Light quality and time in shelter modulate behavior and cortisol in the domestic cat ().

Light is a principal synchronizer of behavior, circadian rhythms, and hormone release patterns, including stress responses. High stress in domestic cats () increases risk of disease, promotes undesirable behaviors, and is associated with reduced adoptions from shelters. To determine how light properties impact stress and behavioral activity patterns in cats, the effects of light intensity and composition were tested in 101 male and female cats using standard, dim, and dim, blue-depleted light during the initial five days in a shelter environment.

How Community-Based Organizations View and Use Data: Practices, Challenges, and Opportunities.

This analysis aimed to define the data needs of community-based organizations (CBOs) after the COVID-19 pandemic. Through a mixed-methods explanatory sequential design during the summer/fall of 2023, 51 CBOs completed surveys and 24 participated in subsequent interviews. The CBOs provided social services to Black, Latinx, Asian, and/or low-income communities in the Chicago region.

A qualitative examination of how direct and indirect police violence shapes perceptions of police, sense of safety, and the mental health of Black adults in Chicago.

Police violence remains a significant public health issue, with detrimental effects on the mental health and well-being of Black communities. While public health research documenting the health consequences of police violence has been increasing, there has been considerably less qualitative research in this space. We conducted in-depth phenomenological interviews with 50 Black adults in Chicago to understand the mental health impacts of police violence.

Strategic and Performance Planning in US Local Health Departments: A Comparative Analysis of Strategic, Community Health Improvement, and Quality Improvement Plans.

Context: Local health departments (LHDs) are a critical component of the US public health infrastructure. To guide their work and evaluate progress, LHDs develop and maintain a range of planning documents, including strategic plans (SPs), community health improvement plans (CHIPs), and quality improvement plans (QIPs).

Objective: The goal of this study was to provide information on current LHD practices related to strategic planning and performance improvement.

Improving Diabetes Equity and Advancing Care (IDEA) to optimize team-based care at a safety-net health system for Black and Latine patients living with diabetes: study protocol for a sequential, multiple assignment, randomized trial.

Background: Diabetes is the eighth leading cause of death in the USA. Inequities driven by structural racism and systemic oppression have led to racial/ethnic disparities in diabetes prevalence, diagnosis, and treatment. Diabetes-self management training (DSMT), remote glucose monitoring (RGM), and tailored support from a community health worker (CHW) have the potential to improve outcomes.

Impact of a multi-disciplinary team-based care model for patients living with diabetes on health outcomes: a mixed-methods study.

Background: Individuals facing socioeconomic hardship experience higher than average rates of chronic disease, such as diabetes, with less access to evidence-based treatment. One solution to address these inequities is a team-based care (TBC) model, defined as one in which at least two providers work collaboratively with a patient and their caregiver(s) to make healthcare decisions. This paper seeks to describe the implementation of a TBC model within a safety-net healthcare setting and determine the extent to which it can be an effective, patient-centered approach to treating individuals with diabetes.

Dog Foster Volunteer Retention.

Volunteers that provide foster care in their homes are a critical resource for animal shelters and rescues and make significant contributions to animal welfare. This project explores the support needs identified by canine foster volunteers via a national survey of 611 respondents by answering the following three research questions:1. Why do foster volunteers consider ending their foster service?2.

Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination by Gender and Age in a Sample of Black Adults in Chicago.

Although vaccine behaviors differ greatly by gender and age, few studies have examined vaccination at the intersection of gender and age within the Black community. We examined COVID-19 vaccination by gender and age using a survey of over 500 Black adults in Chicago, Illinois, fielded from September 2021 to March 2022. Although 54% had received at least one COVID-19 vaccine, the proportion vaccinated was considerably lower for Black men (28%) and women (37%) under 40 years old than Black men (92%) and women (86%) over 40 years ( < .

Trusted Sources of Information and COVID-19 Vaccination Among Black Adults in Chicago.

Purpose: Examine trust in sources of COVID-19 information and vaccination status.

