On Wednesday and Thursday of this week, the ASPH Legislative Committee met in Washington, DC to speak with members of Congress who sit on authorizing and appropriating committees to discuss ASPH advocacy priorities. The meetings were with both key congressional staff and staff at the Department of Health and Human Services, and they came on the tail of the release of the President’s 2013 budget on February 13. The goal of this series of visits was to advocate for federal funding for the National Institutes of Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), and other substantial public health programs relevant to ASPH-member Schools of Public Health. 

On February 15, the National Institute for Public Health (Instituto Nacional de Salud Publica) held the inauguration ceremony of Dr. Mauricio Hernández Ávila, its new dean for the period 2012-2017. Dean Hernández Ávila takes the place of Dr. Mario Henry Rodríguez López, whose leadership in managing this institution has concluded.

Georgia Southern University has named Dr. R. Gregory Evans as the dean of the Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, effective April 1, 2012. Dr. Evans will join Georgia Southern from Saint Louis University where he previously served as director of the Institute for Biosecurity and professor of environmental health. He has worked in public health since 1981 and his career has included extensive research in the area of environmental health focusing on exposure assessment and health effects of automobile pollutions, dioxin, lead, and pesticides. 

In the latest issue of Public Health Reports, the journal examines Healthy Public Policy. During the last 20 years, it has become increasingly clear that population health is strongly influenced by social, economic, and environmental factors outside the reach of the medical care sector. Some studies have estimated that health-care access and quality are responsible for only 10–50 percent of avoidable morbidity and premature mortality.

Many employers are mistakenly relying upon public fire departments to rescue workers from confined spaces, such as water and sewer pipes, manholes and tunnels, according to an analysis by University of California, Berkeley School of Public Health researchers of hundreds of such deaths in the United States over 13 years.

Soldiers in the National Guard with no history of alcohol abuse are at significant risk of developing alcohol-related problems during and after deployment, according to a new study published in Drug and Alcohol Dependence journal. Researchers at the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health and colleagues at three other institutions found that the soldiers at greatest risk of developing alcohol-related problems also experienced depression and/or post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) during or after deployment.

Children in the U.S. whose activity choices, interests, and pretend play before age 11 fall outside those typically expressed by their biological sex face increased risk of being physically, psychologically, and sexually abused, and of suffering from posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) by early adulthood, according to a new study led by researchers at Harvard School of Public Health. It is the first study to use a population-based sample to look at gender nonconformity as a risk factor for abuse. The study was published online February 20 and will appear in the March 2012 print issue of Pediatrics.

Lesbian, gay, and bisexual (LGB) youths who live in supportive religious climates have lower rates of health risk behaviors, according to a new study by the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health. LGB youth who lived in counties with a religious climate that was more supportive of homosexuality had significantly fewer alcohol abuse symptoms and a lower number of sexual partners, compared to LGB youth who lived in counties with less supportive religious climates.  

A report by researchers at the University of South Carolina Arnold School of Public Health in Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise, the official journal of the American College of Sports Medicine, finds physical activity is important in maintaining mental health. The research team examined the association between depressive symptoms and physical activity (PA) in a sample of 9,580 men, ages 20–87 years old, from the Aerobics Center Longitudinal Study. There were 727 men with depressive symptoms.

Company philosophies that focus on effective management and a beneficial work-life balance not only tend to create a positive working environment, they also make for safer workplace, according to a new University of Georgia College of Public Health study. From offices to factories, the researchers found that companies that run in a smooth and effective manner and have minimal constraints on worker performance saw a decrease in workplace injuries. A worker’s perception of a positive safety environment also decreases injuries, according to surveys.

When a new strain of influenza began to sicken even healthy younger adults three years ago, public interest in getting the newly developed H1N1 vaccine started strong but declined over time even as more people were getting sick, according to a new study co-authored by the University of Michigan School of Public Health’s Dr. Brian Zikmund-Fisher. The study, undertaken in collaboration with researchers at the RAND Corp, found that the more the public learned about this new type of influenza and the longer they had to wait for the vaccine, the less interested they were in getting it. The study was released February 16 for advance online viewing by the American Journal of Public Health.

