PubMed Health⌕ Search

Biomedical subjects

L N Pealer

Publications and source records attributed to L N Pealer.

7 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

When it comes to contact notification, HIV is not TB.

HIV partner notification can help patients, partners, and disease control efforts in the community. The emphasis on HIV partner notification has varied widely in the United States. Stigma, denial, and competing priorities have limited the use of partner notification in many areas. Ongoing HIV transmission after the infection is diagnosed suggests a need for ongoing partner notification, but there is little evidence that this is occurring. The forces driving the evolution of partner notification for HIV are quite different from those acting on contact tracing for TB. Understanding these forces will help predict where partner notification is headed and may help make it more effective. In this paper we review partner notification for HIV, discuss effectiveness, and outline changes over time. A comparison with contact tracing for TB leads us to conclude that partner notification for HIV is very different from contact tracing for TB.

Contact Tracing↗
PubMed2001

The feasibility of a web-based surveillance system to collect health risk behavior data from college students.

This study examined the feasibility of collecting health risk behavior data from undergraduate students using a Web-based survey. Undergraduates were randomly selected and assigned randomly to a mail survey group and a Web survey group. There were no statistically significant differences between the two groups for demographics, response rates, item completion, and item completion errors. Yet differences were found for response time and sensitive item completion. This is the first study to demonstrate the feasibility of collecting health risk behavior data from undergraduates using the Web. Undergraduates are just as likely to respond to a Web survey compared with a mail survey and more likely to answer socially threatening items using this method. Also, the Web format and protocol required less time to administer. Researchers and practitioners conducting health survey research with college students or other homogeneous populations who have access to e-mail and the Web should consider using a Web-based survey design as an altemative to a mail, self-administered survey. In such a population, a Web-based survey should not discourage participation, particularly if participants are interested in the questionnaire content.

Adolescent↗
PubMed2000

The SiteLegend: twelve components of a new strategy for providing website documentation.

The World Wide Web continues to evolve dramatically with an estimated 57 million users in the United States. Some two-thirds of Internet users in the United States searched for health information the past year, with 90% indicating they found the information they sought. Thus, health and medical information represents the single most popular topic on the Web, surpassing all other categories. Yet, few measures exist to ensure the accuracy of information provided to children and adults through such sites. Some existing quality control measures such as assessment instruments, authoritative guidelines, and seal of approval systems provide screening mechanisms, but none of these measures guarantees protection for users. This article proposes a new approach to ensuring full and accurate disclosure of information about a website. Referred to as a SiteLegend, the approach uses a hyperlink to fully inform consumers regarding 12 essential components of website. This article describes each of the 12 essential components, then provides an example of an active online link that illustrates actual use of the SiteLegend hyperlink approach.

Documentation↗
PubMed1999

The Florida School Violence Policies and Programs Study.

The Florida School Violence Policies and Programs Study (FSVPPS) assessed characteristics of violence prevention and control policies and education programs in Florida's 67 public school districts. Data were collected using the Florida School Violence Policies and Programs Questionnaire (FSVPPQ). Instruments used in the national School Health Policies and Programs Study (SHPPS) served as the framework for item development. A questionnaire designed to solicit information about violence policies and education programs was mailed to all 67 school districts in Florida during spring 1996. Sixty-seven key informants were selected by asking district office personnel to identify the person with primary responsibility for violence prevention activities in their district. Fifty-five school districts returned completed questionnaires, yielding a usable response rate of 82%. Respondents included personnel of superintendent rank, district administrators and directors, instructional specialists, principals, and "Safe & Drug Free Schools" coordinators. Participating school districts were evenly distributed geographically across Florida. The FSVPPS data reported in this paper include administrative and programmatic information about violence prevention education.

Adolescent↗
PubMed1997

Evaluating health-related Web sites.

a growing concern has emerged for the quality of health-related documents contained on the World Wide Web. Increased use of the World Wide Web by consumers and health education professionals, as well as ease of Web page publication, has heightened the need for criteria in Web page construction and evaluation. This article reviews and discusses elements to consider in Web page construction and evaluation, and provides a form to assist in assessment.

Abstracting and Indexing↗