Public Health College Research Articles

Undergraduate Public Health Education: Alternative Choices within the BSPH Degree.

The University of South Florida’s College of Public Health has been in existence since 1984. After many years of only offering a public health minor, a Bachelors of Science in Public Health was offered. This article explores the creation, development, scheduling, and lessons learned of this degree.

Commentary: cities and health…let me count the ways.

Commentary: cities and health…let me count the ways.

Giardia, HIV, and nature's horrifying beauty.

The image on the cover of this issue of EcoHealth is, to put it simply, unnatural. It has no context, no substrate, no place. It appears to be biological, but its metallic exterior shines starkly in a way that disregards our presence. It’s ominous form is at once beautiful, but unlike most previous covers of EcoHealth, apparently bereft of spirit or meaning. But, for those of us acquainted with infectious disease ecology, or who have had the misfortune to personally meet this organism, its strange shape is known. It is, of course, Giardia intestinalis, the flagellated protozoan responsible for giardiasis and its horrific symptoms: bloody diarrhea, sulfurous belching, and a tenacious hold as our bodies weaken. Strictly speaking, this isn’t just Giardia, it’s a celebration of Giardia’s beauty—a pin made of pure rose gold in the form of this fantastic creature, and part of a series of ‘‘Infectious Art’’ designed by M.C. Ginsberg, with input from the University of Iowa’s College of Public Health (http://mcginsberg.com/product-category/m-c-gins berg-infectious-art/). Here we have an encephalitis cufflink, an HIV necklace, and a Lyme disease ring all waiting to adorn our wrists, necks, and fingers as post-modern talking points with a twist. Seeing beauty in a parasite is nothing new to those of us who work at a microscopic scale with these organisms. Their morphology is beautiful—evolved to intricately loop around our cell surface receptors, lock on, and kill us, or in this case, to nestle within our ciliated cells, and suck away our life blood—a stark, cold beauty indeed. But, to celebrate this is surely odd? And doesn’t this show disrespect for the pathogen’s victims? What about the 40 million who have died of HIV/AIDS—what flippant arrogance it is to use that virus’ image in anything but a negative light, let alone a necklace? But let us think a bit deeper. Many of us are profoundly in awe of the beauty of the natural world. We stand in wonder on a solid sheet of ice frozen on the side of a mountain, last year’s cranberry encapsulated like living ruby. We marvel at the power of a white shark, a gazelle’s balletic leap, the perfection of a swift’s wing. Our spirits are lifted by bronze beech leaves, smooth gray bark, the outrageous pale white of a ghost orchid standing proud in the dark. These are the stock-in-trade of leading photographers, painters, and poets across the world—the beauty of nature. But where does beauty end, and horror begin? If we find a lioness’s musculature, or the stoop of a peregrine beautiful, why don’t we likewise do a parasite devouring its host? And what if that host is us? This is the dilemma that M.C. Ginsberg sets out for us in his pathogen art. The answer, perhaps, (to quote Hannibal Lecter) lies within yourself. Our perception of beauty can be considered a simple side-effect of the evolutionary arms race— quite sordid actually. Like just about every other human emotion, it’s a trick to make us feel like we belong. We see beauty in a pouncing lion because we feel the excitement of escaping its pounce. We feel the thrill of the chase as we watch, transfixed, when a peregrine blasts through its prey. I’m reminded of the ultimate arbiter of Nature’s ‘‘blind, pitiless indifference’’ (Dawkins 1995)—Richard Dawkins who in 1991 had the honor of giving the Royal Institution Christmas Lectures (being ironical itself, in its religious underpinnings). As I remember it, to an audience of children, Dawkins described a child who stood in a meadow, EcoHealth 11, 277–278, 2014 DOI: 10.1007/s10393-014-0936-9

Developing an Academic Health Department in Northeast Tennessee

In an effort to bridge the gap between public health practice and academia, the Health Resources and Services Administration-funded Tennessee Public Health Training Center (LIFEPATH) has supported establishment of an academic health department (AHD) involving the East Tennessee State University College of Public Health (COPH) and the Sullivan County Regional Health Department (SCRHD). The SCRHD identified a need to increase internal capacity to conduct ongoing community health assessment and community-centered practice. Similarly, the COPH recognized the need to expand evidence-based practice implementation and evaluation opportunities for public health students. Personnel from the SCRHD, LIFEPATH, and the COPH developed a formal AHD agreement during the summer of 2012 and launched the program the subsequent fall semester. One aspect of the COPH/SCRHD/LIFEPATH model that addresses financial barriers experienced by other AHDs is the competitive awarding of the coordinator position to a doctor of public health student from the COPH, demonstrating investment in the model by the college. The doctor of public health student gains leadership experience through project management, coordination of the local health council, and day-to-day facilitation of undergraduate and master's student interns. The SCRHD benefits from the formal academic background of graduate-level interns dedicated to working in the community. This AHD framework offers an opportunity for doctoral-level students to develop practical leadership skills in a health department while enhancing the capacity of the SCRHD and the COPH to serve their community and stakeholders.

