Public Health Topics Research Articles

Toward Public Health Resilience in the Eastern Mediterranean Region: Findings From the Seventh Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network Regional Conference.

The resilience of public health in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) varies from country to country, mostly based on the governmental and financial situation of the countries. With the theme of Towards Public Health Resilience in the EMR: Breaking Barriers, the seventh Eastern Mediterranean Public Health Network regional conference, held from November 14 to 18, 2021, was dedicated to exploring ways for achieving public health resilience. A total of 101 oral presentations and 13 poster presentations were presented on various public health topics. The conference included 6 keynote sessions, 10 roundtable sessions, and 5 preconference workshops. The preconference workshops were conducted on border health; the mobilization of Field Epidemiology Training Program (FETP) residents and graduates and rapid responders in EMR countries; continuous professional development for the public health workforce; brucellosis surveillance using the "One Health" approach; and strategies to integrate and use noncommunicable diseases data sources. The roundtable sessions included discussions on the following topics: the role of FETPs in responding to COVID-19, institutionalization of rapid response to public health emergencies, health systems resilience, integration of early warning and response with event-based and indicator-based surveillance, sustaining international health regulations, strengthening the "One Health" approach, the anticipated future of public health in the post COVID-19 era, supporting public health research capacity in a diverse region, and COVID-19 vaccines and routine immunization synergies and drawbacks. The keynote speaker sessions covered topics on essential public health functions and the universal health coverage challenge in the EMR, lessons from the US COVID-19 public health response, learning from COVID-19, reshaping public health after the pandemic era, COVID-19 resilient primary health care, and the cohesion of society during and after a pandemic. The conference sessions provided highly promising opportunities to explore ways to achieve such goals in the EMR and shed light on the latest scientific findings, important lessons learned, and discussions on the ways in which current barriers can be broken down through coordination and collaboration.

Evaluating the Feasibility of ChatGPT in Healthcare: An Analysis of Multiple Clinical and Research Scenarios

This paper aims to highlight the potential applications and limits of a large language model (LLM) in healthcare. ChatGPT is a recently developed LLM that was trained on a massive dataset of text for dialogue with users. Although AI-based language models like ChatGPT have demonstrated impressive capabilities, it is uncertain how well they will perform in real-world scenarios, particularly in fields such as medicine where high-level and complex thinking is necessary. Furthermore, while the use of ChatGPT in writing scientific articles and other scientific outputs may have potential benefits, important ethical concerns must also be addressed. Consequently, we investigated the feasibility of ChatGPT in clinical and research scenarios: (1) support of the clinical practice, (2) scientific production, (3) misuse in medicine and research, and (4) reasoning about public health topics. Results indicated that it is important to recognize and promote education on the appropriate use and potential pitfalls of AI-based LLMs in medicine.

Taking medicine in the right way – most important but most neglected

Introduction and aim. To cure any disease, proper use of medicine or taking medicine in the correct order is required. Even patients from developed countries struggle to maintain their drug compliance. There is an odd parallel between underdeveloped, emerging nations and the so-called developed world in the West when it comes to improper medicine use. The understanding and perception of the disease is the most important factor influencing whether patients stick to their treatment plan. Material and methods. Prioritized databases for public health topics included PubMed, ALTAVISTA, Embase, Scopus, Web of Science, and the Cochrane Central Registers. Along with other online sources, journals from Elsevier, Springer, Willey Online Library, and Wolters Kluwer were thoroughly searched. Analysis of the literature. There is a thorough discussion of medication non-adherence issues and a few adherence-improving methods. Conclusion. Adherence to treatment guidelines is essential in the treatment of any disease.

COVID-19 literature surveillance-A framework to manage the literature and support evidence-based decision-making on a rapidly evolving public health topic.

The coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) pandemic has led to a rapid surge of literature on severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 and the wider impacts of the pandemic. Research on COVID-19 has been produced at an unprecedented rate, and the ability to stay on top of the most relevant evidence is top priority for clinicians, researchers, public health professionals and policymakers. This article presents a knowledge synthesis methodology developed and used by the Public Health Agency of Canada for managing and maintaining a literature surveillance system to identify, characterize, categorize and disseminate COVID-19 evidence daily. The Daily Scan of COVID-19 Literature project comprised a systematic process involving four main steps: literature search; screening for relevance; classification and summarization of studies; and disseminating a daily report. As of the end of March 2022 there were approximately 300,000 COVID-19 and pandemic-related citations in the COVID-19 database, of which 50%-60% were primary research. Each day, a report of all new COVID-19 citations, literature highlights and a link to the updated database was generated and sent to a mailing list of over 200 recipients including federal, provincial and local public health agencies and academic institutions. This central repository of COVID-19 literature was maintained in real time to aid in accelerated evidence synthesis activities and support evidence-based decision-making during the pandemic response in Canada. This systematic process can be applied to future rapidly evolving public health topics that require the continuous evaluation and dissemination of evidence.

Introducing dental students to dental public health: An analysis of US predoctoral course syllabi.

Dental public health competencies in predoctoral dental education ensure that students have the skills to succeed in an increasingly complex professional environment. This study examined existing public health curricula in US dental education and their alignment with national recommendations from the American Association of Public Health Dentistry (AAPHD) and guidance from the Healthy People Curriculum Task Force for health professions education programs. We contacted all US dental schools (N = 66) in November 2020-January 202 and requested syllabi for schools' first course with dental public health content. We received 34 syllabi, which provided textual data for content analysis. The authors used an initial content analysis tool to extract descriptive course characteristics. Then, direct and emergent coding was performed to summarize course content. Direct codes included the 23 dental public health topics specified by AAPHD recommendations. Uncategorized content was coded using an inductive approach to identify emergent course themes. Frequently covered topics included principles of dental public health (79% of syllabi) and access to care (79%). "Health disparities" was the most common emergent theme, with 50% of courses including related content. There was little consistency in how courses approached each topic. For example, the topic "access to care" covered healthcare delivery systems, determinants of health, legislative reform, and advocacy. Dental public health was often taught alongside unrelated content. Recommendations for dental public health competencies should be updated to include new educational priorities, align with current national recommendations, and align with Commission on Dental Accreditation Standards more clearly.

Application of Graphs in a One Health Framework.

The One Health framework, which advocates the crucial interconnection between environmental, animal, and human health and well-being, is becoming of increasing importance and acceptance in health sciences over the last years. The hottest public health topics of the latest years, like zoonotic diseases (e.g., the recent pandemic) or the increasing antibiotic resistance, characterized by many as "pandemic of the future," make the more holistic and combinatorial approach of One Health a necessity to combat such complex problems. Multiple graphs and graph theory have found applications in health sciences for many years, and they can now extend to usage across all levels of a One Health approach to health, ranging from genome, one disease level, to epidemiology and ecosystem graphs. For that last ecosystem layer, a proposed approach is the utilization of process graphs from the chemical engineering field, in order to understand a whole system and what constitute the most crucial aspects of a One Health issue in ecosystem level. Here P-graphs are focused alongside their combinatorial algorithms, implemented in R, and their application researched in an effort to extract information and plan interventions.

Determinants of Children Vaccine Hesitancy among the Parents of Newly Merged Districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa

Vaccine hesitancy for children immunization vaccine programs in parents is one of key topics in public health in the Global South including most of Pakistan. However, in the erstwhile Federally Administered Areas (FATA) which are now merged in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, known as Newly Merged Districts (NMDs), there is a dearth of such research. This study aimed to fill this void. Through two-staged sampling, 384 participants were selected and administered with WHO SAGE Vaccine Hesitancy Scale along with open-ended question for quantum and determinants of vaccine hesitancy. The study found that more than one third of the parents (35.41%) are severely hesitant regarding their children routine immunization while more than half (55.72) are moderately resistant which is alarming. Major factors affecting vaccine hesitancy are negative perceptions about vaccination (22.14%), religious conspiracies (14.06%), lack of information about vaccination (11.72%), fears of adverse effects (11.7%), Western funding for vaccination (6.25%) demand of other life necessities from the Government (7.81%) and few others. Interestingly, Odd Ratios (OR) values revealed that sever hesitancy is more prevalent in those who has both formal education and religious education (OR=19.4, p>.001) than only formally educated or religiously educated parents, this point need further investigation. Similarly, parents who has availed Seht Sahulat Card, sever hesitancy (OR=1.5, p>.001) in them was less than those who didn’t avail it (OR=1.3, p>.001). Results also showed that moderate hesitancy is more prevalent in high-income parents than middle- and lower-income parents. Expanded Program of Immunization – EPI was operational in NMDs (former FATA), but it got momentum recently, still there is alarming vaccine hesitancy in these areas. This call for a comprehensive and all-stakeholders inclusive strategy to eradicate this vaccine hesitancy in these vulnerable tribal areas of Pakistan.

