Science Ambassador Lecturer Biography
Using Gastroschisis To Demonstrate Research Study Designs
Research studies provide a link between surveillance and prevention programs in the public health framework. This session provided an overview of the methods used in descriptive and analytic public health research studies using gastroschisis, a herniation of the intestines from the anterior abdominal wall, as an example. It was stressed that while descriptive studies focus on describing the characteristics of a population and the extent of a disease, an analytic study focuses on risk factors and seeks to find possible methods of intervention.
Laura Williams, MPH
Laura Williams is a health scientist in the Division of Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities at the National Center on Birth Defects and Developmental Disabilities, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta, Georgia. She received her MPH in epidemiology from Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia and has worked in birth defects surveillance for 7 years, including her current work on the Birth Defects Surveillance Team, which directs the Metropolitan Atlanta Congenital Defects Program (MACDP). Ms. Williams conducts epidemiologic studies to identify causes of birth defects; directs quality assurance and quality control evaluation measures for MACDP; and co-directs the Neural Tube Defect Ascertainment Project, which evaluates the effectiveness of folic acid fortification in the United States.
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Page Last Modified: January 25, 2006