By global standards, health risks caused by environmental factors are low in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), new studies by UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health researchers show. In an effort to keep those risks low, Emiratis are working with UNC public health researchers to find ways now to avoid problems in the future. Researchers and officials believe their approach could be used to address similar issues in other rapidly developing nations and regions.

ASPH is seeking profile submissions for its new web app, I AM PUBLIC HEALTH. The profiles will allow current and prospective students see the diverse world of public health careers and promote public health as an exciting and viable career opportunity. To create a profile, graduates of member-schools simply need to fill out the short survey at www.asph.org/survey.

Public Health Reports (PHR) is a bimonthly, peer-reviewed journal offering articles in public health practice and research, as well as viewpoints/commentaries. The journal is distributed to member schools, the research community, academic libraries, government agencies and many health related industries. Advertising in PHR is an excellent way to connect with practitioners, scholars and students of public health. Click here for more information on placing an ad for the May/June 2012 issue.

The 2012 Public Health Preparedness Summit, “Regroup, Refocus, Refresh: Sustaining Preparedness in an Economic Crisis,” took place Tuesday, February 21-Friday, February 24 in Anaheim, California. The summit was hosted by the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) and sponsored by several partner organizations, including ASPH. 

Mr. Alexander Prada joined the ASPH staff in February as help desk specialist.  He will receive a BS in computer information technology from the University of Maryland this spring. Before college, Mr. Prada served in the U.S. Army and was deployed to Kuwait in support of troops serving in Afghanistan, Iraq, and the horn of Africa.

The Global Center for Childhood Obesity at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health is seeking to fund innovative pilot and feasibility projects that examine environmental mechanisms or policy changes related to the childhood obesity epidemic. Projects should use systems science concepts to tackle issues that will potentially inform the development or confirmation of community- or population-based interventions. The application process is open to investigators in the U.S. and globally.

As a service to its members, ASPH’s dedicated grants staff regularly provide timely information about grant opportunities for faculty. This week’s additions include announcements from the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA). Readers can access a full listing of grant notices by visiting the “Funding for Faculty” section of the ASPH website. 

The 2012 Éxito! Latino Cancer Research Leadership Training Program is now accepting applications! Éxito! offers a free five-day summer institute in San Antonio, Texas, and $2,000 paid internships to encourage minority master's-level students and master's-trained health professionals to pursue a doctoral degree and a career in Latino cancer health disparities research.  Learn more about the program and applying here. The application deadline is March 1.

The American Psychological Association Board of Educational Affairs recently recognized the University of Florida College of Public Health and Health Professions’ department of clinical and health psychology’s unique approach to education with the Award to Advance Interdisciplinary Education and Training in Psychology.

In 2012 the National Institute for Public Health (Instituto Nacional de Salud Publica), is celebrating its 25^th anniversary serving not only Mexicans but also people of the continent and other regions throughout the world. Founded in 1987 during the administration of Dr. Guillermo Soberon, head of the Federal Ministry of Health, INSP Mexico is an institution whose mission is to contribute to social equity and a healthy population by generating and disseminating knowledge, innovations in health systems and public-health training.

One of the world’s largest, poorest slums is getting greener and healthier, thanks to an interdisciplinary effort led by the University of Washington School of Public Health. The “Puente Piedra Project: Healthy Schools, Healthy Communities,” set in Peru, includes other Washington schools and international non-government organizations. This year the project was awarded a Social, Economic, Environmental Design award for excellence in public interest design. Most recently, faculty and students have built a new park and walkways outside a school in the Puente Piedra district north of Peru, while future plans include constructing a clinic and better classrooms.

University of Michigan School of Public Health’s Dr. Kai Zhang is among 10 scientists specializing in environmental health and green chemistry who have been named Environmental Health Sciences’ 2012 Science Communication Fellows. Now in its sixth year, the fellows program trains scientists early in their careers to articulate research results and explain their relevance to deepen public understanding. The program is unique because the scientists identify findings that shed light on the links among the environment, human health and chemistry.

