scholarly journals Status report - Geographic retail food environment measures for use in public health

2017 ◽  
Vol 37 (10) ◽  
pp. 357-362 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ahalya Mahendra ◽  
Jane Y. Polsky ◽  
Éric Robitaille ◽  
Marc Lefebvre ◽  
Tina McBrien ◽  
...  

The Association of Public Health Epidemiologists in Ontario (APHEO) Core Indicators Work Group standardizes definitions and calculation methods for over 120 public health indicators to enhance accurate and standardized community health status reporting across public health units in Ontario. The Built Environment Subgroup is a multi-disciplinary group made up of planners, researchers, policy analysts, registered dietitians, geographic information systems (GIS) analysts and epidemiologists. The Subgroup selected and operationalized a suite of objective, standardized indicators intended to help public health units and regional health authorities assess their community retail food environments. The Subgroup proposed three indicators that use readily available data sources and GIS tools to characterize geographic access to various types of retail food outlets within neighbourhoods in urban settings. This article provides a status report on the development of these food environment indicators.

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Antonio Lastra ◽  
Jaime Botello ◽  
Alejandro Pinilla ◽  
Jesús Canora ◽  
Juan Sánchez ◽  
...  

Abstract This study analyzes the presence and dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 in sewage sanitation systems in the Madrid region. The statistical results and data generated are presented daily via a platform as a tool for the early detection of SARS-CoV-2 and its spread based on the WBE (wastewater-based epidemiological) approach. The number of sampled points amounts to a total of 289 sampling points in terms of SARS-CoV-2 concentration that collects over six million and a half inhabitants’ discharges. The project was developed by Canal de Isabel II, the water utility company from Madrid. The research evaluates the correlation found between SARS-CoV-2 concentration in wastewater and the following public health indicators: incidence rate, reported active cases and COVID-19 hospitalization data (regular hospitalization and ICU admission cases).SARS-CoV-2 presence and dynamics in wastewater show a strong connection with both 14-day incidence rates with active infection and reported COVID-19 hospitalizations. A lag varying from 3 to 8 days between wastewater presence and hospitalizations is explained because the infection is found in the feces of patients before symptom onset. The resulting data are available for consultancy on the company’s website (named VIGÍA project) as well as on the regional government’s websites.The results have already been useful to anticipate the second and third COVID-19 waves in Madrid. Information is shared daily with health authorities for consultancy and decision-making. The results are available as an aggregation for the entire region and for each sewershed.


2020 ◽  
Vol 26 (3) ◽  
pp. 698-720
Author(s):  
E.V. Lobkova ◽  
A.S. Petrichenko

Subject. This article studies the mechanism of State health regulation and methods of management of efficiency of regional healthcare institutions. Objectives. The article aims to analyze the territorial health system in the context of the urgent need to optimize budget expenditures and address public health problems, as well as develop directions to improve the effectiveness of the regional health system of the Krasnoyarsk Krai. Methods. For the study, we used the method of index numbers and calculation of dynamics indicators using official statistics data. Results. We have developed and now present a system of indicators of regional health efficiency assessment, focused mainly on public health indicators and quality of medical services. We also offer our own version of the Luenberger observer modification adapted to the objectives of the regional health system analysis. Conclusions and Relevance. The article concludes that it is necessary to optimize the regional health system using the parameters of medical and social efficiency of the system. The proposed approach to assessing the effectiveness of regional health system can be used as a mechanism to develop recommendations for the management of the network of medical and prophylactic institutions of the region.


Author(s):  
Ting Zhang ◽  
Bo Huang

Outside of western countries, the study of the local food environment and evidence for its association with dietary behavior is limited. The aim of this paper was to examine the association between the local retail food environment and consumption of fruit and vegetables (FV) among adults in Hong Kong. Local retail food environment was measured by density of different types of retail food outlets (grocery stores, convenience stores, and fast food restaurants) within a 1000 m Euclidean buffer around individual’s homes using a geographic information system (GIS). The Retail Food Environment Index (RFEI) was calculated based on the relative density of fast-food restaurants and convenience stores to grocery stores. Logistic regressions were performed to examine associations using cross-sectional data of 1977 adults (18 years or older). Overall, people living in an area with the highest RFEI (Q4, >5.76) had significantly greater odds of infrequent FV consumption (<7 days/week) after covariates adjustment (infrequent fruit consumption: OR = 1.36, 95% CI 1.04–1.78; infrequent vegetable consumption: OR = 1.72, 95% CI 1.11–2.68) in comparison to the lowest RFEI (Q1, <2.25). Highest density of fast food restaurants (Q4, >53) was also significantly associated with greater odds of infrequent fruit consumption (<7 days/week) (unadjusted model: OR = 1.34, 95% CI 1.04–1.73), relative to lowest density of fast food restaurants (Q1, <13). No significant association of density of grocery stores or convenience stores was observed with infrequent FV consumption regardless of the covariates included in the model. Our results suggest that the ratio of fast-food restaurants and convenience stores to grocery stores near people’s home is an important environmental factor in meeting fruit and vegetable consumption guidelines. “Food swamps” (areas with an abundance of unhealthy foods) rather than “food deserts” (areas where there is limited access to healthy foods) seems to be more of a problem in Hong Kong’s urban areas. We advanced international literature by providing evidence in a non-western setting.


