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Hpv Vaccination In The Virginia Context: Demographic Disparities, Patient-Provider Gender Concordance And The Impact Of Changing Recommendations, Isha Patel, Norma M. Benitez, George L. Maxwell, Fabian T. Camacho, Rajesh Balkrishnan

Virginia Journal of Public Health

Objective: Despite its effectiveness in preventing several cancers, there are marked disparities in HPV vaccination initiation and series completion. The present study sought to understand disparities in HPV vaccinations among patients in northern Virginia (ages 9-26) and the impact of patient and provider gender concordance, in lieu of CDC’s vaccine recommendation changes in 2016, which reduced the recommended doses from three to two, in this population. Design: Analyses of electronic medical records collected from 2012 to 2017. Setting: A large health care system in Northern Virginia. Participants: A total of 37,427 patients, ages 9 to 26, were included in analyses. …

Introducing The Vpha Policy Forum, Benjamin P. Barber

Virginia Journal of Public Health

Data before and during the pandemic indicates Virginia's public health system needs reform. This article suggests that reform requires policy change, and it introduces the VPHA forum as a place to examine current policies and explore new ideas. Finally, it encourages policymakers, advocates, and the public to focus on fundamental questions about how public health is financed and delivered in Virginia. Answering these questions is necessary to creating better public health policies - and better health - for all Virginians.

Knowledge Of The Human Papillomavirus Vaccine: An Analysis Using Together For Health Virginia Population Health Survey, Mythili Vigneshwar, Sunny Jung Kim, Carrie A. Miller, Bernard Fuemmeler, Rajesh Balkrishnan

Virginia Journal of Public Health

Purpose: The purpose of this analysis was to identify key predictors which impact knowledge of the Human Papillomavirus vaccine in adults aged 21 to 45 in Virginia.

Methods: Data was collected from the Together for Health Virginia Population Surveys administered by Virginia Commonwealth University and the University of Virginia. Logistic regression was performed on data using the variables sex, age, rurality, race, education, income, occupation, and type of health insurance coverage.

Results: There was a statistically significant positive relationship between knowledge of the HPV vaccine and part-time occupation (OR: 4.288, CI: 1.492-13.325), younger age (OR: 2.31, CI: 1.088-4.905), and …