Will Marriage Equality Make a Difference in the Health of LGBT Americans?

Will Marriage Equality Make a Difference in the Health of LGBT Americans?

Tobacco Use Among Fourth Year Bachelor of Science in Public Health (BSPH) Students of the College of Public Health: University of the Philippines Manila, Academic Year 2012–2013

This study determines the prevalence of tobacco use among graduating Public Health students at the College of Public Health, University of the Philippines Manila. It also describes the exposure to environmental tobacco smoke, attitudes, behaviors and smoking cessation training of students. This study used a descriptive cross-sectional study design, adapting a standard questionnaire, pretested and administered to 52 Bachelor of Science in Public Health (BSPH) students at the College of Public Health, University of the Philippines Manila. Data generated from the survey were encoded using Epi Info version 3.5.4 and analyzed using Stata version 12. The prevalence of smoking among 4th year BSPH students was 5.8 % (current smokers). In the past 7 days, respondents have been exposed to secondhand smoke (44 % where they live; 79 % in places other than where they live). Majority were aware of the official policy on smoking ban in school, however, 80 % said that the policy is not enforced. Majority had favorable attitudes in terms of banning tobacco sales to adolescents, banning advertising of tobacco products, banning smoking in restaurants, discos/bars/pubs and enclosed public places. Majority of the respondents also believed that health professionals should get specific training on cessation techniques, that they do serve as role models, and that they have a role in giving advice about smoking cessation. More than three-quarters (76.9 %) of students said that health professionals who smoke are less likely to advise patients to quit. Most of the graduating students learned about the dangers of smoking, importance of obtaining tobacco use history, and providing educational support materials in their public health education but only a few received formal training about smoking cessation approaches. The implementation of the no-smoking policy of the university must be revisited. Smoking cessation approaches should be incorporated in the public health curriculum and the role of public health students in advocating a smoke-free lifestyle should be emphasized.

Public Health Services Most Commonly Provided by Local Health Departments in the United States

Originally published as: Shah GH, Luo H, Sotnikov S. Public health services most commonly provided by local health departments in the United States. Frontiers in Public Health Services and Systems Research. 2014;3(1):1–5. PDF available at: http://uknowledge.uky.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1084&context=frontiersinphssr. Gulzar H. Shah, MStat, MS, PhD, Department of Health Policy and Management, Jiann-Ping Hsu College of Public Health, Georgia Southern University Huabin Luo, PhD, Department of Public Health, Brody School of Medicine, East Carolina University Sergey Sotnikov, PhD, OSTLTS, CDC The primary purpose of this research is to identify the most commonly performed public health services by local health departments (LHDs) and highlight variation by LHD characteristics. Data were drawn from the 2008 and 2010 National Profile of LHDs, conducted by the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO). The descriptive analysis aims to further the essential dialogue triggered by a recent Institute of Medicine (IOM) report about the standard minimum set of services that all LHDs should provide. This study identified a set of 22 activities performed by LHDs that are common in jurisdictions of all sizes. Notable differences in most commonly performed services were found by the size of population in LHD jurisdiction, presence of board of health, type of LHD governance, per capita expenditures, and size of workforce.

