Local Health Department Capacity to Improve Public Health - The Impact of Public Health Accreditation and Public Health Funding

Public health accreditation and public health funding have the potential to transform the way local health departments (LHDs) deliver public health, but it is unclear if they are having their intended impact. Since performance expectations are high and public health funding is scarce, LHD leadership will continually be interested in finding the most effective ways of improving public health. The purpose of this research is to examine whether LHDs are reaching their goal of public health improvement through public health accreditation and public health funding. Data from the National Association of County and City Health Officials Profile Surveys, Public Health Accreditation Board, County Health Rankings Annual Reports, and the National Longitudinal Survey of Public Health Systems were used to conduct three studies. The first study uses local level panel data and a difference-in-difference methodology to quantify the difference in the change in public health outcomes across counties in Florida and control states, before and after obtaining public health accreditation. Results reveal that public health accreditation was significantly associated with improvements to public health outcomes. This study suggests that accreditation can be a driver for health improvement and a catalyst to advance public health. The second study uses a quasi-experimental design with the use of a panel data difference-in-difference estimator to estimate the treatment effect of public health accreditation on the effectiveness of essential public health activities provided by LHDs. Results suggest that public health accreditation does not lead to the improved effectiveness of public health activities. Findings highlight that accreditation is one element that complements other performance improvement strategies to achieve a significant effect on the health system. The third study employs multivariate linear regression models with the use of local-level cross-sectional and panel data to examine whether increased LHD funding translates to public health benefits. Results suggest that increased LHD expenditures were not associated with any of the studied public health outcomes. The study highlights the need to control for omitted variable bias and reverse causation bias as other public health system components may influence the results, thus leading one to conclude that large expenditures explain better health outcomes. Public health accreditation and public health funding can be successful tools for public health practice when used as starting points to address public health problems

Preparing Our Kids for Education, Work and Life: A Report of the Task Force on Youth Aging Out

Summarizes a study of Massachusetts youth transitioning out of foster care, and offers recommendations for policies, practices, and resource conditions, including "Five Core Resources" to prepare them for higher education, work, and adulthood

Effect of lower sodium intake on health: systematic review and meta-analyses

Objective To assess the effect of decreased sodium intake on blood pressure, related cardiovascular diseases, and potential adverse effects such as changes in blood lipids, catecholamine levels, and renal function. Design Systematic review and meta-analysis. Data sources Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, Medline, Embase, WHO International Clinical Trials Registry Platform, the Latin American and Caribbean health science literature database, and the reference lists of previous reviews. Study selection Randomised controlled trials and prospective cohort studies in non-acutely ill adults and children assessing the relations between sodium intake and blood pressure, renal function, blood lipids, and catecholamine levels, and in non-acutely ill adults all cause mortality, cardiovascular disease, stroke, and coronary heart disease. Study appraisal and synthesis Potential studies were screened independently and in duplicate and study characteristics and outcomes extracted. When possible we conducted a meta-analysis to estimate the effect of lower sodium intake using the inverse variance method and a random effects model. We present results as mean differences or risk ratios, with 95% confidence intervals. Results We included 14 cohort studies and five randomised controlled trials reporting all cause mortality, cardiovascular disease, stroke, or coronary heart disease; and 37 randomised controlled trials measuring blood pressure, renal function, blood lipids, and catecholamine levels in adults. Nine controlled trials and one cohort study in children reporting on blood pressure were also included. In adults a reduction in sodium intake significantly reduced resting systolic blood pressure by 3.39 mm Hg (95% confidence interval 2.46 to 4.31) and resting diastolic blood pressure by 1.54 mm Hg (0.98 to 2.11). When sodium intake was 0.05). There were insufficient randomised controlled trials to assess the effects of reduced sodium intake on mortality and morbidity. The associations in cohort studies between sodium intake and all cause mortality, incident fatal and non-fatal cardiovascular disease, and coronary heart disease were non-significant (P>0.05). Increased sodium intake was associated with an increased risk of stroke (risk ratio 1.24, 95% confidence interval 1.08 to 1.43), stroke mortality (1.63, 1.27 to 2.10), and coronary heart disease mortality (1.32, 1.13 to 1.53). In children, a reduction in sodium intake significantly reduced systolic blood pressure by 0.84 mm Hg (0.25 to 1.43) and diastolic blood pressure by 0.87 mm Hg (0.14 to 1.60). Conclusions High quality evidence in non-acutely ill adults shows that reduced sodium intake reduces blood pressure and has no adverse effect on blood lipids, catecholamine levels, or renal function, and moderate quality evidence in children shows that a reduction in sodium intake reduces blood pressure. Lower sodium intake is also associated with a reduced risk of stroke and fatal coronary heart disease in adults. The totality of evidence suggests that most people will likely benefit from reducing sodium intake