Dr. Virginia (Ginger) Guidry, postdoctoral fellow in UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health’s Department of Epidemiology, is one of 10 scientists recently named as a 2012 Science Communication Fellow by Environmental Health Sciences (EHS). EHS is a not-for-profit organization founded in 2002 to increase public understanding of the scientific links between environmental factors and human health.

Dr. Charles Mahan, professor emeritus and former dean at the University of South Florida College of Public Health and the Lawton and Rhea Chiles Center for Healthy Mothers and Babies, was selected as the 2012 Chiles Advocacy Award Recipient at a reception held on January 30 in Tallahassee, FL.  For more on this honor, click here. 

[Photo: Dr. Charles Mahan]

George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services professors Dr. Rebecca Katz and Ms. Stephanie David in the Department of Health Policy have been awarded a grant from Public Health Law Research (PHLR), a Robert Wood Johnson Foundation program at Temple University. PHLR is a national initiative to promote effective regulatory, legal and policy solutions to improve public health. 

In March, Mr. John Griffith, the University of Michigan School of Public Health's Andrew Pattullo collegiate professor in health management and policy, will receive the American College of Healthcare Executives (ACHE James A. Hamilton Book of the Year Award. Mr. Griffith and co- author Dr. Kenneth R. White of Virginia Commonwealth University, will be honored for their book Reaching Excellence in Healthcare Management.

Recently, Ms. Sara Rosenbaum, the Harold and Jane Hirsh Professor of Health Law and Policy in the Department of Health Policy at the George Washington University School of Public Health and Health Services, participated in a webcast hosted by the National Press Foundation. The webcast was targeted to journalists to help them better understand the complex issues to be argued at the Supreme Court on the 2010 Affordable Care Act (ACA). Following multiple challenges and lower court decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court will hear oral argument March 26-28 on the law to overhaul health care in America. Click here to view webcast.

On February 14, Dr. Rebekah Gee, a joint assistant professor of health policy and management and obstetrics at the Louisiana State University Health Sciences Center School of Public Health, was one of three recipients of the Inaugural Excellence in State Maternal Child Health Leadership Award from the American College of Maternal Health Professionals.

Dr. Raymona H. Lawrence, an assistant professor of community health at the Georgia Southern University Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, has earned a position in the 2012 cohort of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute-sponsored PRIDE-Functional and Applied Genomics of Blood Disorders Program. The program trains participants in lab science and grant-writing, pairs them with mentors who are experts in the field and brings participants to the National Institutes of Health for networking and further development in the field of genomics. 

On January 30, Ms. Sagal Ali, a 2009 graduate of the Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health, was among 13 people honored by the White House as Champions of Change. They were recognized as "trailblazers for American diaspora communities" and cited for “helping to build stronger neighborhoods in communities across the country, and […] working to mobilize networks across borders to address global challenges.”

Ms. Candace Sibley, a 2011 graduate of the University of South Florida College of Public Health, has been named a Robert Wood Johnson Evaluation Fellow for 2012-2013.  As an emerging fellow, Ms Sibley joins ICF Macro International in Atlanta, GA as an evaluation associate. She will utilize quantitative and qualitative evaluation methodologies to positively impact the lives of the disadvantaged and underserved populations. For more information on this fellowship program, click here.

Ms. Doris Mukangu, a Career Masters of Public Health (CMPH) student at Emory University Rollins School of Public Health, was one of 10 women honored during the university’s 15^th annual Unsung Heroines Awards on February 23. Ms. Mukangu is co-founder of the African Women Health, Education &Empowerment Center based in Atlanta. She has also worked closely with the Coca-Cola African Diaspora Network to ship containers of medical supplies and equipment to a rural clinic in Kenya.

Last week, the National Center for Disaster Medicine and Public Health (NCDMPH) hosted a federal panel of experts to begin the process of a pilot effort to develop pediatric learning objects. NCDMPH has prepared a detailed update on the meeting, including prioritized topics for development, a general schedule, and format plans for the learning modules, which is available here. In addition to progressing on this project, on February 1, NCDMPH released a landscape analysis describing selected aspects of the health professions workforce who would respond to a catastrophic domestic natural disaster. To access the report, click here.

