Public Health Modules 2–6: Epidemiology, Research, Health Disparities & Policy

What is causing great alarm among public health professionals for older adults?

Increasing pressure on medical costs due to the aging population

What deficiency can result in a skin disease called Pellagra?

Niacin

Which body of water was associated with the cholera outbreaks in the 1800s?

Thames River

What is the definition of infant mortality rate (IMR)?

The number of infant deaths within the first year of life for every 1000 live births.

What term describes individuals responsible for both raising children and caring for aging parents?

Sandwich generation

What was the leading cause of death amongst 1-44 year-olds in 2022?

Unintentional injuries

Which factor is NOT mentioned as a cause of dementia in older adults?

Genetic factors

What disease theory states that specific organisms cause specific diseases?

Germ Theory

Which disease theory stated that health relied on a balance of blood, phlegm, yellow bile, and black bile?

Humoral Theory

What trend has been observed in maternal mortality rates in the United States since 2018?

Increase

What is identified as the primary risk factor for infant mortality according to epidemiologists?

Poverty

Which statement about quarantine is NOT true?

Today, quarantines are enforced through site-specific policies at healthcare institutions.

What disease is known to be caused by a deficiency in Vitamin C?

Scurvy

According to the CDC publication, Deaths: Leading Causes for 2022, COVID-19 was a top 10 leading cause of death in the United States in 2022.

True

What are the leading specific causes of infant mortality in the United States?

Congenital anomalies, preterm birth disorders, maternal complications, SIDS, and injuries.

What is the leading cause of death in the United States?

Heart disease

What is the definition of maternal mortality rate (MMR)?

The death of a woman while pregnant or within 42 days of termination, related to pregnancy or its management.

Which organization was established in 1912 to investigate and report on matters affecting children?

Children's Bureau

Which disease theory is the closest predecessor of modern thinking about infectious disease?

Germ Theory

Who wrote a publication that led to the Food and Drug Act and a revised Meat Inspection Act?

Upton Sinclair

By how many years did the lifespan of women increase between 1900 and 2000?

30

Who determines how much is paid for a health service in the United States?

The insurance company

What is the main challenge faced by public health in addressing issues like HIV and teenage pregnancy?

Interference from moral and religious perspectives.

What is a unique characteristic of the US health care delivery system compared to other high-income countries?

Access to healthcare services is selectively based on insurance coverage.

What emphasizes individual responsibility, minimal obligation to the common good, and the fundamental freedom to all individuals to be left alone according to Beauchamp?

Market justice

What issue arises from prioritizing downstream activities in the U.S. medical system?

Allocates more funds for medical technology and pharmaceutical treatments.

What is a distinctive characteristic contributing to medical costs in the United States?

Complex administrative processes.

Which agency regulates new drugs developed by pharmaceutical companies?

Food and Drug Administration (FDA)

Which agency conducts and funds research into diseases?

National Institutes of Health (NIH)

What suggests that minimal levels of income, basic housing, employment, education, and health care should be seen as fundamental rights.

Social justice

What factors have contributed to the fluctuation of medical costs and increase in uninsured citizens?

The fee-for-service approach to health care.

What are the fundamental social questions raised by the distribution and quality of medical care?

Who is responsible for providing medical care and who should pay for it?

What does the Constitution's Preamble state as a fundamental purpose of government?

To promote the general welfare.

What do police powers protect against?

Self-harm, interests of incompetent persons, and harm to others.

What is a welfare-type program for people experiencing poverty?

Medicaid

Federal agencies outside health and human services (HHS), such as the US Department of Agriculture (USDA) or the Department of Veterans Affairs, play a role in Public Health

True

What are the primary roles of local health departments?

Collecting health statistics, conducting communicable disease control programs, and providing screenings and immunizations.

What does the fee-for-service payment system motivate doctors to do?

Provide more services to increase their income.

Has the ACA resulted in an increase in the number of uninsured individuals?

False

What does endemic level represent?

The background level of a disease in a population.

What core function of public health does epidemiology perform?

Assessment.

What are intervention studies usually done to test?

New treatments for diseases or preventive measures.

What is the most convincing type of clinical trial?

Randomized double-blind studies.

Most accurate type of study. What type of study involves large numbers of people questioned about their exposures?

Cohort studies.

What type of studies start with people who are already ill and look back to determine their exposure?

Case-control studies.

Are the Framingham Study and lung cancer studies examples of retrospective cohort studies?

False.

How is disease frequency usually expressed?

As incidence and prevalence rates.

What captures the difference between incidence and prevalence?

Incidence is the rate of new disease cases, while prevalence is the total number of disease cases.

What is a placebo?

An inactive substance similar in appearance to the drug being tested.

What does double-blind mean in clinical trials?

Neither the patient nor the doctor are aware of who is receiving the treatment.

What is the case group in clinical trials?

The group that is exposed to the intervention.

In the context of infectious diseases such as E. coli, the purpose of an epidemiologic investigation is to

To help trace back the origins of diseases to prevent wider exposures.

