Describe how the principles of asepsis be applied in a practice to prevent the spread of infection?

Medical Office Management
Each response should be a minimum of 120 words. APA format. Please cite references.

1.Describe how the principles of asepsis be applied in a practice to prevent the spread of infection? Give an example.

2.You are the medical assistant to an internist. As you are preparing a patient for an exam, the patient describes some symptoms that sound as if they could be part of an STD. What should you say? What should you not say? Explain your position.

3.Describe the purpose of the physician’s office laboratory. Explain its importance.

4.Explain why an office laboratory would be a necessity and how do they contribute to patient care.

5. Explain the role of calories in the diet

6. Explain why the International Classification of Diseases is used

7. Explain the significance of the terms and phrases presented

8. Compare the differences between obstetrics and gynecologic services. Provide examples of each

9. Compare the advantages and disadvantages between cycle billing and monthly billing. Provide an example of an activity that would relate to each type of billing.

Identify the differences between inpatient and outpatient hospital billing and describe the UB-04 hospital claim form

Medical Coding
Please include at least three scholarly articles within your response. Overall response will be formatted according to APA style and the total assignment should be between 4-6 pages, double spaced not including title page and reference page.

Please explain why the following are important for medical billers and coder to understand:

Part 1

1. Explain the components of physician medical billing

2. Identify the differences between inpatient and outpatient hospital billing and describe the UB-04 hospital claim form

3. Discuss Medicare fee schedules, provider reimbursement, fraud, and abuse

4. Explain Medicaid eligibility and benefits and the process of submitting Medicaid claims

Part 2

5. Identify the different components of TRICARE billing and different types of benefits available to active duty members, veterans, and their family members.

6. Explain the importance of the Explanation of Benefits and Electronic Remittance Advice forms.

7. Discuss the reimbursement follow-up, explain the appeals process for reimbursement, and identify refund guidelines.

8. Discuss the history of workers’ compensation and distinguish between federal workers’ compensation and state workers’ compensation.

Please include at least three scholarly articles within your response. Overall response will be formatted according to APA style and the total assignment should be between 3–4 pages, not including title page and reference page.

Describe how alignment between the values of an organization and the values of the nurse impact nurse engagement and patient outcomes

Prepare a 10-minute presentation (10-15 slides, not including title or reference slide) on organizational culture and values.

Describe how alignment between the values of an organization and the values of the nurse impact nurse engagement and patient outcomes.

Discuss how an individual can use effective communication techniques to overcome workplace challenges, encourage collaboration across groups, and promote effective problem solving. Incorporate how system needs and the culture of health may influence the outcomes. How does this relate to health promotion and disease prevention in the larger picture?

Identify a specific instance from your own professional experience in which the values of the organization and the values of the individual nurses did or did not align. Describe the impact this had on nurse engagement and patient outcomes.

While APA style format is not required,solid academic writing is expected and in-text citations and references should be presented using APA documentation guidelines, which can be found in the APA Style Guide.

This assignment uses a rubric. Please review the rubric prior to beginning the assignment.

Describe the role of policy makers in reducing ethical concerns within a specified population

here are 3 sectiobs, each needs to be 2 pages long

MPH Public Health program.

Unit I Assignment Choose a magazine, journal, or peer-reviewed article to critique regarding a public health issue. Use databases within the CSU Online Library, or use another source that contains peer-reviewed articles. The writing assignment you submit must meet the following requirements:  be at least two pages in length (not including the cover and reference pages),  identify the main topic/question,  identify the author’s intended audience,  a critique of the article, and  a formulation of your own conclusions on the topic. Remember to format this, and all written assignments, using APA Style. Information about accessing the Blackboard Grading Rubric for this assignment is provided below.

Unit II Assignment Research an epidemiology study and describe whether or not the recommendations for the study have the potential to positively impact population health. Discuss the impact that the recommendations will have on governmental decisions regarding public health. The writing assignment you submit must meet the following requirements:  be at least two pages in length, (not including the cover and reference pages),  identify the main topic/questions, and  a formulation of your own conclusions on the topic. Remember to format this, and all written assignments, using APA Style. Information about accessing the Blackboard Grading Rubric for this assignment is provided below.