Лингвобезопасность и противостояние коммуникативным угрозам в сфере здравоохранения (материалы международного круглого стола, РАНХиГС, телерадиоканал «Русский мир», 21.06.2022)

Review of the round table "Linguistic security. Anti-vaccination as a communicative threat: linguistic mechanisms of consciousness manipulation", organized by the staff of the research laboratory "Linguistic security and psychology of information impact" of the Institute of Law and National Security of the Russian Presidential Academy of National Economy and Public Administration. During the discussion, the changed nature of communication threats in general was considered, and the destructive flows of medical topics, in particular, the formed stereotypes and anti-values of the anti-vaccination discourse, were highlighted. The participants in the discussion distinguished between such concepts as “covid dissident” and “anti-vaccination”. An excursion into the history of vaccination is given, the path of the emergence of anti-vaccination discourse is traced. The Soviet experience of working with health education, as well as Chinese practices from the moment of the formation of the PRC to the present day, are analyzed. The participants of the round table highlighted the methods by which the Russian audience is retained and new users are involved, they dwelled in detail on the proximity strategy actively used by anti-vaccinators. Tactics for consolidating society in times of crisis are proposed, special attention is paid to the strategy of nomination, euphemization, which, from a manipulatory means, can become a therapeutic method with the help of mitigation. The functions of black humor as a popular form of popular opposition to destructive information flows are also indicated. Proposals have been put forward for the development of strategic programs for the training of new specialists, such as "infodemiologist", where informational and biological aspects will be equally taken into account when covering public health topics. Improvement of legislation in the field of content labeling seems to be tactical measures in the near future.

Risk assessment of pollen allergy in urban environments

According to WHO, by 2050, at least one person out of two will suffer from an allergy disorder resulting from the accelerating air pollution associated with toxic gas emissions and climate change. Airborne pollen, and associated allergies, are major public health topics during the pollination season, and their effects are further strengthened due to climate change. Therefore, assessing the airborne pollen allergy risk is essential for improving public health. This study presents a new computational fluid dynamics methodology for risk assessment of local airborne pollen transport in an urban environment. Specifically, we investigate the local airborne pollen transport from trees on a university campus in the north of France. We produce risk assessment maps for pollen allergy for five consecutive days during the pollination season. The proposed methodology could be extended to larger built-up areas for different weather conditions. The risk assessment maps may also be integrated with smart devices, thus leading to decision-aid tools to better guide and protect the public against airborne pollen allergy.

Editorial - Community Dental Health opens its archive of papers to all.

Readers will have noticed the ways we have been modernising Community Dental Health this year. In March we dispensed with hard copies of the journal, publishing it only online. This change was in line with our subscribers' reading behaviours and minimised our environmental impact by reducing the carbon footprints of printing, of using paper and of postage. Subscribers can now also access papers as soon as they are accepted, ahead of publication. Our newly commissioned reviews digest key topics in dental public health to help busy readers keep up with emerging knowledge. In addition, our move to prioritise systematic reviews, by accelerating peer review and fast-tracking publication ensures subscribers' confidence that they are reading the most up to date evidence in our discipline.

Prevalence and Correlates of COVID-19 Vaccine Information on Family Medicine Practices' Websites in the United States: Cross-sectional Website Content Analysis.

Primary care providers are regarded as trustworthy sources of information about COVID-19 vaccines. Although primary care practices often provide information about common medical and public health topics on their practice websites, little is known about whether they also provide information about COVID-19 vaccines on their practice websites. This study aimed to investigate the prevalence and correlates of COVID-19 vaccine information on family medicine practices' website home pages in the United States. We used the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid National Provider Identifier records to create a sampling frame of all family medicine providers based in the United States, from which we constructed a nationally representative random sample of 964 family medicine providers. Between September 20 and October 8, 2021, we manually examined the practice websites of these providers and extracted data on the availability of COVID-19 vaccine information, and we implemented a 10% cross-review quality control measure to resolve discordances in data abstraction. We estimated the prevalence of COVID-19 vaccine information on practice websites and website home pages and used Poisson regression with robust error variances to estimate crude and adjusted prevalence ratios for correlates of COVID-19 vaccine information, including practice size, practice region, university affiliation, and presence of information about seasonal influenza vaccines. Additionally, we performed sensitivity analyses to account for multiple comparisons. Of the 964 included family medicine practices, most (n=509, 52.8%) had ≥10 distinct locations, were unaffiliated with a university (n=838, 87.2%), and mentioned seasonal influenza vaccines on their websites (n=540, 56.1%). In total, 550 (57.1%) practices mentioned COVID-19 vaccines on their practices' website home page, specifically, and 726 (75.3%) mentioned COVID-19 vaccines anywhere on their practice website. As practice size increased, the likelihood of finding COVID-19 vaccine information on the home page increased (n=66, 27.7% among single-location practices, n=114, 52.5% among practices with 2-9 locations, n=66, 56.4% among practices with 10-19 locations, and n=304, 77.6% among practices with 20 or more locations, P<.001 for trend). Compared to clinics in the Northeast, those in the West and Midwest United States had a similar prevalence of COVID-19 vaccine information on website home pages, but clinics in the south had a lower prevalence (adjusted prevalence ratio 0.8, 95% CI 0.7 to 1.0; P=.02). Our results were largely unchanged in sensitivity analyses accounting for multiple comparisons. Given the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, primary care practitioners who promote and provide vaccines should strongly consider utilizing their existing practice websites to share COVID-19 vaccine information. These existing platforms have the potential to serve as an extension of providers' influence on established and prospective patients who search the internet for information about COVID-19 vaccines.

Comparative sensitivity of social media data and their acceptable use in research

Social media data offer a rich resource for researchers interested in public health, labor economics, politics, social behaviors, and other topics. However, scale and anonymity mean that researchers often cannot directly get permission from users to collect and analyze their social media data. This article applies the basic ethical principle of respect for persons to consider individuals’ perceptions of acceptable uses of data. We compare individuals’ perceptions of acceptable uses of other types of sensitive data, such as health records and individual identifiers, with their perceptions of acceptable uses of social media data. Our survey of 1018 people shows that individuals think of their social media data as moderately sensitive and agree that it should be protected. Respondents are generally okay with researchers using their data in social research but prefer that researchers clearly articulate benefits and seek explicit consent before conducting research. We argue that researchers must ensure that their research provides social benefits worthy of individual risks and that they must address those risks throughout the research process.

Education in Urban Health: the experience of Public Health residents in an Italian high school

Abstract Background Urban health has become an increasingly important aspect of Public Health curriculum for residents as people living in urban areas will substantially rise in the next 30 years so will their impact on health. Residents are both contributors and partners in creating sustainable solutions for their growing cities and can be involved in this aim as individual learners and also educators for younger students. Objectives A group of 15 Italian residents in Public Health were involved in creating and delivering 4 lessons on urban health to 319 students at Nomentano High School in Rome during spring 2022. After the 4th lesson, semi-structured interviews were conducted with the residents in order to assess perceptions, acceptance, barriers and facilitators of the experience. Data was gathered anonymously and analyzed using standard qualitative methods. Results All the residents answered the interview. Almost all reported the experience as highly impactful for training, team building, and increase in accountability. Most of residents also felt more confident on the topic of urban health and more involved in concrete actions for tackling pollution and climate change after delivering the lessons. Most perceived barriers mentioned were difficulties interacting with students, especially during the first two lessons, and their compliance. The opportunity to give lessons in the high school setting facilitated direct contact with students and better feedback was received. Conclusions Giving responsibility and leadership roles to Public Health residents and involving them in the education of younger students could improve their self-confidence and feelings of value and helpfulness, especially for urban health and climate change issues sensed by youth. Further experiences in other settings, specialties, and countries could be valuable to notice differences related to age groups and personal involvement. Key messages • The involvement of Public Health residents in education on urban health is highly impactful and well perceived for their personal growth. • This kind of experience is applicable to other relevant topics in Public Health.