T OR F? Do cohort studies start by measuring exposure and watching for disease development?

True

What refers to the who, when, and where questions in epidemiology?

Distribution

What is calculated by dividing the ratio of exposed subjects to non-exposed subjects in the case group by the ratio of exposed subjects to non-exposed subjects in the control group?

Odds ratio

True or False? An effective drug shows a lower rate of causation than the placebo.

False

What is the primary role of epidemiologists during a disease outbreak?

Identifying exposure, assessing risks, and helping develop protocols to halt disease transmission.

When calculating the rate of a disease, what is generally the denominator of the calculation?

Population at risk

What type of tests are desirable in most public health screening programs to avoid missing any individual with a serious disease?

Sensitive tests

What type of study is Isaiah conducting to identify risk factors for breast cancer among immigrant Asian American women?

Exploratory study

Malika has developed the following research question: "Is hiking nature trails associated with experiencing tick-borne diseases in US adults living in Florida?" Which of these represents the exposure?

Hiking nature trails

True or False? Contradictory results from epidemiologic studies are common.

True

What is the primary objective of relational and causal research questions?

Elucidate relationships between variables.

True or False? Descriptive statistics provide a detailed analysis of individual data points.

False

What type of study design is Palmer using to determine the relationship between being a pet owner and stress? To determine this, Palmer conducts a single survey?

Cross-sectional study

What does cost-effectiveness analysis compare?

The efficiency of different methods of attaining the same objective.

What are confounding variables?

Factors that are associated with the exposure and that may independently affect the risk of developing the disease.

Which statistical methods are commonly used for summarizing key features of data in public health research?

Descriptive statistics

True or False? Disseminating research findings through general media outlets may lead to oversimplification or sensationalism.

True

Santiago plans to collect data from multiple sources to examine how Parker Charter School was successful in using artificial intelligence to improve middle school students' writing abilities. What type of study design should he use?

Case study

What does the Environmental Protection Agency do?

Carries out surveillance for health hazards in the environment, including air pollutants and releases of toxic chemicals.

What role does statistics play in the field of public health?

Statistics is used to describe the health of populations and interpret corresponding data.

True or False? Specific aims in research studies provide a roadmap for conducting literature reviews and establishing the background and significance of the study.

False

What is the primary focus of quantitative research in public health?

Emphasis on numeric data and statistical analysis.

Describing disease prevalence is an example of what type of research?

Descriptive research.

Where can you find a repository for evidence-based interventions?

The Community Guide.

Which study design involves randomly assigning participants to either an intervention or control group?

Randomized controlled trial (RCT).

What is recall bias?

Occurs if the study group and the control group systematically report differently even if the exposure was the same.

What is selection bias?

A particular problem in choosing subjects for a case-control study.

According to Brownson and colleagues, what is the number one dissemination method that evidence users use to learn about the latest research-based evidence?

Seminars or workshops.

What are capacity building efforts often aimed at according to Brownson?

Improving the use of scientific evidence in day-to-day public health practice.

What does the adjustment of crude death rates into adjusted rates aim to achieve in population health studies?

To make the populations being examined equivalent to one another.

True or False? Peer-reviewed journals play a significant role in upholding the standards of scientific inquiry.

True

What is a health disparity?

A difference in health that is closely linked to an individual's social, economic, and/or environmental disadvantage.

According to Heisler and colleagues (2019), health plans (i.e., health insurance) are well positioned to effectively address social drivers of health because:

The majority of health care spending in the United States flows through them.

What does the lifecourse perspective emphasize?

Accumulated experiences and exposures over time.

What was very influential in convincing many people who smoke to quit?

Surgeon General's 1964 Smoking and Health Report.

Which one is NOT listed as a social determinant of health in Healthy People 2030?

Health policy.

What is the nation's most significant public health issue?

Tobacco use.

What is the leading cause of preventable death?

Smoking.

True or False? The current image used by the U.S. government to help explain what a healthy meal should look like is a dinner plate consisting mostly of fruit and vegetables.

True

True or False? There is evidence that health system-level interventions aimed at addressing certain social drivers of health can improve health outcomes and reduce costs.

True

According to your book, psychological stress is a significant risk factor for:

cardiovascular disease

True or False? U.S. government policy subsidizes industrial agriculture, which produces high-calorie commodities at the expense of more nutritious produce.

True

What was one outcome of Prohibition in the United States?

A decline in the rate of cirrhosis of the liver.

What do social determinants of health include?

Your economic and social situation, the conditions in the places where people are born, live, learn, work, and play, and your educational level.

True or False? Sugary liquids, compared to sugary solid foods, do not decrease the total food consumed, and, therefore, increase calories consumed.

True

Which one is NOT a contributor to health disparities and inequities?

Marital status.

T or F? Research indicates that eating more fruits and vegetables protects against colon and breast cancers.

True

What example falls under the "Societal" level of the social ecological model regarding violence against women?

Inequities based on gender, race, and sexual orientation.