Impact study of tobacco possession law enforcement in Florida.

This study of tobacco possession law enforcement was conducted in four selected counties in Florida, the first state to report statistically significant annual declines in youth tobacco use during the 1990s. The primary objective of this study was to assess the impact of possession enforcement on youth attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors by comparing results of a survey administered in high-enforcement counties with results from low-enforcement counties and by examining the survey results for relationships of tobacco use to perceptions and awareness of laws and enforcement activity. The survey was administered to a sample of 2,088 randomly selected youth, in conjunction with a qualitative study of law enforcement officials reported elsewhere. Findings indicate that possession enforcement, as a component of comprehensive tobacco control, appears to help reduce youth tobacco use and may be a critical component of the most successful youth tobacco prevention program, documented in the previous decade.

Tobacco policy and the role of law enforcement in prevention: the value of understanding context.

The Florida Office of Tobacco Control sponsors evaluations of the effect of its comprehensive youth tobacco prevention initiatives. As part of this evaluation, a quasi-experiment designed to assess the effect of law enforcement on youth tobacco use was conducted. An in-depth qualitative study was a critical component of this research. This study provided a rich description of the context in which law enforcement was implemented. Data collection involved interviews with judges, clerks of court, and selected officials in each of the study counties. Approximately 70 interviews were conducted. Extensive, ongoing computer-assisted analysis complemented the process. Several consistent themes emerged during the research that helped to give contextual meaning to the findings. These themes provided critical insights into the complexity of policies about youth tobacco possession, and the findings helped illuminate the varying contexts in which these interventions were applied.

The credentialing of a population-based health profession: lessons learned from health education certification.

This article summarizes research and issues related to health education certification. Health education's experience with certification provides valuable insight for other public health professions because of the credential's population-based emphasis, its recent development, and its broadly defined cross-cutting skill set. Although data are still emerging on the outcomes of health education certification, most studies indicate that it has had a positive impact across multiple dimensions. Critical to this success has been providing profession-wide opportunities for input, communicating with key stakeholders, establishing an independent credentialing agency, and basing the credential on scientifically and legally defensible competencies that are linked to job responsibilities.

Choosing a route of administration for quadrivalent meningococcal polysaccharide vaccine: intramuscular versus subcutaneous.

A clinical trial was conducted to compare intramuscular (im) with subcutaneous (sc) routes for administration of quadrivalent meningococcal polysaccharide vaccine in 141 adults. Safety assessment showed the im route had reduced erythema (P<.01) and reduced headache on days 1 and 2 (P<.05). Serological testing for serum bactericidal antibody titers against capsular groups A and C did not detect significant differences.

The feasibility and desirability of public health credentialing: a survey of public health leaders.

OBJECTIVES: The goal of this study was to provide insight concerning the potential of credentialing public health workers through an exploratory examination of public health leaders' perceptions. METHODS: Qualitative and quantitative procedures were used. Credentialing issues were identified through the literature and through open-ended interviews with leaders and experts. A 74-item Likert-type survey was used to quantify perceptions. Key informants and survey participants were identified through pertinent organizations. RESULTS: The public health leaders leaned toward consensus on some benefits of and concerns about credentialing. There was no consensus related to a specific form of desired credentialing, although national certification was supported by a plurality. State licensing and an emphasis on the master's in public health (MPH) degree were opposed by large margins. Public health leadership survey results were similar to results of a survey of credentialing experts. CONCLUSIONS: The lack of consensus and the vehemence of some opposing positions indicate that movements toward credentialing should proceed cautiously. However, many of the response patterns indicate that the issue merits further exploration.

Enhancing systems objectives for the year 2000.

In summary, systems objectives would provide an ecological perspective that would help to (1) avoid emphasis on mortality statistics, (2) enable the nation to address a broader range of problems including mental and social dimensions, (3) provide for greater efficiency in meeting the objectives by emphasizing systems that address a broad range of health problems, (4) support continuation of successful programs which are still needed, and (5) facilitate development of programs or responses to health problems with recognition of the great diversity of the physical and social environment where problems exist. Federal public health efficacy could be improved significantly if these systems objectives were incorporated into the nation's health objectives for the year 2000.