Unit III Assignment Research a public health ethical concern. Explain the societal impact that such a concern has on population health. Describe the role of policy makers in reducing ethical concerns within a specified population. The writing assignment you submit must meet the following requirements: PUH 5301, Public Health Concepts 3  be at least two pages in length, (not including the cover and reference pages),  identify the main topic/questions, and  a formulation of your own conclusions on the topic. Remember to format this, and all written assignments, using APA Style. Information about accessing the Blackboard Grading Rubric for this assignment is provided below.

Discuss the symptoms and cause of fibrocystic breasts

Will need minimum of 300 words, APA Style, double spaced, times new roman, font 12, and Include: (3 references within years 2015-2018) with intext citations.

t’s not at all uncommon to have fibrocystic breasts. More than half of women experience fibrocystic breast changes at some point in their lives. In fact, medical professionals have stopped using the term “fibrocystic breast disease” and now simply refer to “fibrocystic breasts” or “fibrocystic breast changes” because having fibrocystic breasts isn’t really a disease. Breast changes categorized as fibrocystic are considered normal.

Discussion:

1. Discuss the symptoms and cause of fibrocystic breasts

2. Diagnosis and treatment of women who present with fibrocystic breast.

Include patient education, suggested lifestyle changes and recommended self-management

Discuss any encounters you have had with patients who have had breast concerns

Will need minimum of 300 words, APA Style, double spaced, times new roman, font 12, and Include: (3 references within years 2015-2018) with intext citations.

Women often present to the primary care setting with a variety of breast complaints. Many of these are benign conditions but can be concerning to the patient. Breast complaints are common across the lifespan, and it is imperative for the nurse practitioner to be comfortable in assessing, diagnosing, and treating breast complaints.

Discussion:

1. Discuss any encounters you have had with patients who have had breast concerns. (USE EXAMPLE: PATIENT WITH FIBROCYSTIC BREASTS).

2. Review the evidence-based guidelines for evaluating and treating breast conditions.

3. How did you approach the assessment and the evaluation of breast complaints seen in the clinic setting?

A patient recovering from shingles presents with tenderness and sensitivity to the upper back. He states it is bothersome to put a shirt on most days. This patient has end stage renal disease (ESRD) and is scheduled to have hemodialysis tomorrow but states that he does not know how he can lie in a recliner for 3 hours feeling this uncomfortable. What will be the PMHNP’s priority?

Question 20

A patient recovering from shingles presents with tenderness and sensitivity to the upper back. He states it is bothersome to put a shirt on most days. This patient has end stage renal disease (ESRD) and is scheduled to have hemodialysis tomorrow but states that he does not know how he can lie in a recliner for 3 hours feeling this uncomfortable. What will be the PMHNP’s priority?

a) order herpes simplex virus (HSV) antibody testing

b) Order a blood urea nitrogen (BUN) and creatinine STAT

c) Prescribe lidocaine 5%

d) Prescribe hydromorphone (dilaudid) 2mg

Question 21

The PMHNP prescribed a patient lamotrigine (Lamictal), 25 mg by mouth daily, for nerve pain 6 months ago. The patient suddenly presents to the office with the complaint that the medication is no longer working and complains of increased pain. What action will the PMHNP most likely take?

a) Increase the dose of lamotrigine (Lamictal) to 25mg twice daily

b) Ask if the pt has been taking the medication as prescribed

c) Order gabapentin, 100mg TID because lamotrigine is no longer working for this patient

d) Order a CBC to assess for an infection

Question 22

An elderly woman with a hx of alzheimer’s disease, coronary artery disease, and myocardial infarction had a fall at home 3 months ago that resulted in her receiving an open reduction internal fixation. While assessing this patient, the pmhnp is made aware that the patient continues to experience mild to moderate pain. What is the pmhnp most likely to do?

a) order an X-ray because it is possible that she dislocated her hip

b) order ibuprofen because she mayneed long term treatment and chronic pain is not uncommon

c) Order naproxen because she may havarthritis and chronic pain is not uncommon

d) Order morphine and physical therapy

Question 23

The PMHNP is assessing a 49-year-old male with a history of depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), alcoholism with malnutrition, diabetes mellitus type 2, and hypertension. His physical assessment is unremarkable with the exception of peripheral edema bilaterally to his lower extremities and a chief complaint of pain with numbness and tingling to each leg 5/10. The PMHNP starts this patient on a low dose of doxepin (Sinequan). What is the next action that must be taken by the PMHNP?

a) Orders liver function tests

b) Educate the patient on avoiding grapefruits when taking this medication

c) Encourage this patient to keep fluids to 1500ml/day until the swelling subside

d) Order BUN/Creatinine test

Question 24

The PMHNP is evaluating a 30-year-old female patient who states that she notices pain and a drastic change in mood before the start of her menstrual cycle. The patient states that she has tried diet and lifestyle changes but nothing has worked. What will the PMHNP most likely do?

a) Prescribe estrin FE 24 birth control

b) Prescribe Ibuprofen 800mg every 8 hours as needed for pain

c) Prescribe desvenlafaxine (Pristiq) 50mg daily

d) Prescribe Risperdal 2mg TID

Question 25

A patient with chronic back pain has been prescribed a serotonin-norepinephrine reuptake inhibitor (SNRI). How does the PMHNP describe the action of SNRIs on the inhibition of pain to the patient?

a) “the SNRI can increase noradrenergic neurotransmission in the descending spinal pathway to the dorsal horn”

b) “the SNRI can decrease noradrenergic neurotransmission in the descending spinal pathway to the dorsal horn”

c) “the SNRI can reduce brain atrophy by slowing the gray matter loss in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex”

d) “the SNRI can increase neurotransmission to descending neurons”

Question 26

A patient with fibromyalgia and major depression needs to be treated for symptoms of pain. Which is the PMHNP most likely to prescribe for this patient?

a) Venlafaxine (Effexor)

b) Duloxetine (Cymbalta)

c) Clozapine (Clozaril)

d) Phenytoin (Dilantin)

Question 27

The PMHNP prescribes gabapentin (Neurontin) for a patient’s chronic pain. How does the PMHNP anticipate the drug to work?

a) It will bind to the alpha-2-delta ligand subunit of voltage-sensitive calcium channels

b) It will induce synaptic changes, including sprouting

c) It will act on the presynaptic neuron to trigger sodium influx

d) It will Inhibit activity of dorsal horn neurons to suppress body input from reaching the brain

Question 28

Mrs. Rosen is a 49-year-old patient who is experiencing fibro-fog. What does the PMHNP prescribe for Mrs. Rosen to improve this condition?

a) Venlafaxine (Effexor)

b) Armodafinil (Nuvigil)

c) Bupropion (Wellbutrin)

d) All of the above

Question 29

The PMHNP is caring for a patient with fibromyalgia. Which second-line treatment does the PMHNP select that may be effective for managing this patient’s pain?

a) Methylphenidate (Ritalin)

b) Viloxazine (Vivalan)

c) Imipramine (Tofranil)

d) Bupropion (Wellbutrin)

Question 30

The PMHNP is attempting to treat a patient’s chronic pain by having the agent bind the open channel conformation of VSCCs to block those channels with a “use-dependent” form of inhibition. Which agent will the PMHNP most likely select?

a) Pregabalin (Lyrica)

b) Duloxetine (Cymbalta)

c) Modafinil (Provigil)

d) Atomoxetine (Strattera)

Question 31

A patient with irritable bowel syndrome reports chronic stomach pain. The PMHNP wants to prescribe the patient an agent that will cause irrelevant nociceptive inputs from the pain to be ignored and no longer perceived as painful. Which drug will the PMHNP prescribe?

a) Pregabalin (Lyrica)

b) Gabapentin (Neurontin)

c) Duloxetine (Cymbalta)

d) B and C

Question 32

The PMHNP wants to use a symptom-based approach to treating a patient with fibromyalgia. How does the PMHNP go about treating this patient?

a) Prescribing the patient an agent that ignores the painful symptoms by initiating a reaction known as “fibro-fog”

b) Targeting the patient’s symptoms with anticonvulsants that inhibits gray matter loss in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex

c) Mzatching the patient’s symptoms with the malfunctioning brain circuits and neurotransimitters that might mediate those symptoms

d) None of the above

Question 33

The PMHNP is working with the student to care for a patient with diabetic peripheral neuropathic pain. The student asks the PMHNP why SSRIs are not consistently useful in treating this particular patient’s pain. What is the best response by the PMHNP?

a) “SSRIs only increase norepinephrine levels”

b) “SSRIs only increase serotonin levels”

c) “SSRIs only increase serotonin and norepinephrine levels”

d) “SSRIs do not increase serotonin or norepinephrine levels”

Question 34

A patient with gambling disorder and no other psychiatric comorbidities is being treated with pharmacological agents. Which drug is the PMHNP most likely to prescribe?

a) Antipsychotics

b) Lithium

c) SSRI

d) Naltrexone

Question 35

Kevin is an adolescent who has been diagnosed with kleptomania. His parents are interested in seeking pharmacological treatment. What does the PMHNP tell the parents regarding his treatment options?

a) “Naltrexone may be an appropriate option to discuss”

b) “there are many medicine options that treat Kleptomania”

c) “Kevin may need to be prescribed antipsychotics to treat this illness”

d) “Lithium has proven effective for treating kleptomania”

Question 36

Which statement best describes a pharmacological approach to treating patients for impulsive aggression?

a) Anticonvulsant mood stabilizers can eradicate limbic irritability

b) Atypical antipsychotics can increase subcortical dopaminergic stimulation

c) Stimulants can be used to decrease frontal inhibition

d) Opioid antagonists can be used to reduce drive

Question 37

A patient with hypersexual disorder is being assessed for possible pharmacologic treatment. Why does the PMHNP prescribe an antiandrogen for this patient?

a) It will prevent feelings of euphoria

b) It will amplify impulse control

c) It will block testosterone

d) It will redirect the patient to think about other things

Question 38

Mrs. Kenner is concerned that her teenage daughter spends too much time on the Internet. She inquires about possible treatments for her daughter’s addiction. Which response by the PMHNP demonstrates understanding of pharmacologic approaches for compulsive disorders?

a) “Compulsive internet use can be treated similarly to how we treat people with substance use disorders”

b) “internet addiction is treated with drugs that help block the tension/arousal state your daughter experiences”

c) “When it comes to internet addiction, we prefer to treat patients with pharmaceuticals rather than psychosocial methods”

d) “there are no evidence-based treatments for internet addiction, but there are behavioral therapies your daughter can try”

Question 39

Mr. Peterson is meeting with the PMHNP to discuss healthier dietary habits. With a BMI of 33, Mr. Peterson is obese and needs to modify his food intake. “Sometimes I think I’m addicted to food the way some people are addicted to drugs”, he says. Which statement best describes the neurobiological parallels between food and drug addiction?

a) There is decreased activation of the prefrontal cortex

b) There is increased sensation of the reactive reward system

c) There is reduced activation of regions that process palatability

d) There are amplified reward circuits that activate upon consumption

Question 40

The PMHNP is caring for a patient who reports excessive arousal at nighttime. What could the PMHNP use for a time-limited duration to shift the patient’s brain from a hyperactive state to a sleep state?

a) Histamine 2 receptor antagonist

b) Benzodiazepines

c) Stimulants

d) Caffeine

Question 41

The PMHNP is caring for a patient who experiences too much overstimulation and anxiety during daytime hours. The patient agrees to a pharmacological treatment but states, “I don’t want to feel sedated or drowsy from the medicine.” Which decision made by the PMHNP demonstrates proper knowledge of this patient’s symptoms and appropriate treatment options?

a) Avoiding prescribing the patient a drug that blocks H1 receptors

b) Prescribing the patient a drug that acts on H2 receptors

c) Stopping the patient from taking medicine that unblocks H1 receptors

d) None of the above

List three substantive questions you might expect to be asked in an interview for the job, and summarize your answers.

-APA Format.

-Introduction or abstract page

-Summary or Conclusion page

-Four pages minimum, no including Introduction or abstract, summary or conclusion, and Bibliography pages

-It is completely unacceptable to Copy and Paste from the Internet, or other resources

-Bibliography has to be in APA Format, minimum 3, no more than 3 years old.