Planning and Producing Videos: A Two-Part Workshop on Writing Scripts & Making Videos @Your Library

With the advent of YouTube and new digital editing software, it has become easier for libraries to experiment with instruction videos. However, creating the right script to get your message across can be a challenge. This two-part interactive workshop aims to share our video production experience with you. In the first session, the presenters will help you write a script and guide you through the production planning process. In the second session, one script will be videotaped, edited and will be ready to share with students. By the time the workshop is over, each person will have a script that she or he can take back to their campus for actual production. Interactive Sessio

Autoethnographies of Reading as an Occupation

Background: The conceptualization of reading as an occupation is an emerging area, and guides for occupational focus in reading intervention are incompletely formed. We explored our own experiences with reading and awareness of reading as a personal occupation for perspectives to inform our practice. Methods: We used autoethnography to capture our five separate experiences. These experiences were analyzed collectively for themes using the lens of occupation as framed by the model of occupational adaptation. Results: Across our experiences, occupational patterns, products, and meaning were identified. Themes in patterns of reading highlighted the challenges of the academic setting and the importance of time to reading activities. Products of reading were external, such as achievement and skill, and internal, such as positive and negative emotions and perceptions of limitations. The meaning of reading revolved primarily around emotional responses, how reading made the reader feel about the activity and about themselves, and the amount of effort required and for what benefit. Conclusions: Our reflexive examination of reading from an occupational perspective yielded key points for development of occupational approaches to reading intervention in our personal practices

BATSE spectroscopy analysis system

The Burst and Transient Source Experiment (BATSE) Spectroscopy Analysis System (BSAS) is the software system which is the primary tool for the analysis of spectral data from BATSE. As such, Guest Investigators and the community as a whole need to know its basic properties and characteristics. Described here are the characteristics of the BATSE spectroscopy detectors and the BSAS

A mathematical approach to an optimal strategy for the dice game pig

It was the purpose of this study to investigate various pure strategies for the dice game Pig. Two basic approaches were considered for formulating an optimal strategy: the maximum number of rolls per turn that a player should take and the maximum number of points per turn that a player should attempt to accumulate. Basically, an optimal strategy for Pig will be one which allows a player to accumulate a maximum number of points in a minimum number of turns in order to achieve a goal of 100 or more points. Computer simulation of the game was used to verify the results and to attempt to distinguish subtle differences among the competing strategies which could not be determined through a purely theoretical formulation of the game. It was found that an optimal roll-per-turn strategy will be for a player to toss no less than two times per turn and no more than three times per turn. The optimal point-per-turn strategy from initial position of zero points is to attempt to accumulate at least 25 points. Through the computer simulation of the game, it was found that optimally a player should attempt to accumulate from 22 to 26 points on any turn if he is to attempt to accumulate the same number on each turn

Overcoming the Unprecedented: Southern Voters Battle Against Voter Suppression, Intimidation, and a Virus

This report describes the 2020 elections in five Southern states—Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, and Mississippi—with a particular emphasis on election administration problems; voter suppression; the efforts of voting rights organizations to mobilize voters and protect their votes; and the actions of extremists who sought to intimidate voters and spread disinformation.As this report shows, it is abundantly clear that our electoral system needs repair. Numerous states have erected new barriers to voting since the U.S. Supreme Court in 2013 gutted a critical component of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Many also cling to Jim Crow-era laws, such as felony disenfranchisement, that were specifically designed to suppress the Black vote—or they refuse to enact commonsense changes that would make voting easier and accessible to all citizens. At the same time, some states maintain archaic administrative systems that are woefully inadequate to meet the needs of voters today and ensure fair elections.This report provides a blueprint for reforming the electoral system. The Biden administration and Congress must act quickly to shore up the stability of the electoral process and put our democracy on a firmer footing. Passage of federal laws, including those that strengthen the Voting Rights Act, are necessary steps forward on the path to reform—toward ensuring that all Americans have easy and equal access to the ballot box