Health > Public Health Encyclopedia

Autonomy

Healthline — The core idea of personal autonomy is to have personal rule of the self while remaining free from controlling interference by others. The autonomous person acts in accordance with a freely self-chosen and informed plan. A person of diminished ...More…

Automotive Emissions

Healthline — Pollutant emissions from transportation sources, particularly automobiles and trucks, make up a substantial portion of national and global air pollution. They are major sources of carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, polycyclic organic matter, and ...More…

Audiotapes and Videotapes

Healthline — Audiotapes have been used by health professionals primarily as a tool in patient education. The growing importance of stress management has led to the use of audiotapes to provide patients with guided imagery and progressive muscular relaxation ...More…

Attitudes

Healthline — Most people constantly evaluate various aspects of their environment. This process is often behavioral in its focus (e.g., "I like eating fast food"; "Breast self-exam is a waste of my time"; "Condoms are a good way to prevent ...More…

Atmosphere

Healthline — The earth's atmosphere is simple in some respects, and complex in others. It is relatively uniform in composition with respect to its major mass components (oxygen and nitrogen), yet extremely variable in some minor components, such as water ...More…

Atherosclerosis

Healthline — Atherosclerosis is the build up of plaque on the inside of blood vessels. Atherosclerosis is often called arteriosclerosis, which is a general term for hardening of the arteries. Atherosclerosis, a progressive condition responsible for most heart ...More…

Asthma

Healthline — Asthma is a chronic (long-lasting) inflammatory disease of the airways. In people susceptible to asthma, this inflammation causes the airways to narrow periodically. This narrowing, in turn, produces wheezing and breathlessness that sometimes ...More…

Assurance of Laboratory Testing Quality

Healthline — Accurate laboratory testing is essential to public health. Yet no laboratory test can be guaranteed to be accurate 100 percent of the time. In order to assure that test results are acceptable and reliable, a laboratory must incorporate both ...More…

Association of Teachers of Preventive Medicine

Healthline — Founded in 1948 by medical academicians and public health professionals, the Association of Teachers of Preventive Medicine (ATPM) is the leading national professional association dedicated to advancing individual and community disease prevention ...More…

Association of State and Territorial Health Officials

Healthline — Headquartered in Washington, DC, the Association of State and Territorial Health Officials (ASTHO) is the national nonprofit organization representing the official public health agencies of the fifty states, the six U.S. territories, and the ...More…

Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors

Healthline — The Association of State and Territorial Dental Directors (ASTDD) is a national, nonprofit organization representing state and territorial oral-health program directors. The ASTDD provides leadership to formulate and promote sound national ...More…

Association of Schools of Public Health

Healthline — The Association of Schools of Public Health (ASPH) is the national organization representing the deans, faculty, staff, and students of the accredited member schools of public health in the United States. Incorporated in 1959, it is the national ...More…