The following position is advertised on a career Web site: RN I Surgical Job Travel Involved: None. Job Type: Full-Time. Job Level: Minimum Education Required: Associate Degree Skills: Category: Nursing FTE: 0.9. Position Summary: Description/Purpose of Position: Responsible for providing patient care based upon the nursing process; being effectively involved with maintaining the standard of care for assigned patients through assessment, planning, implementation, and evaluation. Oversees and guides employees who are under your supervision. Requirements Description/Purpose of Position: Responsible for providing patient care based upon the nursing process; being effectively involved with maintaining the standard of care for assigned patients through assessment, planning, implementation, and evaluation. Oversees and guides employees that are under your supervision. Minimum Qualifications: Education: Graduate of an accredited school of Nursing. License/Certification: Current RN license in the state of XXX. Current BCLS Certification. Other: Must be able to demonstrate the knowledge and skills necessary to provide care/service appropriate to the age of the patients served on the assigned unit/department. Note: An RN graduate is a nurse who has completed a course of study at a school of nursing and is eligible for the NCLEX. The RN graduate performs directly under the supervision of the charge nurse or RN designee.

1. List three substantive questions you might expect to be asked in an interview for the job, and summarize your answers.

2. Describe three to five ways in which you could prepare for the interview to make the most positive impression.

3. Be sure to describe what you would wear and what material you would bring with you.

Your best friend, Lindsey, and you are working together in the surgical ICU. Often you cover for her when she goes to lunch or on breaks. You notice that often her clients complain of being in pain, even though she has told you that she medicated them right before she left the unit. You also notice that she appears to be very jumpy and short-tempered and a bit disheveled when she comes to work. You are suspicious that she is using the medications that she says she is giving to her clients.

1. What should you do first?

2. What might be the consequences if you decide to do nothing?

Go to The Community Guide website at The Guide to Community Preventive Services (The Community Guide) and review the intervention strategies used to reduce the burden of disease in that community or population

Burden of Disease

Prevention strategies must account for the diversity of the population. Understanding how communities consume health information and access health services may greatly contribute to the prevention of disease within a community.

For this assignment, you will be required to consider how access to health information may contribute to the overall health of a community. You will be required to consider how to make prevention messages more effective and widespread.

Read the following case study from your textbook:

Case 10: The Strategies to Overcome and Prevent Obesity Alliance

Then, perform the following tasks to complete this assignment:

Go to The Community Guide website at The Guide to Community Preventive Services (The Community Guide) and review the intervention strategies used to reduce the burden of disease in that community or population.

Discuss these strategies in your paper and provide recommendations for improving upon those strategies.

Review relevant policies that impact your chosen geographic location and the health of the residents in this area. You may search for philanthropic organizations in your area that focus on health as a part of their mission. Often times, these organizations review and analyze health policies for your area. Examples of such philanthropic organizations are United Way, Blue Cross Blue Shield, and Public Health Institutes.

Identify some of the local champions for health policy or health issues in your selected area. Discuss how these local champions have been effective in advocating for change in your selected area or location.

the research and critical thinking to describe a contemporary drug use issue, including legislation, policies, messages, attitudes, affected populations and prevalence of use

the research and critical thinking to describe a contemporary drug use issue, including legislation, policies, messages, attitudes, affected populations and prevalence of use.t

There is a example of the assignment attached.

A. Drug Use Issues

Choose a current issue in the news or new or proposed legislation regarding a drug discussed in Chapters 1-4. For example, the city of San Diego decided to allow both cultivation and distribution of recreational marijuana. In another example, the federal Department of Health and Human Services is investigating why insurance companies make opioids more accessible than other pain treatments by making opioids less expensive.

Use what you learned from the article/news report, from Chapters 1-4 in your textbook and from at least two additional academic sources to answer the following 8 questions. You need to obtain information from your additional sources to be able to answer these questions and not just use the one article you chose.

1. ARTICLE/NEWS REPORT: Give a very brief summary of what the article says.

2. MESSAGES:

A.What messages is this article/report giving?

b. What conflicting or mixed messages are being given about this issue to the public?

3. RESTRICTIVE LEGISLATION: What restrictive legislation or policies exist regarding this issue? (Cite your source)

4. ATITUDES: What are the present-day attitudes related to this issue? (Cite your source)

POPULATIONS: See handout below on how to report on populations. (Cite your source)

a. Does this issue have a greater impact on certain population?

b. Which ones (age, region, ethnicity, socioeconomic level or other)?

5. PREVALENCE: What is the prevalence of use of this substance (most recent year available) in your city or state? You will need to look up the prevalence. See handout on how to report on prevalence, below. (Cite your source)

6. VIOLENCE: Is this substance associated with violence or crime (pharmacological, economically compulsive or systemic – see pages 38-39 of text book)? (Cite your source)

7. OPINION: What is your opinion on this issue and why? (For example, do you agree with the proposed legislation or policy change? What do you think about increasing or decreasing access to the substance?) You do not need any citations here but you may include them if you want.