Obesity ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 26 (6) ◽  
pp. 1063-1071 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mary T. Gorski Findling ◽  
Julia A. Wolfson ◽  
Eric B. Rimm ◽  
Sara N. Bleich

2011 ◽  
Vol 25 (S1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Diego Rose ◽  
Lauren Futrell Dunaway ◽  
Adriana Dornelles ◽  
Keelia O'Malley ◽  
J. Nicholas Bodor ◽  
...  

2019 ◽  
Vol 29 (Supplement_4) ◽  
Author(s):  
A Scohy ◽  
B Devleesschauwer ◽  
F Renard

Abstract Issue Monitoring population health is crucial for policymakers. In Belgium, health monitoring only existed at regional level, with no integrated view at country level. Policy/tool The Health Status Report (HSR) project developed a tool for centralizing key health indicators. The HSR aims to support policymakers in multiple ways: as a ’warning signal’, by contributing to the planning of health policies, and as an assessment tool for those policies. Rather than being exhaustive, the HSR selects key indicators to highlight important needs. These indicators have been identified through literature and consultations with experts and stakeholders. Topics include life and health expectancies, mortality, morbidity, and lifestyles, with an important focus on socioeconomic inequalities. Good results and health gaps are underlined with international comparisons, trend analyses, and comparisons with reference values. By disaggregating the data by sex, age, geographic level or socio-economic level, specific health needs are identified. Results The main outcome of the project is a continuously updated website: www.healthybelgium.be. The report highlighted that, although the Belgian health status is rather good, there is room for improvement: for some indicators Belgium lags behind other European countries; regional disparities remain important, with most indicators revealing a better health status in Flanders than in Brussels and Wallonia. Socioeconomic disparities also remain very important, and for some indicators even tend to worsen. Comparing the Belgian health status to that of the EU-15 results in more severe conclusions than in international reports. Conclusions We developed a new tool to support public health policy in Belgium through benchmarking and trend and disparity analyses of several health indicators. The tool will be expanded in the next years, integrating for instance the results of the Belgian national burden of disease study. Key messages We developed an online health status monitoring tool to inform policymakers. The rather good health status hides important regional and socioeconomic disparities in Belgium.


Author(s):  
Viju Raghupathi ◽  
Wullianallur Raghupathi

The authors use a health analytics approach to investigate the relationship between information and communication technology (ICT) and public health at a country level. The research uses the ICT factors of accessibility, usage, quality, affordability, trade, and applications, as well as the public delivery indicators of adolescent fertility rate, child immunization for DPT, child immunization for measles, tuberculosis detection rate, life expectancy, adult female mortality rate, and adult male mortality rate. ICT data was collected from the International Telecommunication Union ICT Indicator database. The public health data was collected from the World Bank website. Results of the analytics indicate that ICT factors are positively associated with some public health indicators. Nearly all of the ICT factors are positively associated with the public health indicators of immunization rates, TB detection rates, and life expectancy. The association with adult mortality is negative, which is also favorable. However, the association of ICT with fertility rate is negative, which is an unfavorable effect. These results offer insight into the importance of understanding the positive and adverse impacts of ICT on public health so as to guide national policy decisions in the future.


2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 ◽  
pp. 1-16 ◽  
Author(s):  
Adele Houghton ◽  
Jessica Austin ◽  
Abby Beerman ◽  
Clayton Horton

Climate change represents a significant and growing threat to population health. Rural areas face unique challenges, such as high rates of vulnerable populations; economic uncertainty due to their reliance on industries that are vulnerable to climate change; less resilient infrastructure; and lower levels of access to community and emergency services than urban areas. This article fills a gap in public health practice by developing climate and health environmental public health indicators for a local public health department in a rural area. We adapted the National Environmental Public Health Tracking Network’s framework for climate and health indicators to a seven-county health department in Western Kentucky. Using a three-step review process, we identified primary climate-related environmental public health hazards for the region (extreme heat, drought, and flooding) and a suite of related exposure, health outcome, population vulnerability, and environmental vulnerability indicators. Indicators that performed more poorly at the county level than at the state and national level were defined as “high vulnerability.” Six to eight high vulnerability indicators were identified for each county. The local health department plans to use the results to enhance three key areas of existing services: epidemiology, public health preparedness, and community health assessment.


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