Can YouTube be used as a credible source of information for COVID-19 vaccination in Italy?

Abstract Background The COVID-19 pandemic led to an ‘infodemic', as defined by the WHO, which made it difficult to be accurately informed on public health topics. For this purpose, many people use social media as a source of information, mainly YouTube. Given the great resonance of this platform, our study aims at assessing quality and reliability of its content regarding the COVID-19 vaccination. Methods During March 2022, six searches were performed on the Italian YouTube platform using the following terms: “Covid vaccination”, “Covid vaccine”, “Coronavirus vaccination”, “Coronavirus vaccine”, “Sars-Cov-2 vaccination” and “Sars-Cov-2 vaccine”. A total of 329 videos were analysed, after removing 271 duplicated videos, and classified in seven types of channel. The reliability of the content was evaluated through the HoNCode score, while quality was tested using the validated DISCERN tool. Results The most frequent category was ‘Internet Media’ (33%), while the less frequent one was ‘Educational Medical’ (7%). The content reliability (i.e. HoNCode score) resulted higher for videos produced by medical healthcare workers than non-medical ones. Concerning the quality, the DISCERN score resulted significantly higher for the Educational channels (median 46.0 for medical and 41.3 non-medical ones) as compared to Internet Media (26.5) and New Agencies (24.3). Conclusions Although YouTube has implemented a policy against misinformation related to the COVID-19 vaccination, the study highlights that there is extreme heterogeneity in reliability and quality of videos. Content produced by non-medical users, especially “Internet Media” and “News Agencies” categories should be evaluated with attention by users, as their quality is not appropriate to the importance of the topic. Key messages • Because of to the heterogeneity of its content, YouTube should be evaluated carefully when used as a source of information for Covid-19 vaccination. • Content produced by non-medical users, is generally of poor quality, not appropriate to the importance of the topic.

Using foresight methodologies to tackle SARS-COV-2 related health impacts

Abstract Background A better understanding of possible future developments is essential for policy makers to anticipate and influence these trends. Public health foresight studies (PHFS) are tools to support this. The current health crisis makes clear that PHFS are necessary more than ever to target possible future impacts resulting from SARS-COV-2 induced changes in e.g. regular health care services, lifestyle and socio-economic developments. To support European countries in doing their own foresight studies, PHIRI aims to strengthen foresight capacity. Methods PHIRI follows a 4-step approach: 1. Making an inventory of current PHFS capacities and capacity needs across European countries using desk research and an online survey; 2. Providing PHFS capacity building via a training course and workshops; 3. Supporting the development of public health scenarios for the short term (0-5 years) and longer-term (5-20 years); 4. Supporting the identification of promising policy strategies, using policy dialogues. Results The online survey was completed by participants of 21 countries and shed light on existing national PHFS and needs for capacity building. It also provided a basis for the development of a professional network on PHFS within the project. A PHFS capacity building course was developed, including videos posted on the PHIRI website and a template structuring the different foresight elements. Around 15 researchers undertook their own PHFS, covering a wide range of public health topics, using the material provided during the course. In addition, a compact guide was developed and provided, explaining the different foresight elements. Based on these studies, common challenges and promising policies are identified. Conclusions Foresight in public health is gaining more and more interest, especially now in these times of crisis. PHIRI provides more insight in the wider public health impacts of the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic and in translating this into policy options.

Consumers' Opinions towards Public Health Effects of Online Games: An Empirical Study Based on Social Media Comments in China.

Online game products have fueled the boom in China’s digital economy. Meanwhile, its public health concerns have sparked discussion among consumers on social media. However, past research has seldom studied the public health topics caused by online games from the perspective of consumer opinions. This paper attempts to identify consumers’ opinions on the health impact of online game products through non-structured text and large-size social media comments. Thus, we designed a natural language processing (NLP) framework based on machine learning, which consists of topic mining, multi-label classification, and sentimental analysis. The hierarchical clustering method-based topic mining procedure determines the compatibility of this study and previous research. Every three topics are identified in “Personal Health Effects” and “Social Health Effects”, respectively. Then, the multi-label classification model’s results show that 61.62% of 327,505 comments have opinions about the health effects of online games. Topics “Adolescent Education” and “Commercial Morality” occupy the top two places of consumer attention. More than 31% of comments support two or more topics, and the “Adolescent Education” and “Commercial Morality” combination also have the highest co-occurrence. Finally, consumers expressed different emotional preferences for different topics, with an average of 63% of comments expressing negative emotions related to the health attributes of online games. In general, Chinese consumers are most concerned with adolescent education issues and hold the strongest negative emotion towards the commercial morality problems of enterprises. The significance of research results is that it reminds online game-related enterprises to pay attention to the potential harm to public health while bringing about additional profits through online game products. Furthermore, negative consumer emotions may cause damage to brand image, business reputation, and the sustainable development of the enterprises themselves. It also provides the government supervision departments with an advanced analysis method reference for more effective administration to protect public health and promote the development of the digital economy.

