Florida public health review最新文献

This study's purpose is to examine the association between bullying and health-risk behavior outcomes among adolescents in Florida schools. Data were drawn from the 2015 Florida Youth Risk Behavior Survey (YRBS), a school-based survey of high school students from grades 9 to 12 that is conducted biennially. The YRBS estimates six types of health-risk behaviors that contribute to the disability of young youth and the leading causes of morbidity and mortality. The six health risk behaviors are unintentional injuries, tobacco use, sexual health behaviors, dietary, physical activity, and alcohol use. Overall, 6.4 % of students were involved in both kinds of bullying (in-person and electronic bullying); 7.6% in in-person bullying; 4.4% in electronic bullying; and 81.6% of students were uninvolved in bullying. This study adds to previous findings and emphasizes that bullying does not come about in seclusion, but is a pattern of risk behaviors or stipulations, such as school and sexual violence, suicide, substance use, and unhealthy weight control practices.

Background: The SARS-CoV-2 virus responsible for severe respiratory infection associated with coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was first confirmed in Florida on March 1, 2020. Responding to the pandemic, multi-agency collaborative partnerships put in place actions integrating point-of-care antibody testing at established large-scale COVID-19 testing sites where the baseline seropositivity of COVID-19 in health care workers and first responders in Florida at the start of the pandemic was established.

Purpose: Determine the seropositivity of healthcare workers and first responders at five drive thru testing sites using a rapid SARS-CoV-2 antibody test in Florida from May 6 through June 3, 2020.

Methods: The first drive-thru SARS-CoV-2 antibody test site was opened at Miami Hard Rock Stadium, May 6, 2020. Testing expanded to three additional sites on May 9, 2020: Jacksonville, Orlando, and Palm Beach. The fifth and final site, Miami Beach, began testing on May 21, 2020. Healthcare workers and first responder's self-seeking SARS-CoV-2 testing were designated for antibody testing and completed a laboratory collection form onsite for the point-of-care test. All testing was performed on whole blood specimens (obtained by venipuncture) using the Cellex Inc. qSARS-CoV-2 IgG/IgM Rapid Test. Seropositivity was assessed by univariate analysis and by logistic regression including the covariates age, sex, race/ethnicity, and testing location.

Results and discussion: As of June 3, 2020, of 5,779 healthcare workers and first responders tested, 4.1% were seropositive (range 2.6-8.2%). SARS-COV-2 antibody tests had higher odds of being positive for persons testing at the Miami Hard Rock Stadium (aOR 2.24 [95% C.I. 1.48-3.39]), persons of Haitian/Creole ethnicity (aOR 3.28 [95% C.I. 1.23-8.72]), Hispanic/Latino(a) ethnicity (aOR 2.17 [95% C.I. 1.50-3.13], and Black non-Hispanic persons (aOR 1.63 [95% C.I. 1.08-2.46]). SARS-COV-2 antibody prevalence among first responders and healthcare workers in five sites in Florida varied by race and ethnicity and by testing location.

Until the late 1960's, Jacksonville, Florida incinerated its solid waste with the resultant ash deposited in landfills or used to fill flood-prone areas. These filled areas were later developed into parks, school sites and residential areas. Lead in soil at these sites was the major toxicant of concern and driver of clean-up actions. During the period of assessment of lead-levels in soil, there were no established lines of communication between the City and residents of affected neighborhoods resulting in mistrust in the community. To address communication issues, a community-based, culturally sensitive Community Environmental Toxicology Curriculum (CETC) and a short video were developed for community stakeholders to inform them of risks, health effects, remediation processes and preventive measures. Pre-and post-tests were developed to measure knowledge gained from the toxicology training. Learning gains averaged 47% and 24% for the community leaders and residents respectively. Most participants strongly agreed that the community toxicology curriculum was a useful tool for promoting awareness of environmental risks in their community and addressing the gap in trust between residents and agencies involved in site remediation.

Background: Florida became the first state in the U.S. South to legalize the use of medical marijuana to treat a variety of health conditions including chronic pain, epilepsy, and spasticity symptoms from multiple sclerosis. While there are over 200,000 medical marijuana patients in Florida, there remain financial, psychological, and insurance coverage barriers which reduce access for many patients.

Purpose: This scoping review, with a focus on state health policy, first describes some clinical studies examining the therapeutic benefits of medical marijuana. Next, there is a discussion of the Florida regulatory environment and major legislation. Also, the review describes how the current Florida policy landscape presents challenges for physicians and patients.

Methods: A scoping review of the literature was conducted in PubMed and Google Scholar using the search terms, "medical marijuana" and "medical cannabis" to identify research articles, newspaper reports, and government documents. The purpose of the review was to identify research investigating the therapeutic efficacy of medical marijuana and state policies affecting physician practice.

Results: The review concluded there was general scientific consensus of therapeutic benefits for patients, especially for chronic pain, from the use of medical marijuana. The review also identified several barriers for physicians and patients around cost, stigma, and lack of insurance coverage which constrains use and access.

Discussion: The review discusses several directions for future medical marijuana policy and research with the aim to improve therapeutic benefits for Florida patients.

This study used a unique approach to examine Florida county health department environmental health (EH) program performance of the 10 Essential Environmental Public Health Services (EEPHS) and its relationship with environment-related disease, described by enteric disease rates. Correlation analysis tested the association between performance of each EEPHS and five different enteric disease rates, while multivariate regression analysis further examined the relationships while considering program organizational characteristics as potential confounders. Correlation analyses revealed cryptosporidiosis was associated with EEPHS 2 diagnose (T_b = .195, p = .027) and EEPHS 8 workforce (T_b = .234, p = .006), and salmonellosis with EEPHS 4 mobilize (T_b = .179, p = .042) and EEPHS 6 enforce (T_b = .201, p = .020). Multivariate regression results showed EEPHS 2 diagnose (p = .04) and EEPHS 4 mobilize (p = .00) had statistically significant associations with cryptosporidiosis and salmonellosis, respectively, and suggested that improved performance of these two EEPHS may have decreased disease incidence. EH programs may benefit from improving the performance of EEPHS to address the incidence of certain enteric diseases. Continued efforts to develop a robust understanding of EH program performance and its impact on environment-related disease could enhance EH services delivery and ability to improve health outcomes.

The aims of the study were to explore the associations between college students' perception of their overall physical and psychological health and four measures of academic performance. College students (N = 265) completed a 65-item Web-based survey in a university's student health services building during the spring 2015 semester. Poorer psychological health was associated with seriously considering dropping out of college and missing more classes during the current school year "due to physical or psychological health reasons." Poorer physical health was associated with enrollment in more credit hours. Students who reported a grade point average (GPA) below 2.0 missed more classes "because of physical or psychological reasons" during the current school year than those with a 2.0 or higher GPA. A longitudinal study is needed to clarify whether better health leads to more successful academic performance or vice versa and which specific health indicators play the largest role.

A prospective cohort study of LTBI treatment conducted within the Haitian population of South Florida investigated the predictive association between illness-related stigma among patients near the beginning of treatment and completion of preventive therapy. Factors associated with perceived stigma were also investigated. Ninety patients from Broward and Palm Beach counties were administered a questionnaire that included items related to illness history, perceptions and understanding of latent tuberculosis, and a 25-item stigma scale adapted from previously developed measures of tuberculosis-related stigma. Therapy completion was determined through a follow-up chart review. Data analyses compared patients who completed therapy with those who defaulted on a number of variables including perceived stigma. No association was found between perceived stigma or demographic characteristics and adherence to preventive therapy. Perceived stigma was associated with patient report of illness-related distress and was higher among patients who were lost to follow up. Some evidence suggested that stigma was higher among contacts of cases, patients with limited understanding of the condition, and patients who were more closely monitored during treatment. Case management should focus on patient-centered approaches to education and counseling about LTBI that address patient understanding of the condition and concerns about its physical and psychosocial effects.

The purpose of this study was to describe the role of substance abuse as a mediating factor between early sexual experiences and suicide attempts among adult Latinas. In our study participants (n=158), nearly 15% had attempted suicide and 39% experienced their first sexual encounter at an age of 15 or younger (referred to hereafter as "early sex"). Latinas who experienced early sex were more likely to attempt suicide [OR=2.4, p<0.05], and this relationship was largely mediated by substance abuse. An early sexual debut may indicate an environmental adversity on the child that calls for long term intervention for prevention of substance abuse as well as promotion of psychological well-being later in life.

This study describes the role of place of residence on drinking and driving among students in a large Hispanic-serving institution. The National College Health Assessment survey was administered during the fall of 2004. 1130 randomly selected students completed this anonymous questionnaire. Hispanic students were less likely to drive after drinking compared to non-Hispanic white students, but Hispanic students were more likely to live with parents (55%) compared with non-Hispanic white students (22%). After adjusting for the place of residence, there were no significant differences in drinking and driving between Hispanics and non-Hispanic white students. Therefore, in part, lower levels of driving after drinking among Hispanic students was mediated by current place of residence. However, the impact of living with parents was not significant among heavy alcohol users.

This study tests the hypothesis that disparities of hypertension risk in African Americans is related to lead exposure, perceptions of racism, and stress, among urban (Roxbury, MA) and rural (Gadsden, FL) communities. Analysis of preliminary data from Phase I reveal 60% in Gadsden and 39% in Roxbury respondents self-reported having hypertension. In Gadsden 80% people did not know if their residence contained lead paint, compared to 45% in Roxbury. In Gadsden County, 58% of respondents reported experiencing racial discrimination in different settings compared with 72% in Roxbury. In regression analyses high cholesterol emerged as a significant predictors of hypertension in Gadsden County (OR=8.29, CI=1.4-49.3), whereas monthly household income (OR=0.15, CI=0.04-0.7) and diabetes (OR=6.06, CI=1.4-26.17) were significant predictors of hypertension in Roxbury after adjusting for other covariates. These preliminary findings set the stage for initiating Phase II (Phase I continues recruitment), that entail biological marker measurements to rigorously test main hypothesis.