Findings from this study may help institutions in the development and implementation of a new tobacco policy, as well as strengthen policies among existing tobacco-free schools.

Literature provides evidence that school attendance correlates with academic performance and student success. Influenza is a contributing factor to school absences. Primary prevention for influenza includes immunization. School-located influenza vaccine (SLIV) programs provide greater access for students to be immunized. A retrospective review of preexisting data from four academic years was conducted to examine the relationship between SLIV participation and absenteeism among students at eight public elementary schools in Effingham County, Georgia. Results identified differences in average frequency of absences between SLIV and non-SLIV years as well as between SLIV participants and nonparticipants for the 2 SLIV years. Implications for practice include the potential for increased herd immunity among students, which may also extend to other parties within the school community and at home, thus promoting overall wellness and future student success.

Background: Leading Health Indicators (LHIs), a subset of objectives for Healthy People 2020, were selected to communicate at-risk health issues and actions that can be taken to address them. Nationally, the number of children, adolescents, and adults who visited the dentist in the past year has decreased, suggesting that oral health continues to be a problem caused by barriers preventing access to oral health services. This review aimed to identify strategies to increase access to oral health services that will be useful in moving toward the LHI objectives.Methods: Preliminary research was conducted on the LHI via the Healthy People 2020 website. Health-related, peer-reviewed articles were selected and evaluated to determine current strategies used to increase access to oral health services that would lead to achievement of the LHI objectives. Results:Evidenced-based literature shows that economic, educational, and personal barriers prevent access to oral health services. Through health promotion and educational interventions, however, good oral health can be established. Such improvements will lead to attaining the LHI objectives in moving towards the target goals of Healthy People 2020. Conclusions:Since primary prevention and early intervention procedures lead to improved oral health, such methods can be useful in reaching the LHI objectives and the target goal of Healthy People 2020.

Background. Developmental groundwork in the health professions begins with specialized training, knowledge acquisition, and critical thinking skills, each reliant on authentic pedagogical approaches. In response to student recommendations, and to provide a novel approach to content delivery, the authors developed a theory-based teaching model focused on activity, discussion, objectives, presentation, and transition (ADOPT). Purpose. The purpose of this article is to discuss the ADOPT model, evaluative data, and potential uses within the public health classroom. Method. To date, the model has been implemented within five content areas: disease continuum, epidemiology, environmental health, human sexuality, and research methods. Each classroom session focused on content-specific material delivered through each of the five model components with delivery order unique to each session. At the conclusion of the semester, students were asked to complete a 15-item Likert-type survey and two open-ended items regarding model efficacy. Evaluation. Assessment results from 119 students are encouraging. Measures of general course efficacy were similar between undergraduate and graduates with mean 10-point Likert-type scores of 8.3 and 8.5, respectively. Both groups reported 8.1 when asked about the benefits of the multimodal approach. Average scores on five items related to model components were 8.1 for undergraduates and 7.9 for graduates. The discussion component was given the highest score, whereas "group work" was given the lowest. Conclusion. The ADOPT model offers a promising approach toward delivery of public health content. Future iterations will enhance group interactions and explore model use within the context of distributive learning.

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