3: Data and Communication
- Page ID
- 237471
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\(\newcommand{\avec}{\mathbf a}\) \(\newcommand{\bvec}{\mathbf b}\) \(\newcommand{\cvec}{\mathbf c}\) \(\newcommand{\dvec}{\mathbf d}\) \(\newcommand{\dtil}{\widetilde{\mathbf d}}\) \(\newcommand{\evec}{\mathbf e}\) \(\newcommand{\fvec}{\mathbf f}\) \(\newcommand{\nvec}{\mathbf n}\) \(\newcommand{\pvec}{\mathbf p}\) \(\newcommand{\qvec}{\mathbf q}\) \(\newcommand{\svec}{\mathbf s}\) \(\newcommand{\tvec}{\mathbf t}\) \(\newcommand{\uvec}{\mathbf u}\) \(\newcommand{\vvec}{\mathbf v}\) \(\newcommand{\wvec}{\mathbf w}\) \(\newcommand{\xvec}{\mathbf x}\) \(\newcommand{\yvec}{\mathbf y}\) \(\newcommand{\zvec}{\mathbf z}\) \(\newcommand{\rvec}{\mathbf r}\) \(\newcommand{\mvec}{\mathbf m}\) \(\newcommand{\zerovec}{\mathbf 0}\) \(\newcommand{\onevec}{\mathbf 1}\) \(\newcommand{\real}{\mathbb R}\) \(\newcommand{\twovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\ctwovec}[2]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\threevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cthreevec}[3]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfourvec}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\fivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{r}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\cfivevec}[5]{\left[\begin{array}{c}#1 \\ #2 \\ #3 \\ #4 \\ #5 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\mattwo}[4]{\left[\begin{array}{rr}#1 \amp #2 \\ #3 \amp #4 \\ \end{array}\right]}\) \(\newcommand{\laspan}[1]{\text{Span}\{#1\}}\) \(\newcommand{\bcal}{\cal B}\) \(\newcommand{\ccal}{\cal C}\) \(\newcommand{\scal}{\cal S}\) \(\newcommand{\wcal}{\cal W}\) \(\newcommand{\ecal}{\cal E}\) \(\newcommand{\coords}[2]{\left\{#1\right\}_{#2}}\) \(\newcommand{\gray}[1]{\color{gray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\lgray}[1]{\color{lightgray}{#1}}\) \(\newcommand{\rank}{\operatorname{rank}}\) \(\newcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\col}{\text{Col}}\) \(\renewcommand{\row}{\text{Row}}\) \(\newcommand{\nul}{\text{Nul}}\) \(\newcommand{\var}{\text{Var}}\) \(\newcommand{\corr}{\text{corr}}\) \(\newcommand{\len}[1]{\left|#1\right|}\) \(\newcommand{\bbar}{\overline{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bhat}{\widehat{\bvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\bperp}{\bvec^\perp}\) \(\newcommand{\xhat}{\widehat{\xvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\vhat}{\widehat{\vvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\uhat}{\widehat{\uvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\what}{\widehat{\wvec}}\) \(\newcommand{\Sighat}{\widehat{\Sigma}}\) \(\newcommand{\lt}{<}\) \(\newcommand{\gt}{>}\) \(\newcommand{\amp}{&}\) \(\definecolor{fillinmathshade}{gray}{0.9}\)In today's information environment, flooded with inaccuracies, falsehoods, conspiracy theories, and scams, there is a need for reliable, accurate health information to stand out as a crucial and increasingly vital public health service.
So, where do we get trustworthy public health information? We might go to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), National Institute of Health (NIH), or World Health Organization (WHO) websites to read the current public-facing guidelines on healthy living, news articles on health discoveries or advancements, or toolkits for doctors, nurses, and community health workers. But let’s say we wanted to go deeper and read original research or even find surveillance reports. Where would we look for these types of questions and answers? And, what do we need to know about research processes to understand this type of information?
Health communication in public health involves (Riegelman & Kirkwood, 2025 p64):
- Collecting data
- Compiling information
- Presenting information
- Perceiving information
- Combining information
- Decision-making
In this chapter, we will go over the abundance of health information, determine which is accurate and which is not, understand where public health data comes from, and where to access trustworthy information.
Reference
Riegelman, R., & Kirkwood, B. (2025). Public Health 101 Improving Community Health (4th ed). Jones & Bartlett Learning LLC.
- 3.1: Where do Public Health Data Come From?
- This page covers public health statistics sources for media and health educators, focusing on the CDC and local health departments. It details the collection and analysis of vital statistics at state and local levels by the NCHS. Notable diseases and surveillance systems are discussed for health trend monitoring. Additionally, major national health surveys like NHIS and NHANES are highlighted for their insights into population health behaviors and their role in shaping public health policies.
- 3.2: Public Health Surveillance
- This page emphasizes the significance of disease surveillance in monitoring health trends and facilitating public health decisions. It outlines two main methods: active surveillance, which engages communities but is resource-intensive, and passive surveillance, which depends on healthcare providers but may overlook cases. Additionally, it examines various public health data sources, discussing their benefits and challenges in effective surveillance.
- 3.3: Notifiable Diseases
- This page discusses the National Notifiable Disease Surveillance System (NNDSS), which tracks about 120 diseases to improve public health and prevent outbreaks. It highlights the Ebola outbreak in the U.S., initiated by Thomas Duncan's diagnosis after exposure in Liberia. His case underscores the NNDSS's importance and the CDC's role in managing outbreaks through testing and monitoring, which helped effectively contain the situation.
- 3.4: Quality of Health Information
- This page addresses the challenges public health encounters from misinformation and disinformation, emphasizing their differences. It provides historical examples of harmful health messaging, like vaccine hesitancy linked to false autism claims. The COVID-19 pandemic highlighted the swift spread of misinformation, exacerbated by social media and distrust in authorities, undermining public compliance with health guidelines.
- 3.5: Measuring the Health of a Population
- This page discusses early 20th-century public health indicators, notably high infant mortality rates and low life expectancy due to infectious diseases. It highlights improvements in healthcare reducing infant mortality and the introduction of under-5 mortality rate (U5MR). While life expectancy has risen, challenges such as obesity and pandemics threaten this progress in the U.S.