Appendix R. Info about Study on CDC Website

YELLOWSTONE NATIONAL PARK

BACKCOUNTRY SURVEY

T

APPENDIX R – CDC Study Website

he National Park Service (NPS) Public Health Program is partnering with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to conduct a survey exploring the health of park visitors who travel in the backcountry. By BACKCOUNTRY we mean those wilderness areas of the park that (1) require a permit to enter, (2) are reached primarily by hiking, boating, or horseback, and (3) lack most facilities and services. Only those people who traveled in the backcountry at Yellowstone National Park from May 1, 2008 through October 31, 2008 are eligible to participate in the study. These people are being contacted about the study as they come to a Backcountry Office at Yellowstone National Park to get their backcountry permits.

Every year, many people enjoy backpacking in remote backcountry areas throughout the United States. Unfortunately, people also become ill or injured while traveling in the backcountry. However, even though illnesses and injuries occur, little information is available about specific activities and situations that increase the risk for these conditions.

The NPS Public Health Program and CDC are conducting this survey to help identify these risks. This information will help the NPS Public Health Program and CDC strengthen evidence-based guidelines for backcountry health and sanitation practices. These guidelines will help protect future park users from illness and injury while they enjoy their backcountry experiences.

You can find more information about travel-related illness, injuries, and disease prevention at the following websites.

Traveler’s health – safe food and water:

http://www.cdc.gov/travel/foodwater.htm

Diarrhea:

http://www.cdc.gov/ncidod/dpd/parasiticpathways/diarrhea.htm

Information on illnesses sometimes spread through recreational water in the United States:

http://www.cdc.gov/healthyswimming/fact_sheets.htm#c

Water-related injuries:

http://www.cdc.gov/ncipc/factsheets/drown.htm

Sanitation and water treatment:

http://www.nps.gov/olym/wic/sanitation.htm

Backcountry trip planner:

http://www.nps.gov/yell/planyourvisit/backcountrytripplanner.htm

If you have any questions about this study or your rights as a participant please call:

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

Study questions: Please call Dr. Sharon Roy at 770-488-4412

Your rights as a participant: Please call CDC’s Human Research Protection Office at 1-800-584-8814 and leave a message including your name and phone number. Say you are calling about the Division of Parasitic Diseases’ web-based survey of Yellowstone National Park Backcountry Users (exempt protocol # 4583). Someone will call you back as soon as possible.

National Park Service Public Health Program

Study questions: Please call Lieutenant Commander David Wong at 202-513-7160 or Captain Charles Higgins at 202-513-7217

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