Publications by authors named "Melissa Ward"

Objectives: We evaluated SARS-CoV-2 anti-nucleocapsid (anti-N) seroconversion and seroreversion rates, risk factors associated with SARS-CoV-2 seroconversion, and COVID-19 risk perceptions among academic healthcare center employees in a rural state.

Methods: Among employees aged ≥18 years who completed a screening survey (n = 1,377), we invited all respondents reporting previous COVID-19 (n = 85; 82 accepted) and a random selection of respondents not reporting previous COVID-19 (n = 370; 220 accepted) to participate. Participants completed surveys and provided blood samples at 3-month intervals (T0, T3, T6, T9).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: COVID-19 profoundly and uniquely impacted people with HIV. People with HIV experienced significant psychosocial and socioeconomic impacts, yet a limited amount of research has explored potential differences across gender and racial/ethnic groups of people with HIV.

Objective: The objective of this study was to examine psychosocial and socioeconomic stressors related to the COVID-19 pandemic among a diverse sample of people with HIV in South Florida and to determine if the types of stressors varied across gender and racial/ethnic groups.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Digital health interventions have the potential to address barriers to care for women. To design effective digital health interventions that meet the needs of this population, a full assessment of the existing literature is required.

Methods: This scoping review followed the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews (PRISMA-ScR) Checklist.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: A substantial proportion of patients undergoing hemodialysis carry in their noses, and carriers are at increased risk of bloodstream infections. Our pragmatic clinical trial implemented nasal povidone-iodine (PVI) decolonization for the prevention of bloodstream infections in the novel setting of hemodialysis units.

Objective: We aimed to identify pragmatic strategies for implementing PVI decolonization among patients in outpatient hemodialysis units.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Patient-centered care (PCC) improves HIV adherence and retention, though lack of consensus on its conceptualization and understanding how it is interpreted has hindered implementation. We recruited 20 HIV providers at Ryan White Programs in FL for in-depth interviews. Thematic analysis identified core consistencies pertaining to: 1) provider perceptions, 2) current practices promoting PCC.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

We assessed the role of patient-centered care on durable viral suppression (i.e., all viral load test results < 200 copies per ml during 2019) by conducting a retrospective cohort study of clients medically case managed by the Miami-Dade County Ryan White Program (RWP).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Respect is essential to providing high quality healthcare, particularly for groups that are historically marginalized and stigmatized. While ethical principles taught to health professionals focus on patient autonomy as the object of respect for persons, limited studies explore patients' views of respect. The purpose of this study was to explore the perspectives of a multiculturally diverse group of low-income women living with HIV (WLH) regarding their experience of respect from their medical physicians.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Tidal marshes store large amounts of organic carbon in their soils. Field data quantifying soil organic carbon (SOC) stocks provide an important resource for researchers, natural resource managers, and policy-makers working towards the protection, restoration, and valuation of these ecosystems. We collated a global dataset of tidal marsh soil organic carbon (MarSOC) from 99 studies that includes location, soil depth, site name, dry bulk density, SOC, and/or soil organic matter (SOM).

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Women with HIV (WWH) face increased difficulties maintaining adherence to antiretroviral therapy (ART) due to a variety of demographic and psychosocial factors. To navigate the complexities of ART regimens, use of strategies to maintain adherence is recommended. Research in this area, however, has largely focused on adherence interventions, and few studies have examined self-reported preferences for adherence strategies.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

People with HIV (PWH) from racial/ethnic minority groups may be particularly vulnerable to the effects of the COVID-19 Pandemic. Exacerbated COVID-19-related stressors may lead to maladaptive coping mechanisms such as increased alcohol use. This study examined socioeconomic and psychosocial predictors of increased alcohol use during the first year of the COVID-19 Pandemic among PWH from racial/ethnic minority groups in South Florida.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF
Article Synopsis
  • * A study involving 30 hospital staff from 6 different hospitals revealed that the complexity of these bundles and varying barriers across departments hindered successful implementation.
  • * Effective interprofessional collaboration and tailored strategies are essential for overcoming these challenges and improving the adoption and sustainability of SSI prevention practices.
View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Women, particularly those from racial/ethnic minority groups, experience disparities in HIV care and treatment, and in achieving viral suppression. This study identified barriers and facilitators influencing retention in HIV care and treatment adherence among women belonging to racial/ethnic minority groups. We conducted semi-structured interviews with 74 African American, Hispanic/Latina and Haitian cisgender women receiving care from the Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program in Miami-Dade County, Florida in 2019.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Urbanization is predicted to be a key driver of disease emergence through human exposure to novel, animal-borne pathogens. However, while we suspect that urban landscapes are primed to expose people to novel animal-borne diseases, evidence for the mechanisms by which this occurs is lacking. To address this, we studied how bacterial genes are shared between wild animals, livestock, and humans (n = 1,428) across Nairobi, Kenya-one of the world's most rapidly developing cities.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Women with HIV in the United States are more negatively affected by adverse social determinants such as low education and poverty than men, and thus, especially need a supportive health care system. This cross-sectional study assessed the role of the patient-provider relationship on antiretroviral therapy (ART) adherence and durable viral suppression among women with HIV (WHIV) in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Patient-provider relationship was measured, in part, using the Health Care Relationship Trust Scale and Consumer Assessment of Health Care Providers and Systems.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Healthcare personnel (HCP) may encounter unfamiliar personal protective equipment (PPE) during clinical duties, yet we know little about their doffing strategies in such situations.

