Invited Sessions at Upcoming Annual Meeting You Won’t Want to Miss
We have several outstanding presentations at the upcoming meeting, which are described briefly below. Please leave room on your annual meeting schedule to attend these exciting sessions.
MONDAY, NOVEMBER 05, 2007
8:30 AM-10:00 AM (3029.0) Invited Session: National HIV Behavioral Surveillance among Heterosexuals at High risk of HIV – Reports from Three Sites
This session will discuss implementation and preliminary results from the latest cycle of the CDC National HIV Behavioral (NHBS) Surveillance project. NHBS is designed to gather HIV risk behavior data from three high risk populations: men who have sex with men, injection drug users, and heterosexuals at high risk of acquiring HIV. We will focus on heterosexuals at high risk of acquiring HIV. Our first dilemma was how to describe “heterosexuals at high risk of acquiring HIV” in a way that would allow us to find and sample this population in multiple sites using different sampling methods. Through initial formative work, the population of interest was defined as: heterosexuals living in areas with high rates of HIV and poverty. Thus, this became a project of high risk areas rather than high risk individuals. We used census tract population data and HIV surveillance data to identify census tracts with high rates of poverty and high rates of HIV. Two recruitment methods were selected: venue-based sampling (VBS) and respondent driven sampling (RDS). For each method, there were unique trials and tribulations. We will report on implementation and give preliminary results from RDS in New Orleans post Katrina and from VBS in Baltimore. In addition, we will present preliminary results from RDS in Houston, and discuss how well we achieved our goal of recruiting within our defined high risk areas.
10:30 AM-12:00 PM (3118.0) Invited Session: Sleep from a Public Health Perspective: Epidemiology, Risk Factors, and Implications for Public Health Policy
Despite increasing evidence that sleep disturbance is a risk factor for depression, cardiovascular disease, injuries, and other medical problems, sleep has been largely ignored by the public health community. To encourage greater public health interest in sleep, an invited symposium entitled, Sleep from a Public Health Perspective: Epidemiology, Risk Factors and Implications for Public Health Policy, will be presented at the APHA Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. on Monday, November 5, 2007 from 10:30 to 12:00. This symposium will summarize the epidemiology of sleep and sleep disorders and the role of sleep as a medical and psychiatric risk factor across the lifespan. Sleep disturbances and disorders impact a wide range of public health areas including epidemiology, health promotion, mental health, medical care, and injury control, so anyone interested in expanding their public health efforts to include sleep are encouraged to attend. Public health policy implications such as the need for greater monitoring and surveillance of sleep in national health surveys, initiation and evaluation of health promotion programs to encourage adequate sleep, improved methods for early detection of sleep problems, and modifications to occupational, transportation, and other governmental policies to reduce sleep-related health risks will also be discussed.
12:30 PM-2:00 PM (3215.0) Invited Session: The Young Epidemiology Scholars (YES) Competition: Inspiring the Next Generation of Public Health Professionals
Attracting promising students to careers as public health professionals is urgent, yet few students entering college are familiar with the fields of public health or epidemiology. To increase awareness and the numbers of students pursuing careers dedicated to improving the health of the public, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the College Board created the Young Epidemiology Scholars (YES) Competition.
YES is a scholarship and education program designed to expose high school students to the critical field of epidemiology. The program has already attracted a steady and growing stream of bright, interested high school students who have engaged in epidemiological research. Of those surveyed, 64% indicate that their YES experience had an impact on their career plans, and 10% already intend to pursue a Masters of Public Health.
YES seeks to expand the network of public health professionals who would like to get involved with this program. During this session, a panel of presenters will discuss current programmatic activities and future plans to engage more students in public health fields. A leading epidemiologist, who served as a YES Competition judge, will elaborate on the merits of the scholars' work and the implications of the program. YES Scholars will present their award winning research and discuss the impact the Competition had on their academic and career choices. Learn more about being a part of the expanding YES network of public health professionals and others committed to promoting and connecting young people to the fields of public health and epidemiology.
2:30 PM-4:00 PM (3317.0) Obesity: Prevalence and Risk Factors (Jointly-organized by the Epidemiology & Food and Nutrition Sections)
This timely session will focus on the prevalence and risk factors for obesity in Canada and the United States. Presentations about the prevalence and risk factors for childhood obesity will be followed by a presentation about the possible relationship between maternal smoking and childhood obesity. Other studies estimated the prevalence of obesity in adults using a variety of data sources and the relationship between dietary patterns and obesity.
