The administration at a local medical center examines the trends in health problems when developing long-range plans for staffing and space allocation. Which of the following sources of information would be most helpful?

Correct Answer: C

Rationale: The correct answer is C: The National Hospital Discharge Survey. This source provides comprehensive data on hospital utilization, including reasons for admission and discharge diagnoses. It offers insights into the specific health problems that require hospitalization, which is crucial for staffing and space allocation planning. A: Local data drawn from a professional survey in the city - While local data can be valuable, it may not provide a comprehensive overview of health problems that require hospitalization. B: The National Health Interview Survey - This survey focuses on health behaviors and access to care, rather than specific health problems that lead to hospitalization. D: The state's vital statistics - While vital statistics provide general health information, they may not offer detailed insights into specific health problems requiring hospitalization.

Correct Answer: B

Rationale: Step 1: Awareness of human susceptibility to animal diseases has been publicized, leading to increased concern about zoonotic infections. Step 2: Zoonotic infections can easily spread from animals to humans, causing contagious outbreaks. Step 3: Public health efforts are focusing on preventing and controlling these infections to protect human health. Summary: A: Fear of bioterrorism is not a primary reason for the focus on contagious infections. C: No information is provided to support this choice. D: Drug-resistant strains of old diseases are a concern, but not the main reason for the current focus on contagious infections.

Correct Answer: C

Rationale: Step 1: Epidemiology focuses on studying patterns, causes, and effects of health and disease in specific populations. Step 2: Recommending a restaurant closure after a norovirus outbreak investigation aligns with identifying the source and preventing further spread in a population. Step 3: This activity involves data collection, analysis, and intervention to control disease transmission. Step 4: Prescribing antibiotics (A) and teaching diabetes classes (B) are more related to individual healthcare, not population-based disease control. Encouraging family dinners (D) is unrelated to epidemiological principles.

Correct Answer: A

Rationale: The hallmark feature of an analytic study in epidemiology is the use of an appropriate comparison group (Choice A). This is crucial for determining the relationship between an exposure and an outcome. By comparing individuals with the exposure to those without, researchers can evaluate the association. Randomization (Choice B) is a feature of experimental studies, not analytic epidemiological studies. Confirmation of diagnosis via lab testing (Choice C) is important for accuracy but not specific to analytic studies. Testing a hypothesis (Choice D) is a general research concept and not unique to analytic epidemiological studies.

Correct Answer: C

Rationale: The correct answer is C: Prevalence rate. In this case, the nurse is studying the proportion of the population that had pneumonia during the winter months. Prevalence rate measures the total number of existing cases in the population at a specific point in time, which aligns with the nurse's objective to study the proportion of the population affected by pneumonia during the winter months. Incorrect choices: A: Attack rate measures the proportion of people exposed to a particular factor who develop the disease. B: Incidence rate measures the number of new cases of a disease that develop in a population over a specific period. D: Risk ratio compares the risk of developing a disease in the exposed group to the risk in the non-exposed group. In summary, prevalence rate is the appropriate measure as it focuses on the total number of existing cases of pneumonia in the population, while the other choices do not match the nurse's objective in this scenario.