The Johns Hopkins Center for Injury Research and Policy, part of the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, has released the 2012 edition of its signature policy communication publication, “Preventing Injuries in Maryland: A Resource for State Policy Makers.” The resource is designed to provide Maryland policy makers, advocacy groups, members of the media, researchers and the general public with easy to understand information on specific injury problems in Maryland, and offer solutions on how they can be addressed through policy decisions.

Amid controversy, a cadre of experts met last week at the World Health Organization (WHO) to debate the potential publication of experiments that made a deadly form of bird flu more contagious in mammals in an effort to understand mechanisms of its evolution. Worries that the data and research could lead to a blueprint for a bioweapon or an accidental pandemic have fueled concerns. Shortly before the meeting, The Forum at Harvard School of Public Health, in collaboration with Reuters, convened expert participants to weigh in. The on-demand video of the event is now available here.

Dr. Robert Klitzman, a Columbia University Mailman School of Public Health professor of clinical sociomedical sciences, recently published a book focused on how to answer the myriad questions that come up when people learn they have a marker for inherited disease. The book is titled, Am I My Genes? Confronting Fate and Family Secrets in the Age of Genetic Testing. With a new genome decoder hitting the market that will allow people to have their entire genetic makeup analyzed quickly and relatively cheaply, the challenges for patients and their doctors will get only more complex.

A new animated video about cholera – focused on how people get infected, how it spreads, and how to treat it – is drawing attention from health workers around the globe. The video was produced by Ms. Deborah Van Dyke, a nurse practitioner in Vermont, a longtime aid worker for Doctors Without Borders, and a 1993 graduate of Harvard School of Public Health. Ms. Van Dyke hopes the video, as well as others she is producing on newborn care, will benefit health care workers in low-resource settings all over the world.

The Advanced Public Health Nursing Certification Exam now has a new name, expanded eligibility options, two options for credentials, and the ease of computer-based testing. The ANCC Commission on Certification changed the name of the Clinical Nurse Specialist in Public/Community Health certification exam to the Advanced Public Health Nursing certification exam. This name change led to the development of three eligibility options that encompass a variety of graduate educations programs in public/community health. A current, active registered nurse (RN) license is required for all three options. Recent changes in qualifying for the certification exam have made it accessible to more public health nurses, including those with MPH degrees.  

ASPH regularly provides members and Friday Letter readers with links to other electronic newsletters that may be of interest to the public health community. Links to e-newsletters will be added to a web page found at www.asph.org/document.cfm?page=924. This week’s additions include:

Public Health Reports invites papers for a supplement on sexual health. For this supplement, the journal defines sexual health as a state of well-being in relation to sexuality that involves physical, emotional, mental, social, and spiritual dimensions across the life span. The editors seek manuscripts that advance scientific knowledge and public health research, practice and policy designed to improve sexual health in populations.

The 5th Healthy Cities: Working Together to Achieve Livable Cities Conference will be held in June 6-8 in Australia. The event is a platform for government and industry sector professionals to discuss causes, effects and solutions that relate to population health, sustainability, natural resource management, transport, climate change, urban design and more. The conference is currently accepting abstracts through March 2.

AcademyHealth has opened the 2012 application cycle for the AcademyHealth/Aetna Foundation Minority Scholars Program. The program is designed to encourage and support research scholars from minority populations underrepresented in the field of health services research (HSR). All applicants must submit required materials no later than March 15.

The Public Health Foundation has launched a national award program to promote use of quality improvement (QI) to influence positive outcomes in Winnable Battles. The Future of Public Health Award is a unique opportunity for state, tribal, local, and territorial health departments to receive onsite technical assistance to build capacity in QI and advance programs to improve outcomes in Winnable Battles. Award recipients will receive up to three days of on-site technical assistance and training from an expert in QI tools and methods, resource materials on best practices, and much more. Applications for the 2012 awards are accepted through March 16. For eligibility requirements and additional information, click here.