Abstracts from the NIH Office of Research on Women's Health 2022 Annual BIRCWH Meeting:Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women's Health November 2, 2022

Abstracts from the NIH Office of Research on Women's Health 2022 Annual BIRCWH Meeting:Building Interdisciplinary Research Careers in Women's Health November 2, 2022

Trends in public interest in child abuse in the United States: An infodemiology study of Google Trends from 2004 to 2022

IntroductionMore than 1 in 7 children in the United States experience abuse annually with rates remaining consistent over the past 2 decades. During this timeframe, several high-profile cases of child abuse and neglect were publicized in national media in addition to multiple investigations uncovering Indigenous children dying from abuse at Indian Boarding Schools. Increased media attention among other public health and medical topics has been linked to increased public interest, thus, our objective was to investigate trends in public interest from 2004 to 2022. MethodsTo assess trends in public interest, we extracted monthly relative search interest in child abuse from Google Trends. We constructed linear regression to determine the long-term trajectory of interest, and also compared the slope of the trend to other topics, such as domestic violence. Further, we compared mean relative search interest (RSI) from Child Abuse Awareness Month (April) to other months via t-test. Lastly, we assess by-state correlations of RSI and number of children abused. ResultsSince 2004, search interest in child abuse has significantly declined in the United States—more than other related search terms. Child Abuse Awareness Month showed spikes in RSI which were greater than other months. By-state correlations of RSI and abuse were moderate to weak. ConclusionDespite heavy media attention covering stories of child abuse during the past 2 decades, search interest in child abuse has significantly declined. This trend may be related to aversion to secondary traumatic stress as news broadcasts often include stories of violence—of which child abuse stories may be most provoking. Following journalism guidance from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, reporting with focus on resiliency and prevention, rather than the individuals who perpetrated the crime, may provide more community support and increased public interest.

Prostate cancer screening: Continued controversies and novel biomarker advancements.

Prostate cancer (PCa) screening remains one of the most controversial topics in clinical and public health. Despite being the second most common cancer in men worldwide, recommendations for screening using prostate-specific antigen (PSA) are unclear. Early detection and the resulting postscreening treatment lead to overdiagnosis and overtreatment of otherwise indolent cases. In addition, several unwanted harms are associated with PCa screening process. This literature review focuses on the limitations of PSA-specific PCa screening, reasons behind the screening controversy, and the novel biomarkers and advanced innovative methodologies that improve the limitations of traditional screening using PSA. With the verdict of whether or not to screen not yet unanimous, we hope to aid in resolution of the long-standing debate.

Public Librarians: Partners in Adolescent Health Promotion

ABSTRACT The goal of this research was to examine U.S.-based librarians’ history of training on public health topics and their comfort delivering adolescent-focused public health interventions. A total of 269 library staff from 37 states completed a brief online survey. Eighty-four percent of respondents stated that their library had hosted public health programs for youth ages 10–17. Eighty-five percent reported they would be interested or very interested in facilitating an intervention focused on youth (ages 10–17). Ninety-eight percent of participants reported receiving training on at least one public health topic. The most common trainings reported were related to infectious diseases, including COVID (82.9%) and adolescent health and development (78.4%). Most participants were comfortable discussing public health topics, such as sexual and reproductive health (83.6%), adolescent health and development (82.5%), substance use (81.4%), and infectious diseases (81%). Having learned about the topic on their own and having had experience related to the topic were the most common reasons stated for feeling comfortable discussing public health topics with youth. These findings suggest that librarians are interested in and comfortable enough to serve as resources for health promotion among adolescents when adequately trained.