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L Dundes

Publications and source records attributed to L Dundes.

3 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2001

A mail survey of United States hematologists and oncologists: a comparison of business reply versus stamped return envelopes.

Mailed surveys are a popular means of obtaining data on large populations. In July 1999 a mail survey was conducted among 3000 randomly selected members of the American Society of Hematology to assess their approach to diagnosis and treatment of polycythemia vera. Because the researchers and the study population are members of the same professional organization with a vested interest in the results, we anticipated that the advantages of return stamped postage seen in previous studies would be less significant. The response rate for stamped return envelopes was 38% versus 32% for business reply envelopes. This statistically significant difference (P =.0005) of six percentage points is comparable to previous research. Excluding labor, the total cost per returned survey was $2.62 for business reply envelopes versus $1.82 for stamped return envelopes. We conclude that stamped return envelopes are a more effective and cost-efficient means of procuring data from physician specialists.

Compliance↗
PubMed2001

Scores and grades: a sampling of how college students and food safety professionals interpret restaurant inspection results.

Controversy surrounds the use of posted restaurant inspection scores and grades. There is much debate about how well a score or grade conveys risks to potential diners, and questions remain about how the public interprets posted scores and grades, regardless of how they are derived. To determine how such scores and grades are perceived, the authors surveyed a sample of Maryland college students and food safety professionals about what a posted inspection score of 86 means and what a letter grade of C means. There was no clear consensus about the meaning of the scores and grades described in the surveys. The majority of respondents felt that a restaurant should be either open or closed, and that the public should not have to decipher the meaning of a posted sign. The response of the sample is especially significant given that many respondents claimed that they would not eat at a restaurant with either a posted letter grade of C or a posted score of 86. Although these results do not come from a random sample, they nevertheless suggest that the public has a limited understanding of such signs and, at the same time, bases dining decisions on them. Thus, environmental health professionals must carefully consider how the public can be better educated about signs, how the signs can be less ambiguous, and whether posted restaurant inspection results are even advisable in their current form.

Adult↗