The 3^rd Annual Undergraduate Conference in Public Health will be held April 27 at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, MD. The conference -- presented by the Public Health Student Forum at Johns Hopkins -- will bring together undergraduates interested in public health with faculty, staff, and working public health professionals from across the east coast. Undergraduates from all schools are invited to attend. Undergraduates interested in presenting an oral presentation or a poster display will find submissions information here. The deadline to submit is March 16.

The American Society of Tropical Medicine and Hygiene (ASTMH) offers travel awards to qualified students, early career investigators and scientists actively working in the tropical medicine field to attend the society’s annual meeting. These awards will facilitate participation for those who might not otherwise be able to attend. Selected recipients will enhance the overall scientific quality and learning potential of the meeting.

The Center for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Statistics (NCHS) invites students and researchers to submit poster abstracts for this year’s expanded poster session at the 2012 National Conference on Health Statistics. Abstract submissions are invited across all topic areas within the field of public health and statistics. All abstracts must be submitted no later than 11:59 p.m. (Eastern) on April 16.

The Oral Health Section of the American Public Health Association is pleased to announce the 7^th annual student award categories for 2012: the Anthony Westwater Jong Memorial Community Dental Health Post-professional Award, and the Anthony Westwater Jong Memorial Community Dental Health Pre-Professional Award. The awards are in memory of the late Dr. Anthony Westwater Jong and in recognition of his commitment to community-based dental public health, his strong and highly acclaimed student mentoring, and his emphasis on the importance of state-, local- and community-based public health action.

The Heartland Center for Public Health Preparedness (HCPHP) at the Saint Louis University School of Public Health will feature a webinar, titled “On the Safe Side: Site Security and Traffic Management for Points of Dispensing” on February 29 at 10 a.m. (Central). The webinar will be free, but registration is required.

On March 2, Mr. Bryant Terry, a food justice activist, chef and author, will give a free, public talk on “Food Justice - The Intersection of Food, Income, Public Health and Sustainability.” His lecture will be hosted by the University of Louisville School of Public Health and Information Sciences Student Council, and is one of two scheduled speaking events at the university.

Witnesses to Hunger in Boston, a research project of the Drexel University School of Public Health, presents the photographs and frontline testimony of eight Boston mothers who are “witnesses to hunger” and their related experiences with issues of food, housing, health, and education. These mothers have taken over 700 photos and videos, of which 34 photographs will be on display at the Massachusetts State House from March 12–15. This will be the Boston debut of the project created by the Center for Hunger-Free Communities at Drexel. The eight witnesses will be present to provide personal commentary on their photos.

The University of South Florida, College of Public Health will hold its 22^nd annual Social Marketing Conference, June 13 -16 in Clearwater Beach, FL.  This year’s theme – “Getting Better at Doing Good” – reflects the global reality that governmental agencies, non-governmental organizations, and businesses are searching for better ways to improve people's health, the environment, and social welfare.

The Center for Health Disparities Solutions at the Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health has now opened registration for the International Conference on Health in the African Diaspora (ICHAD 2012). The conference will be held July 4-8 in Baltimore, MD. The theme of ICHAD 2012 is "The Great Scattering: Connecting the Dots between Slavery and Contemporary Health in the African Diaspora."

The purpose of the National Conference on Tobacco or Health is to help improve and sustain the effectiveness and reach of tobacco control programs and activities in the United States. It will be held August 15-17, and those who register by February 29 will save up to $275. The event will be held in Kansas City, Missouri, and provide:

New!
Volume 127
Issue 1
January/February 2012

Public Health Reports (PHR) is an informative and accessible resource for practitioners, teachers and students of public health. The journal provides important research and key discussions on the major issues confronting the public health community. Subscribe Today! Click here to advertise in the journal.

New!
Volume 127
Supplement 1

A Pathway to Leadership for Adult Immunization
This supplement of Public Health Reports (PHR) addresses unresolved issues and novel ways to protect adults in the United States from vaccine-preventable diseases through increased vaccination. Subscribe to PHR today! Click here to advertise in the journal.