Coronary artery calcium and physical fitness – The two best predictors of long-term survival

a Johns Hopkins Ciccarone Center for the Prevention of Heart Disease, United States Center for Prevention and Wellness Research, Baptist Health Medical Group, Miami Beach, FL, United States Department of Medicine, Herbert Wertheim College of Medicine, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States Department of Epidemiology, Robert Stempel College of Public Health, Florida International University, Miami, FL, United States

Factors associated with reductions in alcohol use between high school and college: an analysis of data from the College Alcohol Study

BackgroundThe consumption of alcohol by college students is a significant public health concern, and a large amount of literature explores this issue. Much of the focus is on the prevalence and correlates of binge drinking. Relatively few studies explore reductions in drinking, and these generally focus on reductions that occur during college.AimsWe examined the transition between high school and college and sought to understand the characteristics and behaviors of students that are related to reductions in the consumption of alcohol during this transition.MethodsWe used data from all four rounds of the Harvard School of Public Health’s College Alcohol Survey and logistic regression models to relate the status of reduced alcohol consumption to five groups of variables: demographic and parental variables, other substance use, social environment, student activities, and alcohol policies.ResultsA number of characteristics were related to reductions in drinking. Students whose fathers did not attend college were more likely to reduce alcohol consumption (odds ratio [OR] =1.28; 95% confidence interval [CI] =1.06–1.55), whereas students who prioritize parties (OR =0.35; CI =0.30–0.43) and who have recently smoked cigarettes (OR =0.52; CI =0.41–0.64) or marijuana (OR =0.52; CI =0.40–0.67) or whose fathers are moderate (OR =0.73; CI =0.55–0.96) or heavy (OR =0.72; CI =0.53–0.96) drinkers were less likely to reduce alcohol consumption.ConclusionThe results highlight the importance of family background and social environment on reductions in drinking.

Challenges in Estimating Mortality Risk From Antipsychotics in People With Alzheimer’s Disease

Back to table of contents Previous article Next article Communications and UpdatesFull AccessChallenges in Estimating Mortality Risk From Antipsychotics in People With Alzheimer’s DiseaseRyan M. Carnahan, Pharm.D., M.S.Ryan M. CarnahanSearch for more papers by this author, Pharm.D., M.S.Published Online:1 Feb 2014https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.ajp.2013.13091231AboutSectionsPDF/EPUB ToolsAdd to favoritesDownload CitationsTrack Citations ShareShare onFacebookTwitterLinked InEmail To the Editor: I read with interest the article by Lopez et al. (1) in the September 2013 issue on the long-term effects of antipsychotics in people with Alzheimer’s disease, which suggested that after controlling for psychiatric symptoms, neither typical nor atypical antipsychotics were associated with time to death. I would like to expand on one of the limitations noted by the authors, as I believe it is critical to interpreting the results.Previous research suggests that the excess mortality associated with antipsychotics is greatest early in treatment, with the relative risk trending toward no mortality effect of drug as the duration of antipsychotic use increases (2). The Lopez et al. study assessed medications every 6 months, without tracking interim changes. Periodic assessments such as this create challenges when interpreting results that are related to adverse events for which the greatest excess risk occurs early in treatment. This is a particularly important issue in a dementia sample, where death is not a rare occurrence. That is, if someone both started an antipsychotic and died during the time between two assessments, there would be no record that the individual received an antipsychotic before they died, and only those who survived the early treatment period would be recorded as receiving an antipsychotic. Thus, data are lost from individuals who may be particularly vulnerable to the adverse event of interest, in this case death. This is termed “depletion of susceptibles” and may lead to bias in effect estimates, as those who survive treatment through an initial high-risk period are often less susceptible to an adverse effect. This is one reason that new-user designs are generally preferred in pharmacoepidemiology studies of adverse drug effects (3).Lopez et al. have presented a compelling case that psychotic symptoms are a prognostic marker for increased mortality in people with dementia and an influential unmeasured confounder in observational studies of antipsychotics and mortality. However, the design limitations make it difficult to fully discern the role of the psychiatric symptoms relative to that of antipsychotics that were received but not recorded. I admire the authors’ efforts to address this important question but do not place higher weight on these results than on those of randomized controlled trials that identify an increased risk of mortality associated with antipsychotic use in dementia. Randomized trials have their own limitations, such as highly selected samples, shorter follow-up, and small numbers of events in any given trial. Yet Schneider et al.’s meta-analysis of these trials (4) showing greater mortality with antipsychotics compared with placebo included more than 10 times as many antipsychotic users as were in the Lopez et al. study. I hope the null mortality result in this study is not interpreted as an indication that caution and restraint are not necessary when considering the use of antipsychotics in this vulnerable patient population.From The University of Iowa College of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology, Iowa City, Iowa.Dr. Carnahan reports no financial relationships with commercial interests. He has received funding for research and education related to antipsychotic use in dementia from the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality, the Health Resources and Services Administration, and the Patient Centered Outcomes Research Institute.References1 Lopez OL, Becker JT, Chang YF, Sweet RA, Aizenstein H, Snitz B, Saxton J, McDade E, Kamboh MI, DeKosky ST, Reynolds CF, Klunk WE: The long-term effects of conventional and atypical antipsychotics in patients with probable Alzheimer’s disease. Am J Psychiatry 2013; 170:1051–1058Link, Google Scholar2 Wang PS, Schneeweiss S, Avorn J, Fischer MA, Mogun H, Solomon DH, Brookhart MA: Risk of death in elderly users of conventional vs atypical antipsychotic medications. N Engl J Med 2005; 353:2335–2341Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar3 Ray WA: Evaluating medication effects outside of clinical trials: new-user designs. Am J Epidemiol 2003; 158:915–920Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar4 Schneider LS, Dagerman KS, Insel P: Risk of death with atypical antipsychotic drug treatment for dementia: meta-analysis of randomized placebo-controlled trials. JAMA 2005; 294:1934–1943Crossref, Medline, Google Scholar FiguresReferencesCited byDetailsCited byNone Volume 171Issue 2 February 2014Pages 227-227 Metrics PDF download History Accepted 1 December 2013 Published online 1 February 2014 Published in print 1 February 2014

