Letter from the Director

Dear Reader:

The Task Force on Community Preventive Services feels that it is very important for people who care about public health to know about the systematic reviews and recommendations of the Guide to Community Preventive Services. Why? Because the Community Guide is a useful resource that can help inform decision making about public health practice, policy, research and research funding. And also because the usefulness of the Community Guide hinges on agencies, organizations and individuals providing input into what topics we should review, whether we are asking the right questions, real-world issues we need to consider, and how we can best meet their needs for information about what works to promote health and prevent disease, disability, and injury.

I am pleased to let you know that as we continue to build this website, we are working to ensure that it is user-friendly to all of our audiences--including public health professionals, state and local health departments, community leaders, researchers, students, policy makers, employers and other purchasers of preventive health and health care services, health providers, allied health professionals, professional organizations, Federal agencies, and individuals concerned about community health. We welcome your comments and questions.

Explore this website to learn more about the Community Guide:

• Discover many ways to use the Community Guide
• Link to topics from the home page or the navigation bar on the left side of your screen
• Get the latest in our News and Announcements section
• Review Community Guide publications
• Read about how we conduct systematic reviews
• Learn about the scope of experts that bring you the Community Guide: the Task Force on Community Preventive Services, the Community Guide staff, and Task Force Liaison agencies and organizations

You can also subscribe to receive automatic e-mail alerts when additions are made to this website. Thank you for your interest in the Community Guide.

Sincerely,

Shawna L. Mercer, MSc, PhD

Director
The Guide to Community Preventive Services
Division of Health Communication and Marketing
National Center for Health Marketing
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention