scholarly journals Dual MD–MPH Degree Students in the United States: Moving the Medical Workforce Toward Population Health

2021 ◽  
pp. 003335492097842
Author(s):  
Jo Marie Reilly ◽  
Christine M. Plepys ◽  
Michael R. Cousineau

Objective A growing need exists to train physicians in population health to meet the increasing need and demand for physicians with leadership, health data management/metrics, and epidemiology skills to better serve the health of the community. This study examines current trends in students pursuing a dual doctor of medicine (MD)–master of public health (MPH) degree (MD–MPH) in the United States. Methods We conducted an extensive literature review of existing MD–MPH databases to determine characteristics (eg, sex, race/ethnicity, MPH area of study) of this student cohort in 2019. We examined a trend in the MD community to pursue an MPH career, adding additional public health and health care policy training to the MD workforce. We conducted targeted telephone interviews with 20 admissions personnel and faculty at schools offering MD–MPH degrees in the United States with the highest number of matriculants and graduates. Interviews focused on curricula trends in medical schools that offer an MD–MPH degree. Results No literature describes the US MD–MPH cohort, and available MD–MPH databases are limited and incomplete. We found a 434% increase in the number of students pursuing an MD–MPH degree from 2010 to 2018. The rate of growth was greater than the increase in either the number of medical students (16%) or the number of MPH students (65%) alone. Moreover, MD–MPH students as a percentage of total MPH students more than tripled, from 1.1% in 2010 to 3.6% in 2018. Conclusions As more MD students pursue public health training, the impact of an MPH degree on medical school curricula, MD–MPH graduates, and MD–MPH career pursuits should be studied using accurate and comprehensive databases.

PEDIATRICS ◽  
1991 ◽  
Vol 88 (5) ◽  
pp. 1051-1051
Author(s):  
STUDENT

The proportion of children in the United States without private or public health insurance increased from roughly 13 percent to 18 percent between 1977 and 1987, according to a new study by the Agency for Health Care Policy and Research (AHCPR). The growth in the proportion of uninsured children in poor and low-income families over the decade was even more dramatic—it rose from 21 percent to 31 percent.


2021 ◽  
pp. 003335492110557
Author(s):  
Karen L. Niemchick ◽  
Ally Goerge ◽  
Amy H. Ponte

Objective With the completion of the Human Genome Project and swift development of genomic technologies, public health practitioners can use these advancements to more precisely target disease interventions to populations at risk. To integrate these innovations into better health outcomes, public health professionals need to have at least a basic understanding of genomics within various disciplines of public health. This descriptive study focused on the current level of genomics content in accredited master of public health (MPH) programs in the United States. Methods We conducted an internet search on all 171 Council on Education for Public Health (CEPH)–accredited MPH programs in the United States for genomics content in required and elective courses using the search terms “genetics,” “genomics,” and “molecular.” Results Of the 171 CEPH-accredited MPH programs examined, 52 (30.4%) schools and programs in 34 states offered some type of genomics education. Thirty-five (20.5%) schools and programs had a course in genetic epidemiology, 29 (16.9%) had a course in genetic biostatistics or bioinformatics, and 17 (9.9%) had a course in general public health genomics. The remaining 119 offered no course with a focus on genetics or genomics. In addition, some electives or specifically focused courses related to genomics were offered. Conclusion We found inadequate training in public health genomics for MPH students. To realize the promise of precision public health and to increase the understanding of genomics among the public health workforce, MPH programs need to find ways to integrate genomics education into their curricula.


