USPHS Scientific & Training Symposium: Scientist Category Agenda
07:45 a.m. – 08:00 a.m. Opening Remarks
LCDR Marco Bennett, USPHS, Category Day Representative
LCDR Maleeka Glover, USPHS, Category Day Representative
08:00 a.m. – 08:30 a.m. Welcome and Introductory Remarks
RADM Helena Mishoe, USPHS, Chief Scientist Officer, U.S. Public Health Service
Presentation (pps, 427 KB)
08:30 a.m. – 09:00 a.m. Can the Social Communication Questionnaire be Utilized for Public Health Screening of Autism Spectrum Disorders?
CDR Rachel Avchen, USPHS, Senior Research Scientist Officer, National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities
Presentation (pps, 4.54 MB)
This session will examine the use of the Social Communication Questionnaire (SCQ) as a screening instrument to detect children who need further evaluation for a possible Autism Spectrum Disorders.
At the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Evaluate the sensitivity of the Social Communication Questionnaire (lifetime) in a broader population
• Discuss the utility of the SCQ for Autism Spectrum Disorders screening
09:00 a.m. – 09:30 a.m. Visitor Injury in National Parks: A Partnership in Prevention
CDR Sara Newman, USPHS, Public Risk Management Specialist, National Park Service
CDR Daphne Moffett, USPHS, Deputy Associate Director for Science, Division of Unintentional Injury Prevention, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Presentation (pdf, 7.47 MB)
This session will provide an overview of the recreational injury problem in the United States. Presenters will describe the most recent data on visitor injuries in National Parks and identify the activities that pose the greatest threat of injury to Park visitors. The presenters will describe how visitor safety has been handled traditionally in Parks, and provide examples of best practice among Parks in visitor risk management and injury control. Finally, the presenters will describe ways in which the National Park Service and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s Division for Unintentional Injury Prevention are combining forces to address visitor injury within the US National Park Service.
At the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Articulate the magnitude and nature of the unintentional injury problem in the United States as it relates to recreational injury
• Describe the visitor injury problem in National Parks throughout the United States
• Identify and describe examples of current methods being used by National Park units to control injury in visitors to Parks
09:30 a.m. – 10:00 a.m. Investigation of Formaldehyde Levels in Occupied FEMA-Supplied Temporary Housing Units and Discussion of the Associated USPHS Deployment
LT Matthew Murphy, USPHS, EIS Officer, National Center for Environmental Health, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Presentation (pdf, 1.48 MB)
This session will discuss the public health risk from formaldehyde exposure to Americans displaced from their homes due to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita while living in FEMA-supplied temporary housing units. In 2006, some area physicians began reporting increases in upper respiratory symptoms in children living in FEMA-supplied temporary housing units.
At the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Learn awareness about the importance of formaldehyde as a public health issue
• Discuss formaldehyde exposure levels and potential health risks in FEMA supplied temporary housing units that were provided for displaced populations following Hurricanes Katrina and Rita
• Understand the planning, public health messaging, and field activities involved with the successful USPHS deployment to inform communities and occupants of formaldehyde health issues
10:00 a.m. – 10:15 a.m. BREAK
10:15 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. Is Your Public Health Program Prepared to Comply with the New International Health Regulations?
CAPT Ralph O'Connor, USPHS, Health Scientist, Division of Emergency Operations, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Presentation (pps, 1.28 MB)
This session examines the impact of the World Health Organization’s (WHO) revisions to the International Health Regulations (IHR) in 2005. The IHR (2005) went into effect for the US on July 18, 2007. This presentation discusses the main changes in the rules; the use of a decision tool that is applied to chemical and radiological releases; how the IHRs are being implemented in the US; the potential roles of PHS officers in detecting, evaluating and reporting “public health emergencies of international concern” (PHEICs) to WHO; other changes that may impact PHS officers and the programs to which they are assigned; why the US implemented the IHRs one month later than most other countries; and recent examples of incidents that were reported by the US to the WHO as potential PHEICs.