Design: Cross-sectional.

Setting: Chicago, Illinois.

Associations Between Religiosity and Medical Mistrust: An Age-Stratified Analysis of Survey Data from Black Adults in Chicago.

Medical mistrust is associated with poor health outcomes, ineffective disease management, lower utilization of preventive care, and lack of engagement in research. Mistrust of healthcare systems, providers, and institutions may be driven by previous negative experiences and discrimination, especially among communities of color, but religiosity may also influence the degree to which individuals develop trust with the healthcare system. The Black community has a particularly deep history of strong religious communities, and has been shown to have a stronger relationship with religion than any other racial or ethnic group.

Community Cohesion, Social Support, and Mental Health among Black Individuals in Chicago: A Cross-Sectional Examination of the Effects on COVID-19 Vaccination.

The COVID-19 pandemic put a significant strain on communities, social resources, and personal relationships, disproportionately impacting Black and low-income communities in the United States. Community cohesion and social support are positively associated with numerous health outcomes and preventive health measures, yet were strained during the pandemic due to COVID mitigation measures. This study examined the relationships between social cohesion, social support, mental health, and COVID-19 vaccination to understand whether community cohesion and social support were associated with increased likelihood of receiving a COVID-19 vaccination.

Examining the Relationship between Anti-Black Racism, Community and Police Violence, and COVID-19 Vaccination.

In 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic emerged against a backdrop of long-standing racial inequities that contributed to significant disparities in COVID-19 mortality, morbidity, and eventually, vaccination rates. COVID-19 also converged with two social crises: anti-Black racism and community and police violence. The goal of this study was to examine the associations between community violence, police violence, anti-Black racism, and COVID-19 vaccination.

The Influence of Racism in Healthcare: COVID-19 Vaccine Hesitancy Among Black Mothers in Chicago.

Black mothers and children experience significant health disparities in the USA. These health disparities have been attributed, in part, to experiencing racism in healthcare. This study aimed to explore how experiences of healthcare discrimination and mistreatment experienced by Black mothers may influence COVID-19 vaccine beliefs and decision-making for themselves and their families.

Developing and Implementing Racial Health Equity Plans in Four Large US Cities: A Qualitative Study.

Context: Local health departments (LHDs) and their partners are critical components of the fight for racial health equity, particularly given the variation in levels of, and pathways to, inequities at the local level.

Objective: To inform continued progress in this area, we qualitatively examined the development and implementation of equity-related plans and initiatives of LHDs within 4 large US cities: Baltimore, Boston, Chicago, and Philadelphia.

Design And Measures: We conducted 15 semistructured interviews with 21 members of LHDs, academic institutions, health systems, and community-based organizations involved with health equity strategies or activities in their respective cities.

An Evaluation of the Implementation of the Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) Farmers Market Nutrition Program at Four Chicago WIC Sites.

The Farmers Market Nutrition Program (FMNP), a program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), provides coupons to individuals/families enrolled in the Special Supplemental Nutrition program for Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) to purchase fresh produce from approved farmers markets.

Modeling Animal Shelter Volunteer Satisfaction: The Importance of Internal Policies.

This research examines the predictors of volunteer satisfaction in animal shelters. It assesses the relative importance of volunteer demographics, the attributes of the shelter, and the policies and procedures governing the volunteer experience. Volunteering takes place within organizational contexts creating a dynamic relationship between the individual and the organization.

Chicago's Citywide COVID-19 Vaccine Equity Program: Protect Chicago Plus.

Vaccination is one of the most effective strategies to control the spread of COVID-19 and reduce morbidity and mortality; however, rapid and equitable vaccine distribution is required to achieve such outcomes. We conducted a basic interrupted time-series analysis to examine the short-term impacts of a citywide vaccine equity plan, the Protect Chicago Plus (PCP) plan. We compared vaccine coverage in zip codes in Chicago with high COVID-19 vulnerability, as identified from the Chicago COVID-19 Community Vulnerability Index, with coverage in all other zip codes in Chicago.

