Environmental Health Research Paper Instructions

The goal of this project is to evaluate a current environmental health issue, discuss the control and/or mitigation measures currently employed and advocate for a systems approach in public health policy or practice to address that issue. This required research paper project is a 15-pages (approximately 4,500 words) document that should be double-spaced. Every student must choose a different topic. Topics are selected on a first come first served basis. You may wish to talk among yourselves about your selections prior to submission to avoid submitting a topic that has already been chosen by a classmate. Here’s what you will do for this assignment:

⦁ Select the topic for your research.
⦁ Submit the topic. You should submit your topic to the topic discussion board area to avoid duplicates. The topic selection must not duplicate any other in the class. If it does, it is your responsibility to change it, the earlier submission taking precedence. Once a student posts on the discussion board, their topic will be considered ‘selected.’
⦁ Read the supporting article on how to advocate for environmental justice in your area of interest: http://www.pastoralplanning.com/Creation-Care/WHWS232_Advocating_for_Environmental_Justice.pdf
⦁ Submit at least ten sources for your References list.
⦁ Submit the final version of the paper through the SafeAssign originality tool on Blackboard.

Late assignments will be penalized according to the course policy outlined in the syllabus.

Your paper should be well documented using the superscript citation style described by the National Library of Medicine in the Uniform Requirements for Manuscripts Submitted to Biomedical Journals: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html (AMA).

The AMA style has been adopted as an option for this course to familiarize you with the format you should be expected to encounter regularly in your professional lives. This style is used in most public health and other peer-reviewed medical research forums. It is different than the format frequently used in many textbooks, classes and professions. It will likely be the style that appears in many of the references that you will use for research.

You are required to use at least ten different professional peer-reviewed print media sources, governent documents or books in the references section of your papers. You should avoid newspapers, lay magazines and online fact sheets. Do not use any information from Wikipedia, WebMD, or similar sources! Articles from non-professional sources will not be given credit. Information published solely in an online forum is not acceptable for citation either; however, you may use Internet search engines to help locate credible sources for your research as well as the Liberty University Library http://libguides.liberty.edu/public_and_community_health A Medline search is a great way to locate acceptable information. The American Journal of Public Health, New England Journal of Medicine, The American Journal of Preventive Medicine and similar publications are excellent sources. Start early to allow adequate time to find appropriate materials! You should back your opinions with data from the scientific print literature. Plagiarism will not be tolerated and will result in an automatic course failure.

The paper should include the following: (Headers must be present in the paper)
1. Title page with title of paper, your name/ID, date and course/section (HLTH 505.xx). This page does not count toward the 15 page minimum.
2. Abstract – Provide a short summary of the content of the paper (less than 100 words).
3. Introduction – Present a description of the problem – its size, scope and affected population(s); stressing the available information or data that best supports the group’s position with regard to the public health significance of the problem or issue and its relationship to, or impact on, members of the community.
4. Background – Discuss the etiologic or causative factors involved with this particular problem, including the agent(s), mechanism(s) of injury or health impact, and the transmission pathway(s). Include a review of past policies and practices, both successful and unsuccessful. Compare international, federal and state regulatory programs, guidelines, and authorities that address the environmental health issues.
5. Current research efforts – Discuss what potential future develoments are being researched. Remember the project regards a current issue. If nothing has been published in recent years, it may not be as relavant as it may appear on the surface.
6. Discussion – This is the heart of the paper. Thoroughly evaluate the material you have found. Discuss the pros and cons of various approaches. Analyze the available statistical measures provided by the researchers. Reveal the shortcomings and highlight the merits of the literature. Discuss the cultural aspects of environmental justice, you must show how some are more at risk than others. Provide the description of international, federal and state policies that address the environmental health issues.
7. Recommendations – This is where your opinions are given. They should be guided by logic and an understanding of the science gained from your research, void of emotional language, yet restrained by biblical truth. A scientifically valid opinion should not violate scripture or biblical morality. Focus your recommendations on two of the three arenas: political (legislative), social (popular), or economic (financial or commercial). Don’t give simple, short term recommendations that are limited in scope or time; instead, give broad ones that include multiple agencies, both public and private: in short, use a systems approach to address the issue. Focus on only one level of recommendations—international, federal, or state.
8. Advocacy – Outline an effective plan to advocate for improvements in the issue based on your recommendations. Utilize either political or media approaches for legislative and popular adoption. Clearly state methods and contacts that will will involved.
9. References – Use AMA style. This page does not count toward the 15 pages either!

Detailed instructions on how to cite and construct a References section using the AMA style can be found at http://www.nlm.nih.gov/bsd/uniform_requirements.html, the National Library of Medicine website. The references section should have a numbered list of sources according to the order of the first citation in the paper. That assigned number is then used as a superscript to cite the source in the body of the paper. The general format to list a journal and a book respectively in a references section would be as follows:

1. Houston T, Kaufman NJ. Tobacco control in the 21st century. Searching for answers in a sea of change. JAMA. 2000; 284:752-753.

1. Sorenson AA, Bialek RG, eds. The Public Health Faculty/Agency Forum. Gainesville, FL: University of Florida Press; 1992.

Research Paper Final Grading Rubric
Criteria Points Possible Points Earned Instructor’s Comments
Title Page
Title 2
Student name/SID 1
Course/section 1
Date 1
Total: 5
Abstract
Under 100 words 5
Adequate summary 5
Total: 10
Introduction
Defines problem 5
Identifies scope 5
Total: 10
Background
Adequate review to show understanding of the past control efforts.
5
Compares international, federal and state regulatory programs, guidelines, and authorities that address the environmental health issues.
5
Total: 10
Current research
Timeliness 10
Relevance 10
Total: 20
Discussion
Thorough evaluation 5
Discussion of the pros and cons of various approaches 5
Analysis of available statistical measures 5
Reveals limits and relative merits of data 5
Cultural aspects of environmental justice: Shows how some people are more at risk than others 10
Description of international, federal and state policies that address the environmental health issues. 10
Total: 40
Recommendations
Offers appropriate political, social, and economic recommendations to mitigate the problem using a multi-agency systems approach at international, national, or state levels. 5
Integrates recommendations with the literature presented 5
Offers political, social, or media advocacy methods to promote the adoption of your recommendations. 5
Total: 15
References
Ten references 5
Correctly number list 5
Appropriate citations in text 5
AMA style 5
Total: 20
Grammar/Spelling
Spelling 5
Sentence structure 5
Paragraph structure 5
Punctuation 5
Total: 20
Overall Total: 150