published in any year. All documents were abstracted using a standardized form. Key findings showed that most tools were developed by practice-based and non-governmental organizations located in the U.S. and were administered in the U.S. Few screening tools have been rigorously evaluated. The common types of screening questions and prompts included (a) work conditions; (b) living conditions; (c) physical health; (d) travel, immigration, and movement; (e) appearance and presentation; (f) mental health, trauma, and substance abuse; (g) associations and possessions; and (h) arrests and prior involvement with law enforcement. We were not able to locate specific response protocols that provided step-by-step guidance. Nonetheless, the review revealed available practice-based and research-based evidence to help inform guidance concerning how screening and identification of human trafficking may be administered.

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Discriminating levels of alcohol use associated with self-harm in individuals presenting to a district general hospital

The Psychiatrist ◽

10.1192/pb.bp.108.023929 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 34 (6) ◽

pp. 226-230 ◽

Cited By ~ 1

Author(s):

Nicholas Holdsworth ◽

Hugh Griffiths ◽

David Crawford

Keyword(s):

Alcohol Use ◽

General Hospital ◽

Screening Tool ◽

District General Hospital ◽

Alcohol Screening ◽

Screening Tools ◽

Psychosocial Assessment ◽

Different Types ◽

Self Harm ◽

Problematic Alcohol Use

Aims and methodAlthough alcohol is reported as commonly associated with self-harm, there is nothing in the literature that bases the association on validated screening tools. We sought to discern the different types of alcohol use as discriminated by the Alcohol Use Disorders Identification Test (AUDIT). Completed AUDITs from a 2-year period were analysed, all relating to people who had presented to a district general hospital in Northumberland following self-harm.ResultsThe proportion of dependent, harmful and hazardous drinkers identified using AUDIT was many times higher than previously estimated in similar studies that had not used a validated alcohol screening tool.Clinical implicationsThe routine use of an alcohol screening tool should be part of any standard psychosocial assessment of self-harm, to guide appropriate interventions for problematic alcohol use that might otherwise be overlooked.

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