Natasha Schaefer Solle

Development and psychometric evaluation of a condom use self-efficacy measure in Spanish and English

Background: Condom self-efficacy is an important construct for HIV/STI prevention and intervention. A psychometrically sound measure of the self-efficacy for using condoms that has been designed for Hispanic women to respond in Spanish or English is needed. Objectives: The goal of this study was to develop and evaluate a brief self-report measure of condom use self-efficacy. Methods: We developed a 15-item measure of condom use self-efficacy based on expert knowledge of measurement and HIV/STI prevention with Hispanic women using a translation-back translation approach. Participants were 320 Hispanic women from the Southeastern US. Results: Internal consistency of the full measure was 92. A short form of the instrument with a subset of five items also had acceptable internal consistency, alpha = .80, and was significantly correlated with the full scale, rs = .93, p < .001. A single latent factor explained 9–48% of the variation in these items. Evidence of construct validity of the short form was provided by correlations of the scale with two self-report measures of condom use: rs = .34** with condom use, rs = .37** with condom use during vaginal sex. Conclusions: Either the full measure or the five-item measure could be used in studies where condom use is an important behavioral outcome, such as evaluating prevention interventions, with Hispanic women. Future studies should examine the performance of this measure with other groups, including Hispanic men and members of other ethnic and language groups.

Feasibility of Fecal Immunochemical Testing Among Hispanic and Haitian Immigrants Living in South Florida

those without funding from the life sciences industry. The CDC did not prompt or require organizations to disclose their financial associations as part of their comments. Disclosure, however, is one means of managing conflicts of interest, and organizations were not precluded from disclosing their revenue sources. In the future, the CDC should request or require such information, just as the US Food and Drug Administration suggests that such information be provided as part of public comments to the agency. US Senate committees5 and investigative journalists6 have scrutinized the financial associations of opioid manufacturers and patient advocacy and professional organizations. A major concern is that opposition to regulatory, payment, or clinical policies to reduce opioid use may originate from groups that stand to lose financially if sales of opioids decline. Our findings demonstrate that greater transparency is required about the financial relationships between opioid manufacturers and patient and professional groups.

Alcohol misuse, depressive symptoms, and HIV/STI risks of US Hispanic women

ABSTRACT Objectives: Alcohol misuse and depressive symptoms have been linked to HIV/STI risk, but studies have rarely included Hispanic women, who have over four times greater HIV incidence than white, non-Hispanic women. Understanding the connections among alcohol misuse, depressive symptoms, and HIV/STI risks may suggest ways to meet specific needs of Hispanic women. This study’s objective is to examine the relationships among alcohol misuse, depressive symptoms, and seven HIV/STI risk factors. Design: Five hundred forty-eight US Hispanic women with intake data from a randomized trial were assessed for alcohol misuse (CAGE) and depressive symptoms (CES-D). GZLM and path analyses tested relationships between alcohol misuse or depressive symptoms and HIV/STI risk factors. Results: Self-efficacy and condom use were not related to alcohol misuse or depressive symptoms, but only 15% of women reported consistent condom use. After controlling for demographics, women with alcohol misuse had significantly more perceived HIV/STI risk (OR = 2.15) and better HIV/STI knowledge (β = −.54); and women with depressive symptoms had significantly more perceived HIV/STI risk (OR = 1.76) and worse HIV/STI knowledge (β = .37). Conclusions: Interventions to increase condom use for Hispanic women are needed, regardless of mental disorders. Working with Hispanic women with alcohol misuse or depressive symptoms presents a need (and opportunity) to address issues directly related to HIV/STI risk. Women’s health practitioners have an excellent opportunity to reach women by implementing regular screening programs in clinics that serve Hispanic women. For women with high depressive symptoms, poor HIV/STI knowledge should also be addressed. Future studies should test whether integrated and tailored risk reduction interventions affect these factors and lower HIV/STI risk for Hispanic women.

The “Warm Zone” Cases: Environmental Monitoring Immediately Outside the Fire Incident Response Arena by Firefighters

Hazardous work zones (i.e., hot, warm, and cold) are typically established by emergency response teams during hazardous materials (HAZMAT) calls but less consistently for fire responses to segment personnel and response activities in the immediate geographic area around the fire. Despite national guidelines, studies have documented the inconsistent use of respiratory protective equipment by firefighters at the fire scene. In this case-series report, we describe warm zone gas levels using multigas detectors across five independent fire incident responses all occurring in a large South Florida fire department. Multigas detector data collected at each fire response indicate the presence of sustained levels of volatile organic compounds in the “warm zone” of each fire event. These cases suggest that firefighters should not only implement strategies for multigas detector use within the warm zone but also include respiratory protection to provide adequate safety from toxic exposures in the warm zone.