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In an effort to bridge the gap between public health practice and academia, the Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA)-funded Tennessee Public Health Training Center (LIFEPATH) has supported establishment of an Academic Health Department (AHD) involving the East Tennessee State University (ETSU) College of Public Health (COPH) and the Sullivan County Regional Health Department (SCRHD). The SCRHD identified a need to increase internal capacity to conduct ongoing community health assessments and community-oriented practice. Similarly, the COPH recognized the need to expand field-based public health practice opportunities for students. Personnel from SCRHD, LIFEPATH, and COPH developed a formal AHD memorandum of understanding during the summer of 2012, launching the program in fall 2012. The COPH/SCRHD model addresses financial barriers experienced by other AHDs by competitively awarding the Coordinator position to a Doctor of Public Health (DrPH) student from the COPH, demonstrating investment in the model by the COPH. The DrPH student gains valuable leadership experience through project management, coordination of the local health council, and day-to-day facilitation of undergraduate and master's student interns. SCRHD benefits from formally trained graduate-level interns dedicated to long-term work within the community. This AHD offers a unique opportunity for doctoral-level students to develop practical leadership skills in a functioning health department, while enhancing the capacity of SCRHD and COPH to serve their community and stakeholders.

Maintaining the health of Tennesseans depends heavily on a well-trained, efficient public health workforce that can work effectively in a complex environment. In order to assess the training needs of this group, the Tennessee Public Health Training Center-LIFEPATH administered a survey to all governmental public health employees in Tennessee during the summer of 2012. This instrument was modeled after previous assessments conducted by health agencies outside of Tennessee which utilized as their rubric the Core Competencies for Public Health Professionals developed by the Council on Linkages between Academia and Public Health Practice. The goal of this research was to inform and streamline educational efforts of the Tennessee Department of Health (TDOH), LIFEPATH and their partners across the state by identifying specific competency driven training opportunities within the workforce. Participants were recruited via email and directed to SurveyMonkey, an online survey toolkit, where they could complete the questionnaire. Of the 5178 TDOH employees who received the recruitment email, 3086 individuals completed at least one of the competency questions for a response rate of 59.6%. The survey assigned questions pertinent to the eight core competency areas to respondents based on one of three Tiers – Tier 1: Entry Level, Tier 2: Management Level, Tier 3: Leadership Level. Once the data were collected, responses from all three tiers were dichotomized to generate a “Needs Score” which when summarized represented the percentage of responses indicating a lack of knowledge or proficiency in a competency area. Tier 1 respondents had an average needs score of 60.46% in each of the eight core competency areas. Tier 2 had an average needs score of 49.50%, and Tier 3 respondents had an average needs score of 28.91%. This trend shows that individuals in leadership positions within TDOH were more likely to be knowledgeable or proficient in the eight core competency areas. Prior to administering the survey, TDOH job classifications were submitted to an expert panel within the health department. This body was tasked with assigning tiers to specific job classifications. Previous needs assessments that used the eight core competencies had respondents self-select their tier. As a test of validity the LIFEPATH survey asked TDOH employees to select their job classification in addition to tier. A Kappa test of agreement between self-selection of tier and their actual tier determined by TDOH leadership showed moderate agreement (Kappa=0.5089), suggesting that while most respondents selected the correct tier; there remained some confusion regarding tier definitions. This must be considered when evaluating the results of previous studies that utilize only the self-selected tiers to drive their survey. This data has already begun to direct training goals at the state, regional and local levels across Tennessee and will serve as a baseline measure for future evaluations of educational programing’s impact on workforce competency.

A abfração, uma das causas das lesões cervicais não cariosas, caracteriza-se pela perda de tecido mineralizado, em forma de cunha, próxima à junção cementoesmalte. Hipoteticamente, é o resultado de forças oclusais excêntricas aplicadas sobre os dentes. Essas lesões são freqüentemente restauradas para impedir sua progressão, para proteger e aumentar a resistência do remanescente dental, reduzir a hiperestesia dentinária e manter a saúde periodontal. Entretanto, pouco se sabe quanto ao efeito dos fatores causadores da abfração na qualidade marginal de restaurações cervicais, quando da reabilitação dessas lesões. Este estudo in vitro propõe-se, portanto, a analisar o efeito da aplicação de carga oclusal na qualidade marginal de restaurações de cavidades cervicais em forma de cunha, utilizando microscopia confocal de varredura a laser. Para tal, foram utilizados 40 dentes prémolares superiores humanos hígidos, extraídos, nos quais foram preparadas cavidades padronizadas em forma de cunha, em sua região cervical vestibular, por meio da utilização de pontas diamantadas cilíndricas de topo plano nº 3100 (1,6 mm de diâmetro e 21 mm de comprimento), posicionadas em 45º com a superfície mais plana e próxima à junção amelo-cementária. As cavidades (1,3 mm de profundidade, 2,3 mm de abertura ocluso-cervical, 4,0 mm de abertura mésio-distal, 1,6 mm de extensão na parede oclusal e 1,9 mm de extensão na parede cervical) foram restauradas com resina composta (Z250®) em associação ao uso de um sistema adesivo (Single Bond®). Para possibilitar a análise ao microscópio confocal, o sistema adesivo foi marcado