Author(s):  
J. Lloyd Michener ◽  
Brian C. Castrucci ◽  
Don W. Bradley ◽  
Edward L. Hunter ◽  
Craig W. Thomas

Chapter 1 provides an introduction to the history and background to a general desire to try to find ways to improve population health through primary care and public health. The first Practical Playbook derived from an internet-based initiative that sought to find, assemble, assess, and share stories of how communities and agencies across the United States were working together to improve health. This text is the second development from that, after the realization that a completely new text was needed that would build on the experiences of the broadening array of sites and sectors and provide a concise set of tools, methods, and examples that support multi-sector partnerships to improve population health. The chapter then outlines the coverage of the rest of the chapters.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (18) ◽  
pp. 7567
Author(s):  
Yuval Arbel ◽  
Chaim Fialkoff ◽  
Amichai Kerner

Previous research demonstrates that the 1965 American immigration wave has tended to attenuate the obesity pandemic in the United States. Based on a survey carried out by the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (ICBS) in 2012 and 2016, we observe the correlation between BMI, age, native language, and years-since-migration to Israel. BMI (=kgm2) is a conventional measure of obesity, where BMI ≥ 25 is considered overweight and BMI ≥ 30 as type I obesity. The results indicate that compared to 11 groups of immigrants, the median BMI among native Israelis is lower. While the prevalence of overweight (BMI ≥ 25) among Hebrew speakers is below 50%, in 11 groups of immigrants, the prevalence of overweight is above 50%. A noteworthy exception is the immigrants from Ethiopia, who exhibit lower overweight prevalence compared to native Israelis and all other population groups. Finally, while male Hebrew and Russian speakers cross the overweight benchmark at the same age (35 years), native Israeli women (Hebrew speakers) cross this benchmark only when they reach 50 years (15 years after the males) and Russian women cross this benchmark only five years after the Russian men. These research findings may be of assistance in public health and culture-oriented medicine.


2020 ◽  
Vol 37 (6) ◽  
pp. 829-836
Author(s):  
Seok Hyun Gwon ◽  
Young Ik Cho ◽  
Soonhwa Paek ◽  
Weiming Ke

PLoS ONE ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 15 (12) ◽  
pp. e0243560
Author(s):  
Nadia N. Abuelezam ◽  
Andrés Castro Samayoa ◽  
Alana Dinelli ◽  
Brenna Fitzgerald

Objective The discussion of racism within undergraduate public health classrooms can be highly influenced by local and national conversations about race. We explored the impact of local and national events on students’ ability to name racism on a public health exam highlighting the impact of racism on maternal and infant health disparities for Black mothers. Methods We undertook this research within the context of an undergraduate introductory public health course at a primarily white institution in the Northeastern part of the United States. A qualitative content analysis of undergraduate student responses to a final exam question soliciting the importance of racism to health outcomes among Black mothers in the United States was undertaken. ANOVA tests were run to assess differences on naming racism, using semantic alternatives, and providing alternative explanations during three main time periods: prior to the election of the 45th president of the United States (pre-Trump), after the election (post-Trump), and after a nationally recognized racist campus incident. Results Between the pre- and post-Trump periods we see no differences in naming racism or providing alternative explanations. We do see a reduction in the proportion of students providing semantic alternatives for racism in the post-Trump period (32.2 vs. 25.2%, p = 0.034). After the racist campus incident, we see increases in the proportion of students naming race (53.6 vs. 73.8%, p = 0.021) and decreases in the proportion providing an alternative explanation (43.1 vs. 12.9%, p = 0.004), but no differences in the proportion of students who used semantic alternatives. Discussion This work lends itself to our understanding of how local climate affects public health teaching and may also influence students’ learning about important social and structural determinants of health. National and local climate should frame and guide public health teaching.


2020 ◽  
Author(s):  
Xiaoshuang Liu ◽  
Xiao Xu ◽  
Guanqiao Li ◽  
Xian Xu ◽  
Yuyao Sun ◽  
...  

Abstract The widespread pandemic of novel coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) poses an unprecedented global health crisis. In the United States (US), different state governments have adopted various combinations of non-pharmaceutical public health interventions (NPIs) to mitigate the epidemic from February to April, 2020. Quantitative assessment on the effectiveness of NPIs is in great need to assist in guiding the individualized decision making for adjustment of interventions in the US and around the world. However, the impact of these approaches remain uncertain. Based on the reported cases, the effective reproduction number of COVID-19 epidemic for 50 states in the US was estimated. The measurement on the effectiveness of eight different NPIs was conducted by assessing risk ratios (RRs) between and NPIs through a generalized linear model (GLM). Different NPIs were found to have led to different levels of reduction in. Stay-at-home contributed approximately 51% (95% CI 46%-57%), gathering ban (more than 10 people) 19% (14%-24%), non-essential business closure 16% (10%-21%), declaration of emergency 13% (8%-17%), interstate travel restriction 11% (5%-16%), school closure 10% (7%-13%), initial business closure 10% (6%-14%), and gathering ban (more than 50 people) 6% (2%-11%). This retrospective assessment of NPIs on has shown that NPIs played critical roles on epidemic control in the US in the past several months. The quantitative results could guide individualized decision making for future adjustment of NPIs in the US and other countries for COVID-19 and other similar infectious diseases.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (4) ◽  
pp. 47
Author(s):  
Gary Popoli ◽  
Katelyn Curry

This study was designed to investigate differences in the number of suicides committed in the United States before, during, and after daylight savings time (DST). Conflicting results in the literature suggest both a positive and negative effect of DST in the physical, mental, behavioral aspects society. As a result, some states are proposing legislation to abolish DST while others are trying to make DST permanent. This study is designed to investigate whether DST has a positive negative, or no effect on the frequency of suicide. Archival data from a governmental public database containing the total number of suicides by year and month from 2000-2017 was used. Daylight savings time was defined as the months of March through October while non-DST consisted of the remaining 4 months. The data were organized into 3 groups of 4 months beginning in November, 2007 and ending in October, 2017. The results demonstrated a statistically significant increase in suicides during DST. Most suicides were committed during July-October (M = 74.69, SD = 68.86), compared to March-June (M = 73.56, SD = 67.89), and November-February (M = 67.00, SD = 61.41). Despite disagreement in the literature, this study would suggest eliminating DST altogether. These results support other evidence which suggest a detrimental effect of DST, especially with respect to the psychological and behavioral aspects of public health. Nevertheless, there is still a need for more research to determine the impact of these one hour time shifts in the Spring and Fall.


The need for texts that blend the areas of pharmacy and public health has continued to expand. Introduction to Public Health in Pharmacy (second edition), builds upon the Center for the Advancement of Pharmacy Education (CAPE) Educational Outcomes report, which emphasizes public health in the domains of Foundational Knowledge and Essentials of Pharmacy Practice and Care, focusing on both patient and population health care outcomes. This second edition has (a) a strong pharmacy-relevant emphasis on the foundations of public health in pharmacy and (b) an increased emphasis on the impact of pharmacy on disease states important in public health and pharmacy in the United States and internationally. This text can be adopted for pharmacy and public health courses but would also be a valuable resource to those teaching therapeutics, patient care, disease prevention, and community engagement. In addition, it is an invaluable resource and handbook for practitioners. The focus is on the role of pharmacy in population health.


2021 ◽  
pp. e1-e7
Author(s):  
William Riley ◽  
Kailey Love ◽  
Jeffrey McCullough

The COVID-19 pandemic has precipitated an acute blood shortage for medical transfusions, exacerbating an already tenuous blood supply system in the United States, contributing to the public health crisis, and raising deeper questions regarding emergency preparedness planning for ensuring blood availability. However, these issues around blood availability during the pandemic are related primarily to the decline in supply caused by reduced donations during the pandemic rather than increased demand for transfusion of patients with COVID-19. The challenges to ensure a safe blood supply during the pandemic will continue until a vaccine is developed, effective treatments are available, or the virus goes away. If this virus or a similar virus were capable of transmission through blood, it would have a catastrophic impact on the health care system, causing a future public health emergency that would jeopardize the national blood supply. In this article, we identify the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on blood supply adequacy, discuss the public health implications, propose recovery strategies, and present recommendations for preparing for the next disruption in blood supply driven by a public health emergency. (Am J Public Health. Published online ahead of print March 18, 2021: e1–e7. https://doi.org/10.2105/AJPH.2021.306157 )


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