A science impact framework to measure impact beyond journal metrics.

Measuring the impact of public health science or research is important especially when it comes to health outcomes. Achieving the desired health outcomes take time and may be influenced by several contributors, making attribution of credit to any one entity or effort problematic. Here we offer a science impact framework (SIF) for tracing and linking public health science to events and/or actions with recognized impact beyond journal metrics. The SIF was modeled on the Institute of Medicine's (IOM) Degrees of Impact Thermometer, but differs in that SIF is not incremental, not chronological, and has expanded scope. The SIF recognizes five domains of influence: disseminating science, creating awareness, catalyzing action, effecting change and shaping the future (scope differs from IOM). For public health, the goal is to achieve one or more specific health outcomes. What is unique about this framework is that the focus is not just on the projected impact or outcome but rather the effects that are occurring in real time with the recognition that the measurement field is complex, and it takes time for the ultimate outcome to occur. The SIF is flexible and can be tailored to measure the impact of any scientific effort: from complex initiatives to individual publications. The SIF may be used to measure impact prospectively of an ongoing or new body of work (e.g., research, guidelines and recommendations, or technology) and retrospectively of completed and disseminated work, through linking of events using indicators that are known and have been used for measuring impact. Additionally, linking events offers an approach to both tell our story and also acknowledge other players in the chain of events. The value added by science can easily be relayed to the scientific community, policy makers and the public.

Geospatial mapping and resource utilization tool in support of a national smoke-free public housing rule.

OBJECTIVE: To advance public health support for the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development's smoke-free rule, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention collaborated with the Georgia Institute of Technology to develop a geospatial mapping tool. The objective was to create a tool state and local public health agencies could use to tailor smoke-free educational materials and cessation interventions for specific public housing development resident populations. RESULTS: The resulting "Extinguish Tool" includes an interactive map of U.S. public housing developments (PHDs) and healthcare facilities that provides detailed information on individual PHDs, their proximity to existing healthcare facilities, and the demographic characteristics of residents. The tool also estimates the number of PHD residents who smoke cigarettes and calculates crude estimates of the potential economic benefits of providing cessation interventions to these residents. The geospatial mapping tool project serves as an example of a collaborative and innovative public health approach to protecting the health and well-being of the nation's two million public housing residents, including 760,000 children, from the harms of tobacco smoking and secondhand smoke exposure in the places where they live, play, and gather.

Investigation of the estrogenic risk to feral male brown trout (Salmo trutta) in the Shannon International River Basin District of Ireland.

The estrogenic potential of sewage treatment effluents and their receiving waters in the Shannon International River Basin District (SIRBD) of Ireland was investigated. An integrated approach, combining biological and chemical methods, was conducted to assess 11 rivers adjacent to sewage treatment plants (STPs) and their possible interference with the endocrine system of feral brown trout (Salmo trutta). Hepatosomatic index, gonadosomatic index, condition factor, histological (intersexuality) and endocrine (vitellogenin induction) parameters were assessed in a sample size of 10 at each location. The estrogenic burden was determined using an in vitro recombinant yeast assay containing the human estrogen receptor (YES assay). In addition, endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) were quantitatively identified through a selection of pre-concentration techniques combined with chromatographic analysis at or near the selected locations. Chemical analysis of representative site samples identified phthalates and an alkylphenol in water and sediments in µg/L and mg/kg concentrations, respectively. There were no significant difference in somatic indices or the condition factor between upstream control and downstream test sites, and there was no evidence of reproductive alterations or the presence of intersex in studied male brown trout. However, raised vitellogenin (vtg) levels were detected in the blood plasma samples of male brown trout at 8 of the 11 sites. Significant levels were reported at 3 of the positive sites (p ≤ 0.05). In one particular location, vtg induction was observed in 100% of the male brown trout sampled downstream. These findings were supported by the YES assay, where estrogenic activity was detected in the same upstream and downstream sites giving 17ß-estradiol equivalency factor (EEF) values of up to 2.67 ng/L. This study represents an integrated assessment approach, confirming the presence of estrogens in rivers of the SIRBD of Ireland, thus suggesting a cause-effect relationship to prolonged EDC-exposure in fish.