Objective: To better understand how HCP navigate encounters with unfamiliar PPE and the factors that influence their doffing strategies.

Setting: The study was conducted at 2 Midwestern academic hospitals.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This study examined factors associated with self-reported ART nonadherence during the COVID-19 pandemic among Miami-Dade County Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program (RWHAP) clients. A cross-sectional survey was conducted from October 2020-January 2021 in English, Spanish, and Haitian Creole. The survey included questions on self-reported ART adherence, HIV care access (compared to before the pandemic), social and economic pandemic impacts, and demographics.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Previous studies have found increases in nonfatal opioid overdoses during the COVID-19 pandemic, which created difficult conditions for people with substance use disorders. We assessed changes in nonfatal opioid-related overdoses in Florida during the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. Emergency medical service data was obtained from the Florida Department of Health.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: Livestock systems have been proposed as a reservoir for antimicrobial-resistant (AMR) bacteria and AMR genetic determinants that may infect or colonise humans, yet quantitative evidence regarding their epidemiological role remains lacking. Here, we used a combination of genomics, epidemiology and ecology to investigate patterns of AMR gene carriage in Escherichia coli, regarded as a sentinel organism.

Methods: We conducted a structured epidemiological survey of 99 households across Nairobi, Kenya, and whole genome sequenced E.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Here, we report the draft genome of ESEI_597, an enterotoxigenic Escherichia coli (ETEC) strain harboring genes encoding colonization surface antigen 13 (CS13) and a heat-labile toxin. The ESEI_597 strain was isolated from an 8-month-old child living in Korogocho, Kenya, in 2013.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

We evaluated povidone-iodine (PVI) decolonization among 51 fracture-fixation surgery patients. PVI was applied twice on the day of surgery. Patients were tested for nasal colonization and surveyed.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

This exploratory study examined sex differences in psychosocial and demographic factors associated with sustained HIV viral suppression (SVS). The study population included 6,489 Miami-Dade Ryan White Program (RWP) clients receiving services during 2017; administrative data was analyzed. SVS was defined as having all viral load tests during 2017 below 200 copies/ml.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Low-income, minority women living with HIV often experience multiple barriers in care that contribute to suboptimal care outcomes. Medical case managers (MCM) and medical providers are key players involved in care coordination and aid women along the HIV care continuum. The objective of this study was to identify current and potential patient-centered practices that facilitate adherence to medication and retention in care, from the perspective of racially and ethnically diverse women living with HIV.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Background: To improve adherence with pre-surgical screening for Staphylococcus aureus nasal carriage and decolonization, we need more information about patients' experiences with these protocols.

Methods: We surveyed patients undergoing orthopedic, neurosurgical, or cardiac operations at Johns Hopkins Hospitals (JHH), the University of Iowa Hospitals and Clinics (UIHC) at MercyOne Northeast Iowa Neurosurgery (MONIN) to assess patients' experiences with decolonization protocols.

Results: Five hundred thirty-four patients responded.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

Quantitative evidence for the risk of zoonoses and the spread of antimicrobial resistance remains lacking. Here, as part of the UrbanZoo project, we sampled Escherichia coli from humans, livestock and peri-domestic wildlife in 99 households across Nairobi, Kenya, to investigate its distribution among host species in this rapidly developing urban landscape. We performed whole-genome sequencing of 1,338 E.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF

The Ryan White Program (RWP) in Miami-Dade County, Florida made several modifications to keep HIV care accessible during the COVID-19 Pandemic, including expanding telehealth services, increasing access to HIV medications, and waiving required lab tests for service recertification. We assessed ease of access to medical providers, medical case managers, and antiretroviral medications during the COVID-19 Pandemic among 298 Non-Hispanic Black, Hispanic, and Haitian people with HIV (PWH) served by the RWP Part A, Miami-Dade County, Florida using a telephone-administered survey between October 2020 and January 2021. Overall, most clients reported similar or better access compared to before the Pandemic.

View Article and Find Full Text PDF