Malawi is a Sub-Saharan African country experiencing the epidemiological transition from predominantly infectious to noncommunicable diseases (NCDs) with dramatically increasing prevalence of lifestyle-related diseases such as obesity, hypertension, and diabetes. Malawi's 2011-2016 Health Sector Strategic Plan included NCDs, and an NCD Control…

An interdisciplinary curriculum unit that used Web GIS mapping to investigate malaria disease patterns and spread in relation to the environment for a high school Advanced Placement Environmental Science course was developed. A feasibility study was conducted to investigate the efficacy of the unit to promote geospatial thinking and reasoning…

Public speculation about bioterrorism and the increasing obesity epidemic are examples of current public health issues that continue to be illuminated in the spotlight. Major public health threats continue to drive the health job market and impact higher education health curricula (e.g., public health, health promotion, community health). Also,…

Background: Millennium Development Goals are the 21st Century worlds' concern to improve human way of life by 2015. In Kenya the Millennium Development Goals for reduction of maternal and child mortality has been recently powered by the beyond zero initiative which started in the year 2014 with the aim of reducing mortality as well as contributing…

Numerous studies have shown that later school start times (SST) are associated with positive student outcomes, including improvements in academic performance, mental and physical health, and public safety. While the benefits of later SST are very well documented in the literature, in practice there is opposition against delaying SST. A major…

The study set out to explore whether local area coordinators (LACs) and their managers view the health role of LACs as an essential component of their work and identify the health-related activities undertaken by LACs in Scotland. A mixed methods cross-sectional phenomenological study involving local authority service managers (n = 25) and LACs (n…

Youth suicide is a global public health problem and some lessons for more effectively preventing it can be found in a perhaps unlikely source: the Golden Gate Bridge. Issues discussed include means restriction and method substitution, the stigma associated with suicide and the consequences of it, myths and misconceptions regarding suicide, and…

Hispanic/Latinos (H/L) are being studied for healthcare disparities research utilizing community-based participatory research (CBPR). CBPR's active participation of community members and researchers suggests improvement in community health. Yet there are no known studies that inductively investigated the lived experience of H/L community leaders…

The perception that college students are coming to campus with more severe psychological concerns than in the past has been empirically supported on college campuses (Benton and others, 2003). Approximately 20 percent of all adolescents have a diagnosable mental health disorder (Kessler and others, 2005), many of which then continue on to college…

The prospect of a threat to one's health or an opportunity for improved health can spark emotional reactions--the fear of an illness or the hope of a healthier life. People are increasingly turning to the Internet to search for information related to such health issues. However, the dizzying amount of online health information--some of it of…

There is little published literature on operational coordination during a real time disaster regardless of the setting. This study describes a university's emergency management plan and its execution in response to a specific natural disaster, the May 8, 2009 "inland hurricane," which was later classified as a "Super Derecho."…

Prevention programmes underpin every child's right to "feel" safe and to "be" safe from all forms of harm. Delivered in schools across the globe, they aim to equip children with knowledge about safety and the skills to seek help early. By drawing upon international prevalence and impact research, as well as the legal, policy…

Obesity is a critical global public health issue. It leads to numerous health conditions that limit the quality and length of life, placing a huge burden on healthcare systems around the world. Scholars believe that the fight against obesity can be won only through multidisciplinary efforts. However, the literature on people's understanding of…

Borrowing the term "translational research" (TR) from medicine, along with some of the ideas and practices that define it, holds promise as a way of linking research more closely to the practice of youth development. However, doing so entails substantial adaptation. TR is more than a new name for applied research. It comprehends the…

The U.S. Surgeon General described college alcohol abuse as the most significant public health concern on university campuses (DHHS, 2007). Social norms have been identified as a strong predictor of college drinking and yet programs based on norms have had limited effectiveness in changing drinking behavior. Other theoretical explanations, such as…