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UIUC CHLH 274 - CHLH 274 - Problem Set 1

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Matthew Hattendorf September 16, 2013CHLH 274 – Problem Set 1CHLH 274Fall 2013Introduction to EpidemiologyProblem Set 1Due Date: 9/17/13, 9:30amThis problem set should be submitted on the due date as an electronic copy to the digital drop box on the compass AND as hard copy at the beginning of the class. All assignments must be typed. This helps to facilitate the grading process and ensures that we can read all of your workPart 1. The goal of this section is to give students a wealth of the information readily available – and often easily accessible – on the World Wide Web (www). The web sites you will visit in this exercise represent only the most minimal fraction of the sites relevant to public health and epidemiology.Part A.Please answer the following questions, by accessing the relevant sites and seeking available information.Site 1: United States Census and Census Quick Factshttp://www.census.gov/a. What is the US census? What are its characteristics? (5)The US census is a survey that takes place every 10 years, and it is required by theUS Constitution. The characteristics of the census deal with multiple demographics. Many revolve around people such as local/national populations, race, economic status, homeowners, etc. It also covers business matters like owned firms and shipments, and geography as in land area or people per square mile. Lastly it deals with government because the population of an area determines the amount of funding, representatives, and electoral college votes it may have.b. Why is the census important for studying epidemiology? (3)The census is important because in order to study a disease and its distribution, we need to be aware of how many people it can affect. The only way to know how many people live in an infected area either locally, regionally, nationally, or internationally is by using census recordings to find out the incidence/prevalency of the said disease.Part B. (44)Address: http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/index.htmlGo to the QuickFacts website and select the state of Illinois. This will direct you to a table with demographic data comparing the US and Illinois. On the Illinois QuickFacts page, you will be given an option to select counties and cities to also examineMatthew Hattendorf September 16, 2013CHLH 274 – Problem Set 1demographic data. Be sure to select Champaign County, as well as the cities of Champaign and Chicago to create a table that compares the following sociodemographic characteristics for the selected cities (Chicago and Champaign), county (Champaign), state of Illinois and the US:Comparing Sociodemographic DifferencesChampaign Chicago ChampaignCountyIllinois United StatesTotal 2012 Population82,517 2,714,856 203,276 12,875,255 313,914,040% Females 49.1 51.5 50.0 51.0 50.8% White 64.8 31.7 70.2 63.7 63.0% Black 15.6 32.9 12.7 14.5 13.1% Hispanicor Latino6.3 28.9 5.5 15.8 16.9Bachelor’s Degree or Higher %49.8 32.9 42.1 30.7 28.2Median Household Income$38,348 $47,371 $44,462 $56,576 $52,762Persons Below Poverty Level %27.3 21.4 21.8 13.1 14.3Be sure to label your table and assume that it is being prepared for the Illinois Department of Public Health.a) Why would gender, education and poverty be important for studying health outcomes in these populations? Provide an explanation for the importance of eachdemographic variable. (6)All three of these factors are crucial to studying health because they are determinants for the outcome of a person’s health. It is important to keep a track of gender because certain diseases/conditions only affect women (i.e. cervical cancer, uterus cancer) and men (i.e. prostate cancer, male pattern baldness), and also there is the fact that women tend to live longer than men. So by keeping a record of gender we can see if that trend starts to change. Education and poverty go hand in hand when discussing their importance demographically to health outcomes. They both affect access to healthcare. By not being educated, people may not be able to understand see the symptoms of a potentially-fatal condition, or they may not know what to do in a situation. Poverty levels affect access to healthcare because people who are in poverty most likely do not have insurance and cannot afford treatment for their condition.Matthew Hattendorf September 16, 2013CHLH 274 – Problem Set 1b) Why is the median household income a better value for measuring wealth compared to the mean household income? (3)Median income is much better for determining the wealth of an area because it picks the middle number of all incomes in the related area. The middle number, ormedian, is surrounded by many numbers, but there are less and less as you get higher or lower, making it a great way to distinguish average income from the extreme low and high values. In comparison, the mean household income take in account all the high and low values in measuring income, so people, like Bill Gates or the unemployed, are being factored into the equation. There are many more poverty-stricken Americans than extremely wealthy, so this brings the average down away from an accurate representation of the average household income.Site 2: Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: Traveler’s Health, Yellow Fever and Malaria (6)Address: http://wwwnc.cdc.gov/travel/yellowbook/2014/table-of-contents#13 1) You are planning a trip to Caracas, Venezuela, what are the CDC vaccine recommendations for Yellow Fever?The CDC recommends that anyone, over the age of 9 months, traveling to a Yellow Fever risk area should have a Yellow Fever vaccination every 10 years depending on their exposure to the risk of infection. This vaccine must be administered at least 10 days before it is considered valid.This vaccine is not required to enter Venezuela, but is recommended, for anyone traveling to Venezuela that is not residing in the northern coastal area. Caracas falls in this geographic area, so it is then not considered to be a part of the endemic zone.2) You are traveling as part of a public health project to rural India. If you developed malaria during your trip, would chloroquine be the most effective drug for treatment? Why or why not?According to the information on the CDC’s travel book, malaria affects all areas of India, urban and rural between dusk and dawn. Most likely, if you travel in thewinter for a short period of time (1-2 days) than normal insect precautions should prevent malaria. Over the last 2 decades, this strain of malaria,


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