Skin Color and Self-reported Sun Exposure Scores are Associated with Serum 25-Hydroxyvitamin D Concentrations in a Multi-ethnic Population Living in South Florida.

Aims:The aim was to investigate the association between serum 25-hydroxyvitamin D [25(OH)D], skin color and sun exposure score.Study Design:Cross-sectional.Place and Duration of Study:Florida International University, Robert Stempel College of Public Health and Social Work, Department of Dietetics and Nutrition, Miami, Florida from July 2012 to October 2012.Methodology:Seventy six adults, ages 18–36 years living in South Florida participated in the study. Skin color was quantified by a IMS Smart Probe 400 scanner and 25(OH)D was measured by ELISA. A sun exposure questionnaire was used to record the weekly sun exposure scores. A food frequency questionnaire was used to record daily vitamin D intake.Results:Multiple-linear regression analysis indicated that sun exposure, forearm skin color and vitamin D intake were significant predictors of 25(OH)D (P=.004, P=.003 and P=.021 respectively). This association held after controlling for covariates (B=.371, P=.027 for forearm, B=.031, P=.005 for total sun exposure and B=.689, P=.003 for vitamin D intake).Conclusion:Skin color, sun exposure along with vitamin D intake may be used as an indirect non-invasive tools to estimate 25(OH)D levels in healthy individuals in South Florida.

Trends of Tuberculosis Treatment Outcomes at Mizan-Aman General Hospital, Southwest Ethiopia: A Retrospective Study

Background: TB continues to be a major public health problem in Ethiopia, which ranks seventh by estimated number of cases among the 22 TB high-burden countries. TB Treatment will only be effective if the patient completes the regimen which includes a combination of drugs recommended by the physicians. Incomplete treatment may result in prolonged excretion of bacteria which may lead to increased morbidity and mortality and spread of the disease. Objectives: to assess the trends of tuberculosis treatment outcomes at Mizan Aman General Hospital, Bench Maji Zone, Southwest Ethiopia, from September 2010 to August 2013. Methods: A retrospective study design was conducted at the TB clinic of Mizan general Hospital by analyzing the data of registered tuberculosis patients. The original case records were carefully reviewed, analyzed and interpreted to determine descriptive statistic such as frequencies and proportion of variables. The results of the study were presented using tables and line diagram. The study was approved ethically by Jimma University, college of public health and medical science, department of Nursing. Result: about 2043 TB patient record was retrieved in this study period from 2010- 2013. Of these, 1207 (58.00%) were males and 874 (42.00%) were females. The magnitude of TB case during the study period were smoothly declined in the first four consecutive six months 382, 312, 212 and 116, respectively, whereas in the fifth six month the TB case dramatically increased to 547 however in the last phase reduces to 472. During the study period 362 (17.72 %) completed the treatment, 79 (3.87 %) cured, 4 (0.20%) defaulted, 1575 (76.99%) transferred out to other health facility, 25 (1.22%) were died but no one could failed the treatment regimen. Conclusion: The trends of overall TB diagnosed cases were reduced in the first two years but it increases in the third year. The treatment outcomes; high in transfer out and low in cure rate was observed. Thus, Behavioral change communication education emphasized on early detection and treatment of TB cases is important strategies to reduce TB burden.