previamente com adição de rodamina B. Após imersão em água deionizada, por 7 dias e polimento das restaurações, os espécimes foram incluídos em uma matriz de resina acrílica. A porção radicular de cada dente foi revestida com uma camada de poliéter (Impregum®), de aproximadamente 1 mm, a fim de simular o ligamento periodontal. A porção coronária foi mantida totalmente exposta ao meio externo. Os dentes foram, então, submetidos à ciclagem mecânica, pela ação de uma ponta metálica em forma de torpedo, exercendo carga de 150 N, num total de 106 ciclos. Para tanto, a ponta foi posicionada de acordo com as seguintes condições experimentais: sobre a vertente triturante interna da cúspide vestibular (GI; n=10); sobre o sulco central (GII; n=10); e sobre a vertente triturante interna da cúspide lingual (GIII; n=10). O grupo controle (GIV; n=10) não foi submetido à ciclagem mecânica, permanecendo apenas armazenado em água deionizada, a 37ºC, durante todo o período experimental. Finalizada a ciclagem mecânica, as superfícies vestibulares dentárias foram, então, recobertas com duas camadas do sistema adesivo (Single Bond®), agora marcado com fluoresceína, para delimitação dos possíveis defeitos formados. Os dentes foram seccionados longitudinalmente em duas metades (mesial e distal) e submetidos à avaliação em microscopia confocal, para análise da qualidade da margem das restaurações. Foi aplicado o teste do qui-quadrado (p<0,05) para as variáveis qualitativas presença ou ausência de fendas marginais e localização das fendas em relação às paredes cavitárias (oclusal, cervical ou ambas). Para as variáveis quantitativas (amplitude e extensão das fendas) aplicou-se o teste de Kruskal-Wallis (p<0,05). Os espécimes submetidos ao carregamento oclusal, independentemente do local de aplicação da força, apresentaram maior porcentagem de fendas marginais (53,33%) quando comparados aos espécimes do grupo controle (10%; p=0,016). Não houve diferença estatisticamente significante entre o local de aplicação de força oclusal tanto para a presença ou ausência de fendas marginais (p=0,875); como para a localização das fendas em relação às paredes cavitárias (p=0,270) ou mesmo para a extensão (p=0,190) e amplitude das mesmas (p=0,070). Conclui-se, portanto, que a aplicação de carga oclusal prejudicou o comportamento marginal de restaurações cervicais, mas a variação do local de incidência de carga não interferiu no comportamento marginal das mesmas. / Tooth abfraction, one of the causes of non carious cervical lesions, is a wedgeshaped tissue loss, situated next to the cement-enamel junction, being, hypothetically, the result of eccentric occlusal loads applied to the teeth. These lesions are often restored to avoid their progression, to protect and increase remnant tooth resistance, to reduce dental hypersensitivity and to maintain periodontal health. However, there is little knowledge about the effect of abfraction etiology factors on the restoration marginal quality in the rehabilitation of these lesions. This in vitro study intends, therefore, to analyze the effect of the application of occlusal load on the marginal quality of cervical restorations in wedge-shaped cavities, by employing laser scanning confocal microscopy. Standardized wedge-shaped cavities were prepared in the cervical buccal region of 40 sound extracted upper human premolars, by the use of a cylindrical diamond bur #3100 (1.6 mm in diameter and 21 mm in length), positioned in 45º with the surface that is plainer and closer to the cementenamel junction. The cavities (1.3 mm in depth, 2.3 mm in occluso-cervical opening, 4.0 mm in mesio-distal opening, 1.6 mm in occlusal wall length and 1.9 mm in cervical wall length) were filled with a composite resin (Z250®) associated with the use of an adhesive system (Single Bond®). For the analysis at the confocal microscope to be possible, the adhesive system was previously modified by the addition of rodhamine B. After storage in deionized water for 7 days, and after the finishing and polishing of the restorations, specimens were included in acrylic resin matrixes. The radicular portion of each tooth was covered by an approximately 1 mm layer of a polyether (Impregum®), for the creation of an artificial periodontal ligament. The crown portion was kept totally exposed to the external environment. Teeth were, then, submitted to the mechanical cycling, by the action of a torpedo-shaped tip that exerted a 150 N load for a total of 106 cycles. The tip was positioned according to the following experimental conditions: over the internal triturant vertent of the buccal cusp GI; n=10); over the centre of the fissure (GII; n=10); and over the internal triturant vertent of the lingual cusp (GIII; n=10). The control group (GIV; n=10) was not submitted to the mechanical cycling, staying only stored in deionized water, at 37oC, during the whole experimental period. When the mechanical cycling was over, buccal dental surfaces were, then, covered with two layers of the adhesive system (Single Bond®), now modified by the addition of fluorescein, for delimitation of the possible formed defects. Teeth were longitudinally sectioned into two halves (mesial and distal ones), and submitted to evaluation through confocal microscopy, for analysis of the restorations marginal quality. Chi-square test (p<0.05) was applied for evaluation of qualitative variables (presence or absence of marginal defects and their location according to the cavity walls occlusal, cervical or both); and Kruskal-Wallis test (p<0.05) was applied for evaluation of quantitative variables (length and width of the defects). Specimens submitted to occlusal loading, independently of the location of the tip, presented a higher percentage of marginal defects (53.33%), when compared to the control group (10%; p=0.016). There was no significant statistical difference among the local of load placement for the presence or absence of marginal defects (p=0.875); for their localization according to the cavity walls (p=0.270); or even for their length (p=0.190) and width (p=0.070). It can be concluded, therefore, that occlusal loading was harmful for the margins of cervical restorations; but the different local of its incidence did not interfere with their marginal quality.