Stacey Scott, PhD, and Brent Small, PhD, with colleagues Drs. Paul Jacobsen, Heather Jim, and Susan Minton from the H. Lee Moffitt Cancer Center, received a National Cancer Institute R03 grant to study daily cognitive function among breast cancer survivors. Cognitive impairment is one of the most common Quality of Life (QOL) complaints among breast cancer survivors; as many as 70% report memory loss and difficulty concentrating, however, objective tests of cognitive function typically show only 15% - 25% of survivors are impaired based on normative criteria. To address the various issues that may contribute to this discrepancy, data will be collected from breast cancer survivors who were treated with chemotherapy. Cognitive functioning will be assessed in these individuals using self-report questionnaires and neuropsychological instruments as well as with daily diary reports of memory failures, and cognitive tasks administered as 'brain games' on smartphones across a 14-day period. Innovations in mobile data collection allow for real-time capture of objective cognitive performance and subjective cognitive complaints.

This two-year R03 will leverage the foundational work from the team's American Cancer Society-Institutional Research Grant (ACS-IRG) from Moffitt awarded early this year and equipment support from the College of Behavioral Community Sciences to purchase study smartphones.

Tina Dillahunt-Aspillaga, PhD, CRC, CVE, CLCP, has been awarded $27,990 in funding from the Veteran's Administration to conduct research on Employment and Vocational Rehabilitation of Veterans with Deployment-related Stress. Dr. Dillahunt-Aspillaga will provide subject matter expertise while also assisting in data collection, analysis, and interpretation, as well as report, presentation, and manuscript preparation. Many Veterans are at a higher risk for experiencing traumatic brain injury (TBI), post-traumatic stress disorders (PTSD) and may also experience increased rates of unemployment compared to civilian populations. Unemployment is linked to decreased physical and mental health. To support recent efforts to provide the highest quality of care to Veterans, Health-Related Quality of Life (HRQOL) has been identified as a key outcome of long-term health and well-being. TBI and PTSD has been associated with reduced HRQOL. Dr. Dillahunt-Aspillaga is currently an investigator on three other Veterans Administration grants: 'Action Ethnography of Community Reintegration for Veterans with TBI', 'Measuring Quality of Life in Veterans with Deployment Related PTSD (DR-PTSD)', and Community-Based Agricultural Initiatives for Transitioning Veterans. For this current grant which is funded 10/1/2015-9/30/2016, Dr. Dillahunt-Aspillaga will be working with Gail Powell-Cope, PhD, ARNP, FAAN, the Tampa Site Co-Director of the HSR&D/RR&D Center of Innovation for Disability and Rehabilitation Research (CIDRR8) at the James A. Haley Veterans' Hospital. She holds adjunct faculty positions in the Colleges of Nursing, Public Health and Engineering at the University of South Florida. Read more...

At the 2015 John K Friesen International Conference "Harnessing Technology for Aging-in Place," William Kearns, PhD, presented opening remarks and a paper on his current work, "Extending Smart Home Technology for Persons with Cognitive Impairment."

"Aging-in-place" is a term used to describe a person's ability to live in the residence of their choice for as long as they are able, while receiving services that maintain quality of life. This is a major research focus for Dr. Kearns, who is President of the North American Chapter of the International Society for Gerontechnology. The Friesen annual conference is hosted by the Simon Fraser University (SFU) Gerontology Research Centre, its Lifelong Learning Adults 55+ Program, and its partners, AGE-WELL NCE and the North American chapter of the International Society for Gerontechnology. Read more...

Katelyn Heron, who graduated this past spring from USF with degrees in psychology and criminology, has accepted an internship with the Federal Law Enforcement Training Center in Georgia for this summer. To apply for the internship Heron had to write an essay on her goals and objectives that the internship would help with, as well as receive a nomination from Lisa Landis, the Director of Student Support and Academic Services in the College of Behavioral & Community Sciences. In the past two years, three students from CBCS have been selected to intern with the FLETC; a great recognition for the university and program since it is a very competitive internship with only a few spots available. She will be spending half of her time working with an assigned agency on challenging projects and assignments, and the other half of the time taking lectures and labs with actual students of FLETC. She will be exposed to a variety of topics in the classrooms from Use of Force and Terrorism, to Interviewing Techniques and Surveillance. In addition to attending the same exact courses that most Federal agencies send their newly hired agents to, she hopes that the current and retired agents she meets will help to build her network within this special community of professionals. Read more...

The Center for Child Welfare in the Department of Child and Family Studies became a partner with the Quality Parenting Initiative (QPI) in Florida in 2010, and its Just In Time foster parent training program was funded through the Center's contract with the Florida Department of Children & Families (DCF). Since that time, the QPI has expanded outside the state of Florida to California and Nevada, and has recently contracted with Ohio as a fourth state seeking additional support for foster parents. Read more...

Amy L. Ai, MS, MA, MSW, PhD, will present "Medication Therapy Management Programs: Promises, Pitfalls, and policy implications for providers" on Wednesday, July 22, 2015 from 12:00 - 1:30pm in MHC1506. Dr. Ai is Professor, Colleges of Social Work, also affiliated with Psychology, Social Medicine and Behavioral Science, and Nursing, and an Associate at the Pepper Institute on Aging and Social Policy, Florida State University. Her academic career has focused on interdisciplinary research on health, mental health, and aging, using mixed-methods. Dr. Ai has authored over 100 articles. She was a Gubernatorial Appointee (Governor Christine Gregoire) as a member on the Washington State Council on Aging (SCOA) and an at-large Delegate of academia to the 2005 White House Conference on Aging (WHCOA). For more information email Lydia Hentschel at lhentsch@usf.edu or call 813-974-8201.

Research faculty from CFS are conducting a study (IRB # 16926) to look at the use of the Prevent-Teach- Reinforce by parents to reduce child challenging behavior. This model has been used very effectively to address child challenging behavior in school and preschool settings and a new version has been developed to be used by parents to address issues at home. Participants will receive a behavior plan with intervention strategies that are tailored to fit the home and individual child. Coaching support and guidance will be provided to help participants apply these strategies. Participants must be:

• English-speaking parents (age 18+) of children with challenging
  behavior who are 2-5 years old
   
• Behavior challenges should be persistent and occur during daily activities
   
• willing to work with research staff 3 to 4 times per week

If you or someone you know is interested in participating in this study, call 813-974-0452 or download the project flyer.