Factors Associated with Self-Reported Depression, Diagnosis, and Treatment among Korean Adults

Haejong Lee, Kyung Sook Cho, Jangho Yoon, Hyun Suk Park Department of Health Administration, Yonsei University College of Health and Science, Wonju, Korea, Health Management and Policy Program, College of Public Health and Human Sciences, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Sejong, Korea, Applied Economics Graduate Program, Oregon State University, Corvallis, OR, USA, Department of Health Service Management, Daejeon University College of Business Administration, Daejeon, Korea

Knowledge And Attitude Towards Pain Management Among Medical And Paramedical Students Of An Ethiopian University

Background: Poor attitude and lack of knowledge about pain has long been demonstrated to encumber the manner in which professionals and their patients respond to the varied dimensions of pain management. Objective: The aim of the current study was to assess the level of knowledge and attitudes regarding pain management of the 2013 final year students of Medical and paramedical students of College of Public Health and Medical Sciences(CPHMS) of Jimma University, South-west Ethiopia. Methods: A cross-sectional survey was employed among final year undergraduate students using a validated 23-item consisting four likert scales. Results were depicted using narrations, means, percentages, figure and tables. Comparisons among groups were performed through one way analysis of variance, t-test and Pearson correlation. Item-total correlation and Cronbach’s alpha were computed using SPSS for Windows version 20. P-value below 5% level of significance was used to identify the statistical significance of factors for knowledge and attitude about pain management. Results: A total of 422 graduate classes of the college’s student have completed a 23-item questionnaire evaluating knowledge and attitude about pain management. The reliability (Cronbach’s α) of the tool was 0.89. The overall percentage of correct answers was 52.3%.The mean percentage of correct answers for non-pharmacologic pain management, assessment of and attention paid to pain, general principle of pain management, opiods, and children’s pain management items were 80.3, 62.4, 52.1, 40.3, and 31.5 respectively. Only 4.2 % of the students scored above the cutoff point (70%) for good knowledge regarding pain management. Nevertheless, though paradoxical, 73 % of the participants responded that they have adequately learnt about pain management in their academic carriers. Pharmacy students had a mean score of correct answer of 55.7% followed by Medicine 54.7%, Anesthesia 51.8%, Health Officer (HO) 50.9%, Dentistry 50.6%, and Nursing 49.9%.There was a statistically significant difference in the number of correct answers among the departments (ANOVA, P = 0.004). The only differences were between Pharmacy vs. Nursing or HO officer students (p=0.02). Conclusion: Unacceptable level of knowledge deficits and poor attitudes were distinguished in this study which augments the universal concern of inadequate knowledge and attitudes regarding pain management. Thus, the situation demands various educational and quality improvement initiatives in pain management that could enhance the student’s knowledge in the area of pain management and ultimately improve practices for bettering patients’ quality of life.

The Application of Belmont Report Principles to Policy Development

Attention to ethical issues is a routine part of medical research. In this article, we propose that health policy development, like research, include a formal review of these issues. Ethical knowledge is a critical component of epistemology and inherent in development of laws and principles of justice. However, we cannot assume that new policies are subject to a formal ethics review. The Belmont Report of 1978 provides a platform for this process. Prior to the Belmont Report, there was no foundation defining this process in medical research. Based on this history, we propose that health care payment policy development include a formal assessment of risks and benefits using an approach that is familiar to all researchers.

Introduction From the Guest Editors

Sarah L. Morgan*, Neil Binkley , and Susan E. Williams 3 Division of Clinical Immunology and Rheumatology, Department of Medicine, UAB Osteoporosis Prevention and Treatment Clinic, University of Alabama at Birmingham, Birmingham, AL, USA; University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health, Madison, WI, USA; and Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine of Case Western Reserve University, and Endocrinology and Metabolism Institute, Department of Endocrinology, Diabetes and Metabolism, Cleveland Clinic, Cleveland, OH, USA

Antipsychotic use drops with CMS dementia effort

The agency’s National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care has had a goal of reducing antipsychotic drug usage by 15% by the end of 2013, CMS said in an August 27 news release. Approximately 30,000 fewer nursing home residents are on these medications now than would have been. “I think the reductions in antipsychotic use observed to date are very encouraging,” Ryan Carnahan, PharmD, MS, BCPP, Clinical Associate Professor at the University of Iowa College of Public Health, told Pharmacy Today. “This is refl ective of a widespread, coordinated effort by stakeholders and providers to implement education and training to help change the way dementia care is delivered.” CMS launched the National Partnership to Improve Dementia Care on March 29, 2012. “These reductions took place in less than a year,” noted Carnahan.

