URSP Student Katelyn Bittinger Studies Mason's Program for Students with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Hello! My name is Katelyn Bittinger and I am a Social Work major and Psychology minor. My URSP project for the Fall 2018 semester was focused on Mason’s program for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and how the residential component of the program impacts a student’s independence and overall experience at Mason. As a first step, I decided that interviews would be the best way to find and analyze a student’s experience. Yet, before interviewing, the Institutional Review Board (IRB) must approve the study.

For the majority of the semester, I worked closely with my mentors and others from the program’s administration to make sure that my questions were asking what I wanted them to and methods for my study were ethical. This meant submitting for IRB, editing, adding, and amending my project. Even though the process was sometimes frustrating, I was so grateful for all the experience I received. Now, if someone even mutters IRB, I am ready to go. 

I think the most important thing I learned this semester is that research, in theory, seems easy but in practice is sometimes (almost always) difficult. Truthfully, there were numerous times where I felt defeated and did not think I was going to be able to present something at the end of the year. If you are there right now, just keep going. In my journey with research this semester, I gained a great relationship with both of my mentors, learned more about my own work habits, and got a basis of what research looks like in my field. In the future, the things I learned during this process will continue to help me; in Social Work, I am not sure what population I want to focus on, but I know eventually I would like to go more into the policy-side which involves research. The opportunity OSCAR gave me through URSP is unique in its nature and taught me so much and I am forever grateful to them, my mentors, and everyone else who has supported me. This is just the beginning.  

URSP Student Sheryne Zeitoun Conducts Vector-borne Disease Surveillance, Control, and Pathogen Discovery

My name is Sheryne Zeitoun, I am a senior majoring in Community Health, and my long-term goal is to pursue a career in medicine. The journey into the enthralling, never-ending world of scientific research and medicine has been a passion and desire of mine for the majority of my life. My time as an undergraduate researcher has been one of the most fulfilling experiences of my academic career, as it has allowed me to apply theoretical knowledge from the classroom to the real world. My URSP project is part of my mentor's (Dr. von Fricken) ongoing research on vector-borne disease surveillance, control, and pathogen discovery, spanning from Virginia, to Mongolia, to Kenya. 

Ticksare notorious vectors of human and animal pathogens. These arthropods play an important role in the spillover of emerging zoonotic diseases, which represent a growing global threat as humans increase contact with wildlife and the diseases they carry. Consistentfield research and surveillance on tick-borne diseases is particularly important to monitor changes in tick populations that may be caused by globalization, changing climates, and increased international/domestic travel. Our project looks to explore and tackle these problems. 

This past summer, we conducted tick-borne disease surveillance in Virginia, and this prepared me for active field surveillance of ticks in Kenya. After we collected the ticks by dragging and/or flagging a cotton cloth on a dowel, samples were separated by their respective species, sampling location, and tick life stage. Representative ticks were then preserved in ethanol. Once we finish conducting an analysis of tick data, the relative threat of different bacterial illnesses can be estimated based on prevalence of each tick species. We expect our results to show us what infectious agents the collected ticks carry, which geographical areas had the highest density of infected ticks, and which species were most likely to be infected with which bacteria. 

Throughout my time spent doing research with Dr. von Fricken, I have truly engaged with the intricacies of the research process. Having the opportunity to work both locally and directly in an international setting improved my cultural competency, expanded my research confidence, and reiterated the importance of understanding the drivers behind emerging diseases.

OSCAR Student Shumaila Inayat Develops & Implements a Series of Nutrition Tools

I am one of the research assistants of the summer project CONNECT which is dedicated to developing and implementing a series of nutrition education tools that will support behavior change in a diverse group of elementary-school-age children within the Fairfax area. This program provides enriching nutrition education learning experiences, guided practice, and skill-building in a real world setting. My interest in the science of food and nutrition and the curiosity of how our body processes all the different nutrients got me interested in this project. I also wanted to get involved in something where children are taught about the importance of eating healthy and how their food reaches their tables. Therefore, this project was best opportunity for me to educate them.

I am majoring in public health and minoring in nutrition. My long-term goal is to become a Registered Dietician and work with children. Children are the most vulnerable population and I think it is very important to teach them about the science of food so they can make healthy choices later on in life.

For this project, our team came up with lesson plans that includes nutrition incorporated games, hands-on cooking experiences, and lesson on a nutrition topic each week. It also includes visits to farmer’s market, grocery stores, apiary, greenhouse, food forest, and farm so children can see how their food reach them. Each week we have a pre-test and a post-test to determine how much children know about a certain topic and how much they have learned.

Throughout my research I have discovered that children will always learn if the learning method is made fun and easy for them. Also, children will learn better and faster if they are given the opportunity to get involved. Another thing that I discovered is that it is very important and beneficial to work/interact with others that are not in the same line of profession because of the different ideas that everyone has.

OSCAR Student Karina Escobar Researches Interpersonal Violence Among Latina Women

Hello, my name is Karina Escobar. I am a rising senior this fall at George Mason. My field of study is Community Health/Global Health. Growing up, I was always interested in helping others in any way that I could. When I saw the application for the IPV (Interpersonal Violence) among Latina women, I immediately wanted to be a part of it.

