Lessons Learned From an Intensive Writing Training Course for Applied Epidemiologists.

Although writing is a valued public health competency, authors face a multitude of barriers (eg, lack of time, lack of mentorship, lack of appropriate instruction) to publication. Few writing courses for applied public health professionals have been documented. In 2017 and 2018, the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention partnered to implement a Intensive Writing Training course to improve the quality of submissions from applied epidemiologists working at health departments.

Current Marijuana Use by Industry and Occupation - Colorado, 2014-2015.

The effects of marijuana use on workplace safety are of concern for public health and workplace safety professionals. Twenty-nine states and the District of Columbia have enacted laws legalizing marijuana at the state level for recreational and/or medical purposes. Employers and safety professionals in states where marijuana use is legal have expressed concerns about potential increases in occupational injuries, such as on-the-job motor vehicle crashes, related to employee impairment.

Assessment of Arbovirus Surveillance 13 Years after Introduction of West Nile Virus, United States.

Before 1999, the United States had no appropriated funding for arboviral surveillance, and many states conducted no such surveillance. After emergence of West Nile virus (WNV), federal funding was distributed to state and selected local health departments to build WNV surveillance systems. The Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists conducted assessments of surveillance capacity of resulting systems in 2004 and in 2012; the assessment in 2012 was conducted after a 61% decrease in federal funding.

National capacity for surveillance, prevention, and control of West Nile virus and other arbovirus infections--United States, 2004 and 2012.

In the first 5 years after its introduction in the United States in 1999, West Nile virus (WNV) spread to the 48 contiguous states, resulting in 667 reported deaths. To establish detection and response capacity, WNV surveillance and prevention was supported through CDC Epidemiology and Laboratory Capacity (ELC) cooperative agreements with all 50 states and six large cities/counties. In 2005, the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists (CSTE) conducted an assessment of ELC recipients and determined that, since 1999, all had developed WNV surveillance and control programs, resulting in a national arboviral surveillance infrastructure.

How school nurses can benefit from immunization information systems: information exchange to keep students in school and ready to learn.

Recorded and retrievable information from state immunization information systems (IIS)--previously known as immunization registries--benefits schools, students, families, state and local immunization programs, and the medical home. The National Association of School Nurses (NASN), the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO), the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO), and the American Immunization Registry Association (AIRA) support state IIS as a way to facilitate immunization compliance, prevent immunization duplications, and sustain high immunization rates. There is much variability from state to state on who can access and/or input data into the IIS.

Extending the reach: local health department collaboration with community pharmacies in Palm Beach County, Florida for H1N1 influenza pandemic response.

Objective: Palm Beach County Health Department (PBCHD) in Florida collaborated with pharmacists, community pharmacies, and pharmacy-based retail health clinics to increase access to influenza prevention through a widespread H1N1 influenza vaccination campaign and to disseminate timely and accurate public health recommendations and information using Flu Ready Cards. Selected pharmacy and store managers were surveyed, before and after distribution of H1N1 vaccine regarding issues facing pharmacists and the public in deciding whether or not to recommend or accept influenza vaccinations.

Participants: Palm Beach County Health Department collaborated with Walgreens and CVS pharmacies, Publix and Winn-Dixie Super Market Pharmacies, and the Palm Beach County Pharmacy Association.

Preparing for the usual, preparing for the unusual: ethics in routine and emergency public health practice.

A tremendous amount of resources is being poured into public health agencies for the purpose of planning to prevent, respond to, and/or recover from all manner of emergencies. As planning and practice drills have progressed, many of the shortcomings of our current public health system are being recognized. Many gray areas, particularly legal and ethical, are coming into focus.

Preparedness: medical ethics versus public health ethics.

Medical ethics generally applies to individual interactions between physicians and patients. Conversely, public health ethics typically applies to interactions between an agency or institution and a community or population. Four main principles underlie medical ethics: autonomy, nonmaleficence, beneficence, and justice.

Local health department and academic partnerships: education beyond the ivy walls.

The National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) is the national organization representing local health departments. NACCHO supports efforts that protect and improve the health of all people and all communities by promoting national policy, developing resources and programs, seeking health equity, and supporting effective local public health practice and systems.

Eliminating missing race/ethnicity data from a sexually transmitted disease case registry.

Data regarding race and ethnicity are usually requested when conducting public health surveillance. However, such data are frequently not included in case reports by providers. This report describes efforts to reduce the extent of missing race and/or ethnicity data in reports of sexually transmitted diseases in Massachusetts.