FORMAT: Use these headings to make sure you don’t leave anything out (See sample post)

1. ARTICLE/NEWS REPORT:

2. MESSAGES:

3. RESTRICTIVE LEGISLATION:

4. ATITUDES:

5. POPULATIONS:

6. PREVALENCE:

7. VIOLENCE:

8. OPINION:

Sources:

· Because this is college, you need to use at least TWO academic sources: from government reports or scholarly/peer-reviewed journal articles. This will give you experience doing academic research. You can use the course textbook or other sources as additional sources, but they will not count as one of the two required sources. Read the handout (below) on scholarly sources.

· Use the NU library to find your sources. If you don’t know how, contact the NU library for help.

· Use your OWN WORDS (e.g., do not cut and paste from an article).

· Do NOT use any quotations. Paraphrase (use your own words) to report the information.

· Use in-text citations. Write the source of your information at the end of the applicable sentences using APA 6th edition format. This will give you practice using APA to cite references.

· List all the references in APA 6th Edition format at the end of your post in a References list.

NOTE: If you are new to APA, I recommend that you use an online citation builder such as APA Style Central http://apastylecentral.apa.org.nuls.idm.oclc.org/ or the NU library database to automatically format your references correctly. You can also get help from the Writing Center https://nu.mywconline.com/ and the NU library on how to use APA to cite references.

READ THE DISCUSSION RUBRIC BEFORE YOU START. COMPARE WHAT YOU WRITE WITH THE RUBRIC. READ THE SAMPLE POST BEFORE YOU START.

IMPORTANT: Do NOT submit your first draft. First, read what you wrote out loud. Check for:

– Missing words or letters

– Missing or misplaced periods, apostrophes, commas

– Incomplete sentences

– 2 or more sentences strung together that should be made into separate sentences

– Putting something is past tense that should be in present tense or vice versa

– Plural words that should be singular or singular words that should be plural

– Making the verb and subject match (plural or tense)

AFTER you make these corrections, then post your discussion.

Then post 2 responses to other student posts, at least 5-6 full sentences long. You do not need to include any citations in your responses, but you can if you would like.

HOW TO REPORT ON PREVALENCE AND POPULATIONS:

Those of you who are not majoring in public health may not have had experience reporting about prevalence or populations. When you are asked to report the prevalence of use of a certain drug, it means something specific. You will need to look it up. Below are some sources where you can find this information.

For statistics on drug, alcohol or tobacco use in your city, county, state and region, or nationwide:

· The University of Michigan Monitoring the Future Study http://monitoringthefuture.org – Results of an annual survey of adolescent drug use appear in mid-December of each year.

· The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) http://samhsa.gov

· Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/drug-use-illegal.htm

· Healthy People 2020 – Healthy People 2020 (select the topic area of interest, e.g., substance abuse or tobacco.)- https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/data-search/Search-the-Data#topic-area=3500

What is Prevalence? https://www.nimh.nih.gov/health/statistics/what-is-prevalence.shtml

· Prevalence is the proportion of a population who have a specific characteristic in a given time period.

How is Prevalence Estimated?

· To estimate prevalence, researchers randomly select a sample (smaller group) from the entire population they want to describe. Using random selection methods increases the chances that the characteristics of the sample will be representative of (similar to) the characteristics of the population.

· For a representative sample, prevalence is the number of people in the sample with the characteristic of interest, divided by the total number of people in the sample.

# of people in sample with characteristic

Prevalence = ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━

Total # of people in sample

· To ensure a selected sample is representative of an entire population, statistical ‘weights’ may be applied. Weighting the sample mathematically adjusts the sample characteristics to match with the target population.

How is Prevalence Reported?

· Prevalence may be reported as a percentage (5%, or 5 people out of 100), or as the number of cases per 10,000 or 100,000 people. The way prevalence is reported depends on how common the characteristic is in the population.

· There are several ways to measure and report prevalence depending on the timeframe of the estimate.

o Point prevalence is the proportion of a population that has the characteristic at a specific point in time.

o Period prevalence is the proportion of a population that has the characteristic at any point during a given time period of interest. “Past 12 months” is a commonly used period.

o Lifetime prevalence is the proportion of a population who, at some point in life has ever had the characteristic.