Like any research project, data needs to be collected. So, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, interviews were scheduled at the MAP clinics located in both Manassas and Culmore. From there my colleagues and I conducted those interviews with female participants who were either 18 or older and had been born outside the U.S. We asked questions from a survey that we had created previously. From the questions asked, our goal was to gain more knowledge about what Latina women experience when it comes to intimate partner violence. From their responses, it can help better shape or create future programs by knowing what to focus on.

This opportunity has been so incredible so far, it has helped shaped my understanding of what women face first hand. From the people I have met, I learn and live a part of their life through their stories. From this experience, one thing that I have discovered would be the impact that the people I have met had on me. I didn’t realize how emotionally strong I had to be. I think about how different my life is compared to other girls my age. It makes me more appreciative of how lucky I am to not have been through what they have.

Everything I have learned throughout this term, I will take with me. Seeing the determination and self-empowerment of some to have a better life, inspired me to have the same determination to fulfill my dreams and long-term goals.

URSP Student Katherine Marsh Uses the POMS and PSS Evaluation Methods

Under the Mentorship of Dr. James Metcalf, I am looking at the relationship between injuries and stress in student-athletes at George Mason University. By utilizing the POMS and PSS evaluation methods, I am looking to see if there is a difference in stress experienced by student-athletes who are injured and those who are not injured. 

I first became interested in my research topic as a freshman when I experienced an injury that kept me out of competition for the majority of the season. After speaking with some of my peers who have experienced similar situations, I began to realize that our day-to-day lives were affected dramatically by our injuries. No longer being able to participate in the sport we have dedicated so much time to, not being able to exercise at the same intensity as we have become accustomed to, and missing out on the social aspect of team bonding during practice and competition are just a few of the common themes we all seemed to notice having an impact on our daily lives. 

I then began to wonder if consequent these circumstances, our mental health, was being adversely affected. While countless hours are spent in the training room rehabbing injuries to get athletes back in competition, there are little to no resources provided by the athletic department to insure that the mental health of the athlete is cared for as much as the physical injury. 

While my project is still in the early stages of development, I hope to bring light to the issue of mental health in athletics, specifically, in student-athletes here at George Mason University. I would like to see more mental health resources made available to student-athletes, especially those who have endured an injury that has limited their participation in their sport. 

Eventually, I would like to see these resources as easily accessible and utilized as often as grabbing an ice bag after practice. 

URSP Student Claire Campos Explores the Perspectives of Filipino Americans Regarding Hospice and Palliative Care Services

Hospice and palliative care services remain underutilized amongst the U.S. minority population. Of the U.S. minority population, Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders (AAPIs) represent the largest portion of this population. However, there remains a lack of sufficient research on AAPIs regarding potential barriers to hospice and palliative care services. Therefore, the objective of my study was to explore the perspectives of Filipino Americans regarding hospice and palliative care services to identify potential barriers to its utilization.

A total of ten participants were recruited throughout the Virginia and Maryland regions. Participants had to be ages forty or above, Filipino American, and able to speak English. Each participant consented to a face to face semi-structured interview which assessed current knowledge and sentiments associated with hospice and palliative care services. By using a grounded theory approach, interviews were later transcribed and coded to formulate major themes suggested by the data. Themes which arose included generational norms and cultural relations as presenting barriers to hospice and palliative care services.

I became interested in this project after my experience with hospice and palliative care in my service learning for the social work field. The social work field emphasizes the importance of equal access to services regardless of socioeconomic status. As mentioned previously, hospice and palliative care services are underutilized amongst minority populations despite its benefits. I took the opportunity OSCAR presented me to explore reasons why this disparity existed.  I plan to continue research throughout the duration of my social work practice. To be successful in advocacy and intervention, it is important to remain informed of interdisciplinary evidence and evidence-based strategies. Throughout this term, I learned how much more effective an argument can be made through solid research.

URSP Student Nadia Busekrus Studies the Development or Worsening of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease

Have you ever heard of Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease (NAFLD)? Neither had I before Spring 2016. As part of the Clinical Research Internship course, I joined a team at Inova Fairfax Hospital in the Liver Outcomes Research Program studying liver diseases like NAFLD. Last semester I worked on doing an extensive literature review in the Scoping Review style. This involved sifting through literally thousands of research articles that were identified using a designated set of search terms. In the end, the scoping review of the literature revealed that there is very little research being done about the behaviors that may lead to the development or worsening of NAFLD.

Next step? Do something to fill that research gap! Through OSCAR, I was able to continue my project and create a survey that would measure “Food Behaviors” – aspects of how people eat rather than what they eat. When you think food behaviors, think how long a person spends eating a meal, how often he or she snacks throughout the day, etc. The next step (after undergoing IRB), will be to pilot test the survey that I have formatted online using Qualtrics. Because this is simply a pilot test, I will analyze feedback on the format and content of the survey, rather than the actual responses. I am eager to receive responders’ comments!

The original scoping review involved a lot of reading and good record keeping, and as I learned the review methodology, I had a few setbacks and mistakes along the way. For example, in the beginning I was just sorting articles into “review” or “don’t review” categories, but without recording anything! Because I hadn’t created a database of all the titles of articles I had read and sorted, I had to start all over again. While this was painful, it was a great lesson! Carrying out this research has taught me a variety of skills and has been an invaluable experience.