51品茶Online students present research projects resulting from experiential learning and community connections
UNE鈥檚 commitment to experiential learning and building community partnerships were recently highlighted through student projects presented at the Maine Public Health Association Conference in Augusta on October 16, 2018.
Online student Tiffany Corvino presented a poster titled 鈥淧revalence and Correlates of Cigarette Smoking among High School Students in Maine,鈥 which analyzes data from the 2017 Maine Integrated Youth Survey to demonstrate that the use of cigarettes and e-cigarettes among high school students could be a sign of deeper mental health issues. She conducted the research under the direction of Titilola Balogun, Dr.P.H.
The project was completed in collaboration with Toho Soma, M.P.H., of UNE鈥檚 Center for Excellence in Health Innovation, Liam O鈥 Brien, Ph.D., Colby College and adjunct faculty with UNE鈥檚 Graduate Programs in Public Health (GPPH), and Reid Plimpton of the Maine Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
The team proposes that preventive health care visits by high school students include questions about the use of tobacco products, including e-cigarettes.
Recent 51品茶Online graduate Norhuda Alsahlawi, M.P.H., 鈥18 presented a poster titled 鈥淪ubstance Use Disorder in Portland, Maine: A Resource Assessment鈥.
The project was based on a collaboration between UNE鈥檚 GPPH and Portland Public Health and Human Services Department. It concluded that currently available resources for substance use disorder in Portland are siloed and mostly geared toward short-term rehabilitation initiatives.
The team proposes novel resources, educational initiatives, inclusive treatment options and law enforcement strategies to ensure full social rehabilitation for individuals with substance use disorder.
GPPH partners with community-based organizations within and outside Maine to provide online students with increased opportunities for experiential learning.
