Despite student preconceptions, basic antitrust doctrine is easy to convey in a health law course. In either a survey course or one specifically devoted to the application of antitrust principles to the health industry, medical peer review provides an excellent case study. (MSE)

Examines availability of medical and psychosocial services for AIDS patients in rural areas. Reports that urban models are generally not applicable because needs are different. Presents a model for development of coordinated and comprehensive services for AIDS patients in rural areas. Contains 21 references. (DHP)

The Minnesota Heart Health Program's Quit and Win smoking cessation contests occurred between 1982 and 1989. The contests used large prizes to encourage smokers to quit smoking. Evaluations indicated that the contests succeeded in recruiting relatively large proportions of smokers in entire communities, and abstinence outcomes were encouraging.…

In October 1994, legislation established a requirement that Public Health Services (PHS) programs spend at least 0.2% of appropriated funds on program evaluation. Legislative changes are a result of a study of the use of PHS set-aside funds from 1988 through 1992. They are intended to encourage more and better evaluation. (SLD)

The public health approach to suicide prevention consists of health-event surveillance to describe the problem, epidemiologic analysis to identify risk factors, the design and evaluation of interventions, and the implementation of prevention programs. Community suicide prevention programs should include more than one strategy and, where…

Posits that organizations in crisis situations must address multiple audiences with distinct needs. Analyzes the public communication offered by Jack in the Box restaurants during a food poisoning outbreak. Finds that ambiguity may provide organizations with a means for satisfying the divergent needs of their audiences--even where these distinct…

A public health approach was used to eliminate pinworm from a system of community residential settings for individuals with developmental disabilities. The approach involved screening and treatment of staff members and clients living and working in close proximity to index cases, and prophylactically treating many clients and staff based on…

Study examined the sexual risk profiles of delinquent and homeless youth. Medical histories and physical examinations indicated subjects in three youth serving agencies had many risk factors (sex for money, unprotected sex with multiple partners, and high levels of sexually transmitted diseases) that affected individual morbidity and public…

Describes Primary Care/Substance Abuse Linkage Initiative, federal effort to improve integration of health care services. Identifies barriers to achieving initiative's objectives: health care reimbursement issues; problems of professional/public attitudes toward alcohol/drug dependency and treatment; substance abuse treatment service deficiencies;…

Despite the need to change health behavior and the evidence that instruction can do so, health instruction is nonexistent or inadequate for most students in U.S. schools. The article recommends a national policy on sequential, planned comprehensive K-12 school health education. (SM)

The pros and cons of air pollution control efforts are discussed. Both national and regional air pollution control plans are described. Topics of discussion include benefit-cost analysis, air quality regulation, reducing ozone in the urban areas, the Los Angeles plan, uncertainties, and policy implications. (KR)

A Weberian perspective suggests that increased perceptions of environmental risk are related to fears of recreancy (institutional failure to fulfill societal responsibilities) rather than to ignorance or irrationality. Regarding nuclear waste facilities, analyses of survey data find that the recreancy perspective explains three times more variance…

Traumatic spinal cord injuries resulting from criminal violence is a growing public health concern. Citing the criminal justice system's failure to reduce violence and the costs of treating injuries, a public health-education approach is advocated. Approaches to prevention, gun control, and a comprehensive family policy are discussed. (Author/EMK)

Summarizes two speeches. William W. Stead offers three scenarios illustrating typical future interactions of consumers with a medical system based on informatics and information technology and then considers implications for academic medicine. Valerie Florance discusses a program that is exploring ways medical schools and teaching hospitals can…

This report reviews a massive body of research on where, when, and how much youth violence occurs, what causes it, and which of today's many preventive strategies are genuinely effective. It reviews violence from a developmental perspective and reflects on the responsibilities and spirit of the Surgeon General's public health mission to protect…