Food Choices and Hypertension Among Rural Thais: Evidence From a Discrete Choice Experiment.

The rural northern region of Thailand exhibits the highest rate of hypertension. This study explored hypertensive-related food choices between normotensive and hypertensive people residing in rural northern Thailand to determine which food attributes influence their choices. The study conducted a discrete choice experiment (DCE) survey among Thai adults residing in rural northern Thailand ( = 403) to estimate the relative importance of four food attributes, including food preparation, price, taste, and amount of salt.

Awareness and Attitudes Toward HIV Self-Testing in Northern Thailand.

Human Immunodeficiency Virus self-testing (HIVST) was recently introduced in Thailand, but little is known about receptivity among its residents. Because Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) testing is a critical component of HIV prevention, it is important to understand how HIVST is perceived among potential users. The purpose of this study was to examine awareness and attitudes toward HIVST among adults in Northern Thailand.

The Patient-Provider Continuum of Care: Narratives of People Living With Comorbid HIV and Diabetes in Northern Thailand.

Background: Among South-East Asia Region countries, Thailand has a high prevalence of HIV with an increasing significant comorbidity of diabetes mellitus (DM).

Objective: Guided by syndemics, the purpose of this qualitative study is to develop insight into the experience of patients living with comorbid HIV and DM in Northern Thailand for quality improvement.

Methods: Interviews were conducted in 2 groups for content analysis: (1) people living with comorbid HIV and DM and (2) health-care staff providing care to patients living with the comorbidity.

Correlates of Health Literacy among Farmers in Northern Thailand.

Low health literacy is a barrier to public health efforts worldwide. Agricultural workers have an elevated risk for lower health literacy, with important health implications because of their potential exposure to harmful chemicals. The Asian Health Literacy Survey (AHLS) has been developed and translated for use in several different Asian countries and is standardized for easy comparisons across regions.

In-person retail marketing claims in tobacco and E-cigarette shops in Southern California.

Background: E-cigarette use has been increasing in the United States, though knowledge of potential risks and harms associated with e-cigarette use is low. Marketing of e-cigarettes may serve as a source of information to shape beliefs and attitudes toward e-cigarettes. The purpose of this study was to identify the most common marketing claims made within "vape" and tobacco shops in sales interactions with customers in demographically diverse cities.

Displacement and HIV: Factors Influencing Antiretroviral Therapy Use by Ethnic Shan Migrants in Northern Thailand.

Migrant populations face increased HIV vulnerabilities, including limited access to antiretroviral therapy. Civil conflict in Myanmar has displaced thousands of people from the minority Shan ethnic group into northern Thailand, where they bear a disproportionate HIV burden. To identify barriers and facilitators of antiretroviral therapy use in this population, we conducted a rapid ethnographic assessment and case study with a clinical sample of Shan migrants receiving treatment for HIV in a district hospital in Chiang Mai, Thailand, Thai nurses providing their care, and health care administrators (n = 23).

Communicating actionable risk for terrorism and other hazards.

We propose a shift in emphasis when communicating to people when the objective is to motivate household disaster preparedness actions. This shift is to emphasize the communication of preparedness actions (what to do about risk) rather than risk itself. We have called this perspective "communicating actionable risk," and it is grounded in diffusion of innovations and communication theories.

The reliability and validity of drug users' self reports of amphetamine use among primarily heroin and cocaine users.

Relatively few studies have addressed the psychometric properties of self-report measures of amphetamine use. This study examines the reliability and validity of the Risk Behavior Assessment's (RBA) lifetime and recent amphetamine-use questions. To evaluate validity, 4027 out-of-treatment primarily cocaine and heroin users provided urine samples that were compared to self-report data; to evaluate reliability, 218 completed the RBA at two time points, 48h apart.

Convergent and discriminant validity of three measures of stage of change.

The University of Rhode Island Change Assessment (E. A. McConnaughy, J.

Nicotine dependence and HIV risk behaviors among illicit drug users.

This study was concerned with examining the relation between nicotine dependence and HIV risk behaviors in a sample of 297 out-of-treatment drug users. A number of significant relationships were found between nicotine dependence and HIV risk behaviors. Crack-smoking injectors were found to have a higher degree of nicotine dependence when compared with exclusive injectors or exclusive crack smokers.

Using the quality of well-being scale to assess quality of life in out-of-treatment drug users.

The Quality of Well-Being Scale (QWB) was developed for use with diverse patient and general population samples. This study investigated its use with a sample of out-of-treatment drug users. The QWB was administered to 75 out-of-treatment drug users.

Employment retention of health care providers in frontier areas of Alaska.

Objectives: The objectives of this study were to: describe the length of employment of health care providers in rural Alaska; assess whether there are differences in length of employment among community health aides, medical doctors, and nurses; and determine whether provider length of employment is significantly increased following implementation of telemedicine.

Study Design: We conducted a prospective cohort study of length of employment among health professionals in rural Alaska, and identified the cohort based on current employment status of community health aides, medical doctors, and nurses.

Methods: Employment data were collected from four Alaska Native regional health corporations.

A cognitive-behavioral intervention to reduce HIV risk behaviors in crack and injection drug users.

This paper presents the results of a study evaluating the efficacy of a theory-based cognitive-behavioral intervention to reduce HIV risk among street-based crack and injection drug users not currently in drug treatment in Long Beach, California. A nine-session, 4-month enhanced intervention (including HIV counseling and testing) was compared to a two-session standard counseling and testing intervention developed by the National Institute on Drug Abuse (NIDA) in terms of their efficacy for reducing drug- and sex-related risk behaviors. The theory-based enhanced intervention rarely was found to be different from NIDA's standard counseling and testing intervention in reducing both drug- and sex-related risks, as indicated by cessation and/or reduction of drug use (measured by urine test and self-report), entry into drug treatment, and increased frequency of condom use.

Use of emergency room services by out-of-treatment drug users in Long Beach, California.

The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of emergency room services among out-of-treatment drug users in Long Beach, CA. Primary data collection occurred between 1991-1996. The study setting was a community-based location through which out-of-treatment drug users were recruited using a standard research protocol.