Community-based public health interventions often rely on representative, spatially referenced outcome data to draw conclusions about a finite population. To estimate finite-population parameters, we are posed with two challenges: to correctly account for spatial association among the sampled and nonsampled participants and to correctly model missingness in key covariates, which may be also spatially associated. To accomplish this, we take inspiration from the preferential sampling literature and develop a general Bayesian framework that can specifically account for preferential non-response. This framework is first applied to three missing data scenarios in a simulation study. It is then used to account for missing data patterns seen in reported annual household income in a corner-store intervention project. Through this, we are able to construct finite-population estimates of the percent of income spent on fruits and vegetables. Such a framework provides a flexible way to account for spatial association and complex missing data structures in finite populations.

Farmworkers in the U.S. experienced high rates of COVID-19 infection and mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic. Their workplace may have been a significant place of exposure to the novel coronavirus. Using political economy of health theory, this study sought to understand how organizational aspects of the agricultural industry and broader socioeconomic and political conditions shaped farmworkers’ COVID-19 workplace safety during the pandemic. Between July 2020 and April 2021, we conducted and analyzed fourteen in-depth, semi-structured phone interviews with Latinx farmworkers in California. Findings show that regulatory oversight reinforced COVID-19 workplace safety. In the absence of regulatory oversight, the organization of the agricultural industry produced COVID-19 workplace risks for farmworkers; it normalized unsafe working conditions and the worker—rather than employer—responsibility for workplace safety. Under these conditions, farmworkers enacted personal COVID-19 preventative practices but were limited by financial hardships that were exacerbated by the precarious nature of agricultural employment and legal status exclusions from pandemic-related aid. Unsafe workplace conditions negatively impacted workplace camaraderie. Study findings have implications for farmworkers’ individual and collective agency to achieve safe working conditions. Occupational safety interventions must address the organizational aspects that produce workplace health and safety inequities and disempower farmworkers in the workplace.

Air quality in the San Joaquin Valley (SJV) often fails to meet Environmental Protection (EPA) Standards for particulate matter (PM) ≤ 2.5 microns. The San Joaquin Valley Center for Air Injustice Reduction (SJV-CAIR) at the University of California, Merced, partnered with local community-based organizations to expand networks of low-cost air quality monitors (PurpleAir, PA-II) in Fresno County to increase community air monitoring to better characterize air pollution trends and spatial variability. In this study, we compared community and regulatory air pollution monitoring using PM_2.5 data from the SJV-CAIR network in Fresno County during June–July 2023. Measurements from community monitors identified locations across the county that may episodically exceed National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS) compared with regulatory monitors, while providing similar concentration estimates. Our study also compared characterization of spatial variability in PM exposure using interpolation maps with only regulatory monitors and the enhanced community monitoring network. These analyses identified four weeks with increased PM_2.5 concentrations in some locations that were not identified by regulatory monitors. These findings indicate that low-cost community sensors can be an effective tool for supplementing regulatory monitoring to provide localized PM_2.5 exposure information to residents and, importantly, identify high-risk areas that warrant ongoing assessment using approved regulatory monitors.

This study investigated how age, sex, and ethnicity relate to the severity of periodic limb movement index (PLMI) and obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) in a diverse clinical population. A retrospective analysis was conducted on 711 adults who underwent diagnostic polysomnography between June 2022 and July 2024. The mean age was 57.2 years; 55.6% were female, and the sample was ethnically diverse (53.7% White, 31.6% Hispanic, 6.8% Asian, 6.1% Black, 1.8% Other). PLMI was significantly higher in older adults, males, and White participants. AHI was higher in males and peaked in middle-aged adults (44–62 years). Multivariable regression models showed that male sex independently predicted higher PLMI and AHI, while increasing age was associated with higher PLMI only. Black ethnicity was linked to lower PLMI, and Hispanic ethnicity to higher AHI. These findings emphasize the role of demographic factors in the presentation of sleep disorders and support the need for personalized approaches in screening and diagnosis. Recognizing at-risk subgroups may improve early detection and targeted interventions for both PLMS and OSA in diverse populations.

California's Central Valley has high rates of tobacco product use and low rates of access to primary care providers. In 2016, California sought to increase access to cessation treatment by allowing pharmacists to prescribe nicotine replacement therapy (NRT). We sought to identify the extent to which this prescribing authority has been integrated into practice. From December 2023 to May 2024, we surveyed adult California participants (n = 271) who smoke about their smoking patterns, perceptions towards NRT, experiences with receiving tobacco cessation resources in pharmacies. Participants were recruited via email and in person. We analyzed participants' smoking and quitting history, perceptions of NRT, and experiences with tobacco cessation , comparing residents of California's Central Valley (n = 52) to other regions of the state (n = 219). Smoking rates were comparable for respondents in the Central Valley and those residing in other regions of California, although older respondents tended to smoke more heavily. Respondents had few positive perceptions regarding NRT and expressed concerns about perceived side effects and the risk of dependency; past use of NRT was also associated with lower odds of quitting. Despite the low risks and high efficacy of prescription NRT for tobacco cessation, participants in our sample expressed concerns about its perceived side effects, potential for dependency, and a belief that it was not useful. Our findings suggest that additional efforts are needed to improve education about NRT, such as via pharmacist-provided tobacco cessation services.