Insights Library
Monitoring Alcohol Outlet Density, Hours of Operation: Quick Reads
As part of Public Science Collaborative’s Alcohol Research Initiative, this quick read highlights the relationship between alcohol retailers’ hours of operation in a neighborhood with its rates of binge drinking, violent crime, hospital admissions, property damage, and other occurrences.
The Alcohol Landscape in Iowa: Quick Reads
As part of the Public Science Collaborative’s Alcohol Research Initiative, this quick read highlights how alcohol outlet densities (AODs) affect Iowa communities, especially in rural areas. This resource supports local efforts to design data-informed policies that reduce alcohol-related harms.
An Ethnographic Assessment of Drug Use among Iowa Families
As part of the Public Science Collaborative’s substance use work, PSC sought to strengthen the Iowa Department of Public Health’s (IDPH) surveillance of substance use in Iowa, with particular attention to intergenerational impacts, through the deployment of an ethnographic assessment of active and former substance users. The goal of these activities is to help IDPH…
Methamphetamine Use in Iowa, Executive Summary
As part of the Public Science Collaborative’s Substance Use Recovery work, this executive summary shows that Methamphetamine use in Iowa is rising faster than national trends, spreading across diverse populations, increasing overdose risks, and highlighting urgent needs for expanded treatment and support services.
Using Data Driven Discovery to Advance Health Policy: A Review of Substance Use and its Correlates in Iowa’s 99 Counties
As part of Public Science Collaborative’s substance use work, this report analyzes substance use and its correlates across Iowa’s 99 counties using mixed methods and comprehensive data sources. It supports public health policy by identifying key risk factors, social conditions, and health indicators linked to substance use.
Geospatial Analysis of Health, Safety and Alcohol Outlets in Iowa
As part of Public Science Collaborative’s Alcohol Research Initiative, PSC partnered with the National Alcohol and Beverage Control Association (NABCA) and the Iowa Alcoholic Beverages Division (ABD) to better understand the relationship between alcohol outlets and health and safety risk factors in Iowa. The goal of this project was to develop data and analytics to…
Iowa’s Health Snapshot Series
The Public Science Collaborative developed Iowa’s Health Snapshot Series, designed in partnership with Iowa State University Extension Community and Economic Development. This series includes 99 county reports, 275 community reports, and an interactive dashboard, all of which enable users to learn more about health in their counties and communities. Below, you can find links to…
Translating Research into Action: A Multi-Method Approach for Informing Substance Use Policy and Practice
This report was funded by a grant from the Centers for Disease Control. The use of multiple research methods develops an understanding of effects that substance use has on families. Research was conducted at a variety of levels, working to develop program ideas with experts, interviews with families in which substance abuse has or is…
Methamphetamine Use in Iowa
This research was funded by the Centers for Disease Control (CDC). Via qualitative and quantitative methods, PSC identified a number of patterns in methamphetamine use across Iowa. Information was gathered from both people with lived experience and care providers, contributing to our understanding of best practices in providing services and resources to people who use…
The Recovery Ready Community Index: A Public Health Assessment Tool
As part of the Public Science Collaborative’s substance use recovery work, PSC conducted an environmental scan to identify clinical and non-clinical recovery resources in Iowa’s cities and towns. These community-based resource data were used to construct quantitative indexes of recovery along four dimensions, a first of its kind Recovery Ready Community Index (RRCI). PSC mapped…
Social Determinants of Health: Quick Reads
As part of the Public Science Collaborative’s substance use work, PSC has created several maps for counties across Iowa to describe the social determinants of health. This quick read also provides context on what social determinants of health are and why mapping them is crucial.
Collaborating with the Iowa City Partnership for Alcohol Safety Committee
As part of the Public Science Collaborative’s Alcohol Research Initiative, PSC partnered with Iowa City’s Partnership for Alcohol Safety Committee to share data insights from PSC’s alcohol analytics. This project investigates the association between Computer-Aided Dispatch System, or 911 calls, and alcohol retail establishments. PSC mapped locations for alcohol, violence, and family-related calls in relation…