How is Prevalence Different from Incidence?

· Incidence is a measure of the number of new cases of a characteristic that develop in a population in a specified time period; whereas prevalence is the proportion of a population who have a specific characteristic in a given time period, regardless of when they first developed the characteristic.

· Researchers may study incident (new) cases of illnesses to help identify causes and prevent additional cases. Incidence is often reported for infectious diseases.

I want to point out an excellent example of reporting on prevalence from one of the Discussion 1 posts:

The following is a good example of how to report on prevalence:

MDMA is most commonly used by teens and young adults, although the overall percentage of the population who have used in their lifetime is relatively small. In a 2002 study, 80-82% of 10th-12th grade students said that they did not condone the use of MDMA, and ~9% of 12th graders had used the drug in the past year (Landry, M., 2002, p. 164, 166). Recent numbers suggest that this rate has dropped significantly, with the 2016 NIDA survey reporting that only 2.7% of 12th graders had used the drug in the past year. In 2014, approximately 17 million people over the age of 12 reported using the drug in their lifetime (NIDA, 2017)

HOW TO REPORT ON POPULATIONS: (see example below)

MDMA is used mostly by young adults between the ages of 18-25, and is more commonly used by Whites than Hispanics or Blacks. While at its peak in the 1990’s and early 2000’s it was thought to be used predominantly by men, some studies found that women were more likely to use the drug in certain geographic regions (Wu, P. et al.). It is frequently used at electronic music festivals (raves) and in the nightclub scene, and research shows that it is more commonly used by homosexual men and women than heterosexuals (NIDA, 2017). Between 1980 and 2000, MDMA was mainly used by middle-class Whites, with the western United States showing the highest usage; however, due to increases in availability, other demographics appear to be catching up (Bahora, Sterk & Elifson, 2009).

ACADEMIC SOURCES

An important step in writing a term paper or in completing many assignments includes finding information in periodicals. In general, information in periodicals is more timely, current, and up-to-date, than information in books. When professors and/or librarians speak of the periodical literature, they may use several different terms, such as, magazines, serials, or scholarly journals.

In order to look for the right kind of information in the right places, you first need to understand the assignment. Does your professor want you to look for papers in scholarly journals, or will recent articles from substantive, general interest or popular magazines be more appropriate? Once you understand the assignment, you need to know how to distinguish one kind of periodical literature from another. Here are some rough guidelines:

• A serial or periodical is any publication that appears at regular intervals (weekly, monthly, quarterly, and annually) and is intended to continue indefinitely. Magazines, journals, newspapers, yearbooks, proceedings, and indexes are all serials.

• Magazines are commercial serial publications intended for any of a wide variety of readers. Some magazines provide news and general information to a popular audience, while others are aimed at professionals in various fields.

• Newspapers are commercial periodicals that are issued daily, weekly or biweekly, featuring cover age of news and current events as well as opinion and advertising. Newspapers seek to inform, explain, influence and entertain readers. Some papers such as the New York Times, USA Today or the Gainesville Sun target the general public, while others aim for a more defined audience.

Scholarly vs. Popular Periodicals

GEORGE A. SMATHERS LIBRARIES

August 2007

Journals, or scholarly, scientific journals, are periodicals generally published by an institution, professional association or learned society, and contain articles that disseminate current information on research and developments in particular subject fields. Before an editor of a journal publishes a manuscript, the editor and a team of specialists on the journal editorial board examine the manuscript carefully, to be sure that the article will contribute to the knowledge of the field. Because of the rigorous evaluation process, these publications are also referred to as refereed or peer-reviewed journals.

Sources of information

For statistics on drug, alcohol or tobacco use in your city, county, state and region, or nationwide:

· The University of Michigan Monitoring the Future Study http://monitoringthefuture.org – Results of an annual survey of adolescent drug use appear in mid-December of each year.

· The National Survey on Drug Use and Health (NSDUH) http://samhsa.gov

· Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – https://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/drug-use-illegal.htm

Healthy People 2020 – Healthy People 2020 (select the topic area of interest, e.g., substance abuse or tobacco.)- https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/data-search/Search-the-Data#topic-area=3500