Evidence-Based Public Health Practice

This practical book shows how to do evidence-based research in public health. As a great deal of evidence-based practice occurs online, it focuses on how to find, use and interpret online sources of public health information. It also includes examples of community-based participatory research and shows how to link data with community preferences and needs. Each chapter begins with specific learning objectives and concludes with practice exercises geared to the objectives. Each chapter also contains a list of key terms that are an essential part of an evidence-based public health practitioner's vocabulary. The book includes a comprehensive glossary, and hundreds of online and print references, examples, and charts.

Arlene Fink (PhD) is Professor of Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, Los Angeles, and president of the Langley Research Institute. Her main interests include evaluation and survey research and the conduct of research literature reviews as well as the evaluation of their quality. Dr. Fink has conducted scores of evaluation studies in public health, medicine, and education. She is on the faculty of UCLA's Robert Wood Johnson Clinical Scholars Program and is a scientific and evaluation advisor to UCLA's Gambling Studies and IMPACT (Improving Access, Counseling & Treatment for Californians with Prostate Cancer) programs. She consults nationally and internationally for agencies such as L'institut de Promo del la Prévention Secondaire en Addictologie (IPPSA) in Paris, France, and Peninsula Health in Victoria, Australia. Professor Fink has taught and lectured extensively all over the world and is the author of more than 130 peer-reviewed articles and 15 textbooks.

Chapter 1. Public Health Practice and the Best Available Evidence

Chapter 2. Community Health and Health Service Needs and Evidence-Based Programs

Chapter 3. Finding the Best Available Evidence: Questions, Practical Concerns and Ethics

Chapter 4. Research Design, Validity and Best Available Evidence

Chapter 5. Wanted! Valid and Meaningful Data as Proof of Best Available Evidence

Chapter 6. The Best Available Evidence: Quality, Strength, Implementation and Evaluation

Table Of Contents

About Arlene G. Fink