Class of 2017 Abstract / Objectives: To compare the impacts of regularly scheduled education and health clinic sessions on individual’s health outcomes and self-care. Subjects: Tucson community members who are participants of Project Taking Charge and have attended more than three clinic sessions during the six-month study period. Methods: A retrospective review of a central database was used to collect baseline characteristics, blood glucose, A1c, blood cholesterol, blood pressure, BMI and weight. These clinical values were then used to assess participant clinical health outcomes. The questionnaire surveys distributed at the last clinic session were collected and used to analyze the improvement in participant understanding of self-care. Results: For weight, a 1.5% decrease from 186.1 (±50.7) to 183.3 (±50.4) pounds (p=0.012) was observed to be statistically significant. In response to the importance and the frequency of different self-care questions, participants had an improved perspective on the importance of exercise by 0.9 scale (p=0.008), a better understanding of having a balanced nutritious meals by 1.34 (p=0.0002), proper hand-washing technique by 0.54 (p=0.027), and eating at home more often by 0.31 (p=0.039) compared to baseline. Conclusions: Participant responses reflect positive changed perceptions of exercise and healthy lifestyle choices. Although post-clinical values for BMI, fasting blood glucose, A1c, systolic blood pressure, and blood cholesterol levels, did not meet p<0.05 statistical significance, the trend towards improved cholesterol levels, blood sugar levels and blood pressure levels indicate there may be some benefits attributed from participation in the clinic project.

Class of 2011 Abstract / OBJECTIVES: To identify the pharmacy service needs of providers and staff at the San Luis Walk-In Clinic, and to evaluate whether the addition of a dispensing pharmacy to the clinic will benefit the community of San Luis. METHODS: Two focus groups were conducted with employees of the clinic: one with providers and another with supportive staff. Subjects discussed included major health issues at the clinic, where patients received health care products and information, barriers to receiving health care, beneficial pharmacy services and products, and the role of pharmacists in health care. Data was collected regarding whether participants were providers or staff members and whether they lived within or outside of San Luis. These sessions were audio-recorded, transcribed, and analyzed for recurrent themes and patterns. RESULTS: The first focus group consisted of three providers, one of whom was living within San Luis, and the second group was comprised of six supportive staff members, five of whom were from the community. In regards to pharmacy service needs, providers cited medication management, patient education, and treatment recommendations as beneficial resources. Both groups identified the top four major health problems seen in their clinic as hypertension, diabetes, allergies, and dyslipidemia, and barriers to adequate healthcare included financial issues, time constraints, transportation, and lack of education. CONCLUSION: There is a need for pharmacy services, including medication therapy management and disease state education, at the San Luis Walk-In Clinic. This need likely extends to many rural communities throughout the nation.

The study sought to analyse the perception of HIV/AIDs by clients attending a community clinic in Mutale area in Limpopo province by interviewing them as they are attending the clinic. The study sought to determine ideas, beliefs or images clients have as a result of how they see or understand HIV/AIDS. The major inferences drawn from this study are that clients still need information on the rights of HIV/AIDS client and the immune system. Feedback from the study is indicative of culture and beliefs playing a major role in diseases epidemic. / Health Studies / MA (HEALTH STUDIES)

Locational decisions based on stigma and low funding have handicapped the efficiency of community based mental healthcare in the United States since 1963. However, the pattern of services in the 21st century American South remains largely unknown. This thesis addresses this gap in knowledge by using a mixed methodology including location allocation, descriptive statistics, and qualitative site visits to explore the geography of community clinics offering both physical and mental health services. The City of Houston has proposed using these facilities to anchor new supportive housing, but introducing more fixed costs to a mismatched system could create more problems than solutions. The findings of this study suggest the presence of an unnecessary concentration of services in the central city and a spatial mismatch between accessible clinics and the poor, sick people in need. Furthermore, this research reveals a new suburban pattern of vulnerability, calling into question long-held assumptions about the vulnerability of the inner city. Building supportive housing around existing community clinics, especially in the central city, may further concentrate vulnerable people thereby contributing to intensifying patterns of service-seeking drift and the continued traumatization of mentally ill homeless persons in Houston.

The study sought to analyse the perception of HIV/AIDs by clients attending a community clinic in Mutale area in Limpopo province by interviewing them as they are attending the clinic. The study sought to determine ideas, beliefs or images clients have as a result of how they see or understand HIV/AIDS. The major inferences drawn from this study are that clients still need information on the rights of HIV/AIDS client and the immune system. Feedback from the study is indicative of culture and beliefs playing a major role in diseases epidemic. / Health Studies / MA (HEALTH STUDIES)