The COVID-19, racism, and violence syndemic: Evidence from a qualitative study with Black residents of Chicago.

The COVID-19 pandemic emerged in the United States in the shadows of a vast history of structural racism and community and police violence that disproportionately affect Black communities. Collectively, they have created a syndemic, wherein COVID-19, racism, and violence are mutually reinforcing to produce adverse health outcomes. The purpose of this study was to understand the COVID-19, racism, and violence syndemic and examine how structural racism and violence contributed to the disproportionate impact of COVID-19 on Black communities.

A Community-Informed Approach to COVID-19 Vaccine Roll-Out in Under-served Areas in Chicago.

The availability of the COVID-19 vaccine in the US created an urgent need for strategies to achieve widespread vaccine distribution, but approaches to achieving equitable distribution, including reaching communities of color, varied across the country. To add to the knowledge base around targeted vaccine roll-out among underserved communities, the current study presents results from patient vaccination data and staff interviews conducted at Sinai Chicago, a safety-net healthcare system serving under-resourced communities. A total of 11,313 patients received at least one dose of Pfizer or Moderna COVID-19 vaccine between January and October 2021 at a Sinai Chicago facility.

Examining the Correlation Between PrEP Use and Black:White Disparities in HIV Incidence in the Ending the HIV Epidemic Priority Jurisdictions.

Introduction: HIV incidence remains high in the U.S. as do disparities in new HIV diagnosis between White and Black populations and access to preventive therapies like pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP).

The COVID-19 Animal Fostering Boom: Ephemera or Chimera?

There has been discussion in traditional and social media about increases in the numbers of people willing to foster animals in their homes during the pandemic. However, there is a lack of empirical data on whether that increase was a temporary response to the stress of COVID-19 or the ability to work from home, if it might have lasting effects, or indeed, whether an increase occurred at all. Using a national survey of over 600 animal shelter/rescue foster volunteers it appears that fostering did increase during the pandemic (x = 45.

COVID-19 health inequities and association with mechanical ventilation and prolonged length of stay at an urban safety-net health system in Chicago.

Millions of Americans have been infected with COVID-19 and communities of color have been disproportionately burdened. We investigated the relationship between demographic characteristics and COVID-19 positivity, and comorbidities and severe COVID-19 illness (use of mechanical ventilation and length of stay) within a racial/ethnic minority population. Patients tested for COVID-19 between March 2020 and January 2021 (N = 14171) were 49.

Factors Contributing to the Satisfaction of Animal Shelter Volunteers: The Importance of Voice.

Volunteers are a critical resource for many types of organizations and efforts need to be made to ensure they are satisfied with their experience. Using data from an online survey of 651 animal shelter volunteers this research explores the role of volunteer input or "voice" in the policies and practices of organizations, and its impact on satisfaction with the volunteer experience. The findings indicate that volunteers more negative about their opportunities for voice were significantly less satisfied with their experience overall.

Nonfatal Firearm Violence Trends on the Westside of Chicago Between 2005 and 2016.

This paper examines the epidemiology of nonfatal firearm violence (NFFV) on the Westside of Chicago over three finite time periods: 2005-2008, 2009-2012, and 2013-2016. The trend analysis will look at any significant changes over the time periods and describe the demographic characteristics of NFFV. A descriptive analysis of Mount Sinai Hospital (MSH) Emergency Department (ED) data was conducted.

Defining and Clarifying the Terms Canine and : A Study of Expert Opinion.

The terms and are often used interchangeably to describe behavior patterns used by a dog to control primary access to a perceived valuable item. The use of inconsistent terminology may impact the effectiveness of communication between dog owners and clinicians, affect treatment and management success for the behavior, and inhibit research progress. The aim of this study was to explore the opinions of canine behavior experts on the meaning of and preference for the terms and , as well as to develop and propose an operational ethological definition for the preferential term identified.