At the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Discuss the main changes to the IHRs
• Describe how the IHRs are being implemented in the United States
• Identify the potential roles of PHS officers in detecting, evaluating and reporting PHEICs to WHO
10:45 a.m. – 11:15 a.m. High Fructose Corn Syrup Thermal Treatment Effects on the Concentration of Hydroxymethylfurfural
LCDR Blaise LeBlanc, USPHS, Research Scientist, United States Department of Agriculture
Presentation (pps, 610 KB)
This session discusses how high fructose corn syrup (HFCS) is incorporated into processed foods consumed by humans and has become a sucrose surrogate. Since HFCS is a liquid product it is subject to chemical reactions that lead to breakdown products. Sucrose (cane or beet sugar), a solid product, does not suffer from this disadvantage. Hydroxymethylfurfural (HMF) is a thermally formed, aromatic impurity that is associated with a darker syrup color and is formed mostly from the dehydration of fructose. HMF levels are associated with the quality and therefore the value of HFCS, honey, maple syrup and other liquid sweeteners. Despite the ubiquitous usage of HFCS, there is only one reported in vivo study, conducted on rabbits, of HMF toxicity in the literature. Samples of HFCS were obtained from domestic manufacturers and were subjected to isothermal temperatures. The HMF levels were studied at four temperatures, over time, by a variation of a spectrophotometric technique approved by the American Association of Analytical Chemists. Rate constants were determined by Arhenius-type equations and the energy of activation of HMF was estimated and associated with the pH of the HFCS sample. Estimations of the shelf life of HFS, based on the European Codex, which sets a limit of 40 ppm of HMF for honey intended for human consumption, are predicted from the results presented.
At the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Describe the industrial manufacturing methods of high fructose corn syrup which has become a sucrose surrogate in many processed foods
• Discuss the short term health effects due to the change in many processed foods
11:15 a.m. – 11:45 a.m. Unintentional Suffocation Deaths Among Children and Adolescents: The "Choking Game"
LT Robin Toblin, USPHS, EIS Officer, Division of Unintentional Injury Prevention, National Center for Injury Prevention and Control, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Presentation (pps, 1.35 MB)
This session will examine unintentional choking deaths among children and adolescents due to the “choking game.” The media have recently reported a number of deaths of children from playing the “choking game,” which involves strangling oneself using a noose or being strangled by another person to obtain a brief euphoric state. The risk of dying from the "choking game" is greatest for boys in early adolescence who play alone. Media reports can characterize such deaths, but probably underestimate their magnitude. Prevention depends on health-care providers, educators, and parents becoming aware of this game and its warning signs.
At the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Discuss the "choking game," and its risk for death and disability
• Describe the epidemiology of this behavior and its warning signs
12:30 p.m. – 2:00 p.m. Luncheon and Awards presentations
02:00 p.m. – 03:00 p.m. Keynote: Science: The Cornerstone of Public Health
VADM Richard Carmona, MD, MPH, FACS, USPHS (Ret), 17th Surgeon General of the United States, Vice Chairman, Canyon Ranch, President, Canyon Ranch Institute
03:00 p.m. – 03:15 p.m. BREAK
03:15 p.m. – 04:15 p.m. Panel Discussion: Scientist Role in Emergency Response
CDR Ross Spears, USPHS, Science Officer, Division of Emergency Operations, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
CDR David McIntyre, USPHS; Mental Health Branch Chief, Indian Health Service
Presentation (pps, 3.97 MB)
This session will discuss the roles of scientists in emergency response.
At the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Discuss the future scientific endeavor in emergency response
• Describe leadership training among response team leaders
• Discuss how a virtual platform that demanded functional integration of three distinct teams was united into one response team
04:15 p.m. – 04:45 p.m. Learning from History - Shaping of the Future of Public Health
CDR Kathleen McDuffie, USPHS, Associate Director for Science, National Center for Health Marketing, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
Presentation (pps, 1.05 MB)
This session will examine how an understanding of historical precedents can help shape future decision-making regarding public health. Government response to critical public health events in recent years has been scrutinized. Identified needs include innovative strategies for increasing community engagement, building partnerships, and leveraging limited resources to meet public health needs. But are these strategies really new? In the fall of 2006, Captain Russell Hart, a 100 year old retired United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps officer, was interviewed about his career and public health accomplishments. The presenter will compare the experiences revealed in this interview to current public health topics and situations and identifies underlying principles.
At the end of the session, participants will be able to:
• Describe the experiences of a 100 year old retired USPHS Commissioned Officer as they relate to current health topics
• Discuss strategies for educating current and future public health workforces
04:45 p.m. – 05:15 p.m. Closing Remarks
CDR Sara Newman, USPHS & CDR Rachel Avchen, USPHS
Presentation (pps, 1.64 MB)