2:30 PM-4:00 PM (319.0) Invited Session: How Congressional Staffers Translate Research for Policy Makers (This session is sponsored by the APHA Epidemiology Section and the APHA Executive Ofice)
The last decade has demonstrated widening disparities in a variety of health outcomes, including infant mortality, birth outcomes, treatment outcomes, cancer mortality, and certain chronic and infectious diseases. Improvements in health policy and legislation could impact these differences. Increased interaction between scientists, epidemiologists and public health practitioners on the ‘front lines’ and congressional staff and health advocates could help influence policy decisions. Information overload of policy makers and conflicting approaches may be stalling the development of effective policies that lead to better health outcomes. The purpose of this session is to educate scientists and public health practitioners about the process of translating science into effective public policy at the state and federal level, and to provide a venue where non-partisan face-to-face communication can occur in an effort to improve public health. The format will include 5-minute introductory statements by a panel of 1) congressional staffers on the topic of how research is effectively translated into policy in their respective offices, 2) members of the congressional research service, and 3) executive branch policy experts that must bridge the gap between federal and state policy issues. Congressional staff, Congressional Research Service scientists and executive branch policy experts will provide insight on how scientists can most effectively communicate scientific results in an effort to improve public health policy decisions. The audience will have the opportunity to engage the panel in an exciting and thought-provoking dialogue.
TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 06, 2007
8:30 AM-10:00 AM (4025.0) Invited Session: Improving Research and Policy on Violent Death Prevention through Public Health Surveillance: Findings from the National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS)
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) invites you to attend Improving Research and Policy on Violent Death Prevention through Public Health Surveillance: National Violent Death Reporting System (NVDRS) at the upcoming APHA annual meeting in Washington, DC, on Tuesday, November 6, 2007. The morning session will provide details about the surveillance system and outline how NVDRS data is informing prevention efforts and policies. Presenters will provide examples of how NVDRS can serve as a model for state and local agencies looking to establish timely violence prevention surveillance systems and data driven prevention strategies. For more information, or to register visit the APHA website at www.apha.org/meetings.
12:30 PM-2:00 PM (4128.0) Invited Session: Using Immunization Information Systems for Vaccination Assessment and Programmatic Policy Development
12:30 PM-2:00 PM (4129.0) Symposium. Protecting Patients and Participants: Does It Matter Whether It's Research or Public Health Practice? (Organized with the Joint Policy Committee, Societies of Epidemiology)
2:30 PM-4:00 PM (4216.0) Career Development In Epidemiology
2:30 PM-4:00 (4218.0) Invited Session: Time for Change – Alternative Lyme Disease Surveillance in New York State
WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 07, 2007
8:30 AM-10:00 AM (5044.0) Invited Session: Delivery, Organization and Financing of Sexually Transmitted Disease Prevention Services and Their Impact on Racial Ethnic Disparities in STD Morbidity
A sizable number of interventions to prevent the spread of sexually transmitted diseases (STDs) have been proven efficacious through randomized controlled trials. Despite the availability of efficacious interventions STD rates remain high particularly among youth, racial ethnic minorities, low socioeconomic status populations and men who have sex with men. Health system issues interfere with effective implementation and scale-up of efficacious STD prevention interventions. This symposium will focus on the relevant health system parameters; describe their influence on the prevention of specific STD including chlamydia, gonorrhea and syphilis and explore the interaction between health system parameters and racial ethnic disparities in these three sexually transmitted diseases.
12:30 PM-2:00 PM (5109.0) Invited Session: Future of Epidemiology - Epidemiology Education in Grades 6-12 – The Epi Ed Movement
Based on the participation in our roundtable discussion at the 2006 APHA Meeting (The Epidemiology Education Movement), this session will focus on the status of epidemiology education in grades 6-12. To do so, a panel of presenters, who have developed epidemiology education curricula and / or programs for grades 6-12, will review the pedagogical rationale, format, content, and students’ responses to their work and engage attendees in portions of selected lessons. These presentations will be followed by a discussion, among the panelists and attendees, of the challenges of infusing epidemiology education into an already packed school curriculum at a time when standardized testing is of increasing importance. Panelists and attendees also will discuss the role of the public health community in pursuing the goals of the Epidemiology Education Movement: The session will conclude by asking attendees to consider working towards achieving these goals.