Q: If the incidence rate of a disease in a population is $I = 0.02$ per year and the average duration of the disease is $D = 5$ years, what is the approximate prevalence ($P$) of the disease?

$P = I \times D = 0.02 \times 5 = 0.10$

Question 1

Which of the following best describes the difference between public health and medical approaches to health?

Accepted Answer

Public health emphasizes prevention and population-level interventions, while medical approaches focus on diagnosis and treatment of individuals.

Question 2

A public health campaign aims to eradicate a disease using the following steps: Problem identification, Etiology, Recommendation, Implementation, and Evaluation. Which step involves determining the cause of the disease?

Accepted Answer

Etiology

Question 3

Which historical figure is most closely associated with the use of statistical analysis to improve public health outcomes?

Accepted Answer

Florence Nightingale

Question 4

A study finds that the relative risk ($RR$) of developing lung cancer for smokers compared to non-smokers is $RR = 4.0$. What does this mean?

Accepted Answer

Smokers are 4 times more likely to develop lung cancer than non-smokers.

Question 5

Which of the following is an example of passive surveillance in epidemiology?

Accepted Answer

Physicians voluntarily reporting cases of a disease to public health authorities.

Question 6

In a 2 x 2 table for a case-control study, which cell represents individuals who were exposed to the risk factor and developed the disease?

Accepted Answer

Top left cell

Question 7

Which of the following best defines 'confounding' in epidemiological studies?

Accepted Answer

A variable that is associated with both the exposure and the outcome, potentially distorting the true relationship.

Question 8

Which agency is responsible for regulating food and drug safety in the United States?

Accepted Answer

FDA

Question 9

A new vaccine is introduced to eliminate a disease. After several years, no new cases are reported worldwide, but the pathogen still exists in laboratory samples. What term best describes this situation?

Accepted Answer

Disease elimination

Question 10

Which of the following is a key difference between analytic and descriptive epidemiology?

Accepted Answer

Analytic epidemiology tests hypotheses about disease causation, while descriptive epidemiology describes disease patterns.

Question 11

If the incidence rate of a disease in a population is $I = 0.02$ per year and the average duration of the disease is $D = 5$ years, what is the approximate prevalence ($P$) of the disease?

Accepted Answer

$P = I 	imes D = 0.02 	imes 5 = 0.10$

Question 12

Which of the following is an example of a social determinant of health?

Accepted Answer

Access to quality education

Question 13

A randomized controlled trial is conducted to test a new drug. What is the primary purpose of blinding in this study?

Accepted Answer

To prevent bias in outcome assessment by keeping participants and/or researchers unaware of group assignments.

Question 14

Which of the following best describes 'morbidity'?

Accepted Answer

The presence of illness or disease in a population.

Question 15

A case-control study finds an odds ratio ($OR$) of $2.5$ for the association between exposure to a chemical and development of a rare disease. What does this mean?

Accepted Answer

Exposed individuals are 2.5 times more likely to develop the disease compared to unexposed individuals.

Question 16

Which of the following is NOT one of the 10 essential services of public health?

Accepted Answer

Provide direct medical treatment to every individual.

Question 17

Which term refers to the total number of existing cases of a disease in a population at a given time?

Accepted Answer

Prevalence

Question 18

Which of the following is a key feature of evidence-based public health practice?

Accepted Answer

Decisions are guided by the best available scientific evidence.

Question 19

Which of the following best describes 'syndromic surveillance'?

Accepted Answer

Tracking symptoms and health-related data to detect potential outbreaks before diagnoses are confirmed.

Question 20

Which of the following is the correct formula for calculating relative risk ($RR$) in a cohort study?

Accepted Answer

$RR = \frac{Incidence\;in\;exposed}{Incidence\;in\;unexposed}$

Public Health Foundations: Study Guide and Key Terms

Study Guide - Practice Questions

Study Guide - Flashcards