Editorial Commentary: Variant Influenza A(H3N2) Virus: Looking Through a Glass, Darkly

First detected in July 2011 [1], the influenza A(H3N2) variant virus (H3N2v), a swine-like progeny virus from the 2009 pandemic H1N1 virus, has caused considerable public health alarm. Most children <10 years of age are thought to be susceptible [2], and evidence of limited H3N2v person-to-person transmission has been reported [1]. Soon after its discovery, public health officials became quite concerned regarding this novel viral threat. In November 2011, the World Health Organization released a virus construct A/Minnesota/11/2010 for vaccine development. In August 2012, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention released special H3N2v diagnostic and agricultural fair guidance. In this issue of Clinical Infectious Diseases, Jhung et al [3] summarize the largest human H3N2v outbreak to date (306 cases in 10 states), clearly associating it with pig exposure at agricultural fairs. The authors’ case identification methods and exposure assessments were sound and a number of their findings were quite remarkable: Among the infected persons, 82% were ≤11 years of age, 95% had recent swine exposure, the estimated incubation period was 2.9 days after pig exposure, 16 patients were hospitalized (1 patient died), and 15 likely acquired H3N2v from another human. Although agricultural fairs have been previously shown to be a risk factor for swine influenza virus (SIV) infections in humans [4–8], never before have the epidemiological data been so strong and geographically widespread. The legion of authors in this paper demonstrates the huge interagency effort that was required to gain such a comprehensive view. The authors are to be commended for this important work. However, it seems rather tragic that after the 2009 H1N1 pandemic and this large outbreak, we still do not have a clear view of the dynamic ecology of SIV-like viruses that are freely circulating between swine and human populations. Instead we must often wait for humans to serve as sentinels through their infection with such novel viruses. Although novel SIV viruses are reportable when detected in humans or in pigs, there is sparse testing of healthy pigs for novel SIV; when influenza testing does occur, swine farmers’ participation in the US Department of Agriculture’s influenza surveillance programs is for the most part voluntary. Why should the swine industry pay for SIV surveillance and virus characterization among pigs, when pigs often carry influenza A viruses without clinical signs [8] and the viruses are not transmitted to humans via meat products? Unless a novel virus emerges to cause significant morbidity in pigs, and that virus is characterized, the novel virus is not likely to be discovered and reported by veterinary professionals. Lack of SIV ecologic data is also due in part to concerns that research findings might cause economic damage to the pork industries. Why should pork farmers permit researchers to study SIV transmission in their farms when such research could lead to discoveries that would hamper the sale of a farmer’s pigs or require expensive renovations to swine barns? Hence, although we clearly see that novel SIV human infections can be numerous and widespread and that these crossspecies influenza A virus jumps can occur at agriculture fairs or among individuals occupationally exposed to pigs [9–11], we still do not yet know how to effectively mitigate this risk. It seems to these authors that what we must do is engage in multidisciplinary research to prospectively study the large commercial and small hobby farms that Received 12 September 2013; accepted 15 September 2013; electronically published 24 September 2013. Correspondence: Gregory C. Gray, MD, MPH, FIDSA, Department of Environmental and Global Health, College of Public Health and Health Professions, University of Florida, Box 100188, Gainesville, FL 32610 (gcgray@phhp.ufl.edu). Clinical Infectious Diseases 2013;57(12):1713–4 © The Author 2013. Published by Oxford University Press on behalf of the Infectious Diseases Society of America. All rights reserved. For Permissions, please e-mail: journals. permissions@oup.com. DOI: 10.1093/cid/cit650

Progress in Public Health Certification

College of Public Health, University of South Florida, Tampa (Dr Petersen); School of Public Health, University of North Texas Health Sciences Center, Fort Worth (Dr Kurz). Correspondence: Donna J. Petersen, ScD, College of Public Health, University of South Florida, 13201 Bruce B Downs Blvd, MDC 056, Tampa, FL 33612 ([email protected]). The authors declare no conflicts of interest.

Florida Public Health Training Center: Evidence-Based Online Mentor Program

The Florida Public Health Training Center (FPHTC) at the University of South Florida (USF) College of Public Health (COPH) developed and implemented an Online Mentor Program (OMP) designed to suppo...