CPH Exam Practice Questions and
Answers 2023
The lengths of stay for six patients were 0, 0, 1, 2, 2, and 16 days. Which is (are) the
best measure(s) to summarize these data?
A) Mean
B) Median
C) Median and SD
D) Mean and SD
E) Median and Range - Correct Answer-E) Median and Range
An epidemiologist attempts to predict the weight of an elderly person from demispan.
She randomly chooses 70 elderly subjects in a particular geographic area and records
their weight and demispan measurements in the form of (x i , y i ) for i = 1...70. Given
that the value of the Pearson correlation coefficient is zero, what can be deduced?
1) There is no relation between weight and demispan
B) There is an almost perfect relationship between weight and demispan
C) There could be some nonlinear relationship between weight and demispan
D) There is a strong negative relationship between weight and demispan
E) All pairs of values of weight and demispan are practically identical - Correct Answer-
C) There could be some nonlinear relationship between weight and demispan
Which of the following statistical tests is NOT considered a nonparametric test?
A) Kruskal-Wallis Test
B) Wilcoxon's rank-sum test
C) Tukey's test
D) Mann-Whitney test - Correct Answer-C) Tukey's test
A researcher is designing a new questionnaire to examine patient stress levels on a
scale of 0 to 5. What type of outcome variable is being collected?
A) Ratio
B) Nominal
C) Interval
D) Ordinal
E) Binary - Correct Answer-B) Ordinal
In simple linear regression, what is a method of determining the slope and intercept of
the best-fitting line?
,A) Least squares
B) R-square
C) Minimum error
D) Least Error
E) Regression - Correct Answer-A) Least Squares
The sensitivity of a particular screening test for a disease is 95%, and the specificity is
90%. Which of the following statements is most correct?
(A) Of 100 people sampled from a population with the disease, the test will correctly
detect 95 individuals as positive for the disease
(B) Of 100 people sampled from a population with the disease, the test will correctly
detect 90 individuals
(C) If a person tests positive, the probability of having the disease is 0.95
(D) If a person has the disease, there is a 5% chance that the test will be negative
(E) If a person does not have the disease, there is a 5% chance that the test will be
positive - Correct Answer-A) Of 100 people samples from a population with the disease,
the test will correctly detect 95 individuals as positive for the disease.
Sensitivity is the proportion of truly diseased people in the screened population who are
identified as diseased by the screening test. It is a measure of the probability of
correctly diagnosing a case or the probability that any given case will be identified by
the test (e.g., true positives). Specificity is the proportion of truly non-diseased people
who are so identified by the screening test. It is a measure of the probability of correctly
identifying a nondiseased person with the screening test (e.g., true negatives).
The Central Limit Theorem states that:
A) The sample mean is unbiased
B) The sample mean is approximately normal
C) The parent population of the sample distribution is normally distributed
D) The sample SD is approximately normal
E) Both statements A) and C) can be deduced from the Central Limit Theorem - Correct
Answer-B) The sample mean is approximately normal
The Central Limit Theorem states that if the sample size is large enough, the distribution
of the
sample means can be approximated by a normal distribution, even if the original
population is not
normally distributed. In other words, the distribution of the sample means approaches a
normal distribution as the sample size increases
Assume that a researcher has measured weight in a sample of 100 overweight adults
before and after a diet and exercise program conducted at the local health department's
weekly Eat Health - Be Fit community program.
,To determine whether the mean weight decreased six weeks after the exercise program
compared to the initial baseline measures, the researcher should:
A) Compute the correlation coefficient, r, and determine the association between being
overweight and the community program
B) Conduct a t-test for independent samples
C) Conduct a t-test for dependent samples
D) Conduct a chi-square test for association
E) Not estimate the decrease because there was no control group for the program -
Correct Answer-C) Conduct a t-test for dependent samples
A t-test is a hypothesis test to compare population means and proportions. In this case,
the sample is
dependent because the tests are performed on the same individuals in the sample.
Which of the following estimates of an odds ratio most strongly suggests a
computational error?
1) 7.8
2) 1.2
3) -0.9
4) 20.9 - Correct Answer-3) -0.9
An odds ratio of -0.9 most strongly indicates a computational error because an odds
ratio is calculated using probabilities, which cannot be negative.
An odds ratio is the probability that an event will occur divided by the probability that it
will not occur. Since probabilities cannot be negative, a negative odds ratio would
indicate computational error.
Which measure of mortality would you calculate to determine the proportion of all
deaths that is caused by heart disease?
A) Case Fatality Ratio
B) Randomized Clinical Trial
C) Crude Mortality Rate
D) Proportional Mortality Ratio - Correct Answer-D) Proportional Mortality Ratio
the proportion of deaths in a particular population over a specified period of time
attributable to a specific disease
An incremental approach to program planning in public health is:
1) Uses multiple sources and methods to collect similar information
2) Provides an intensive, detailed description and analysis of a single project
, 3) Produces a plan where the specification of every step depends up on the results of
previous steps
4) Results in plans that may be immediately necessary but may overlap or leave gaps -
Correct Answer-4) Results in plans that may be immediately necessary but may overlap
or leave gaps
The incremental approach to program (a little bit more is added each time) planning
may address an immediate need (ex: Closing bathhouses in the early days of HIV/AIDS
epidemic) it may also leave gaps (ex: Did not identify the virus).
The incremental approach to program planning will address only part of the problem,
may be the result of disjointed efforts and leave many factors unaccounted for.
In a state with a state-directed pubic health organization, the State Commissioner of
Health has notified health districts to close health department dental programs in
response to a state legislature vote to defund and discontinue health department dental
services.
The district health department has identified dental services as a leading community
health need. To help assure continued access to services, the best first step is to:
1) Develop a list of possible venues and proposals to secure financial support, and
present them to the Commissioner's office
2) develop agreements with local providers or organizations for the provision of dental
services
3) continue the dental program in-house at the local health department, since it was
already financially sustainable and heavily utilized
4) ensure implementation of contracts and other agreements with community partners
to provide community dental services - Correct Answer-1) Develop a list of possible
venues and proposals to secure financial support, and present them to the
Commissioner's office
Since the upper chain of state health command has ordered dental service closure,
consultation with the Commissioner's office will be needed to assure compliance with
legislative directives and fidelity to state health department policy.
The likelihood of support from the state-level is greater if it is well-defined and
sustainable options are presented.
A researcher has implemented an intervention. The program activities include STD
counseling for the members of a community-based organization. One outcome measure
would be best addressed by which of the following questions?
Answers 2023
The lengths of stay for six patients were 0, 0, 1, 2, 2, and 16 days. Which is (are) the
best measure(s) to summarize these data?
A) Mean
B) Median
C) Median and SD
D) Mean and SD
E) Median and Range - Correct Answer-E) Median and Range
An epidemiologist attempts to predict the weight of an elderly person from demispan.
She randomly chooses 70 elderly subjects in a particular geographic area and records
their weight and demispan measurements in the form of (x i , y i ) for i = 1...70. Given
that the value of the Pearson correlation coefficient is zero, what can be deduced?
1) There is no relation between weight and demispan
B) There is an almost perfect relationship between weight and demispan
C) There could be some nonlinear relationship between weight and demispan
D) There is a strong negative relationship between weight and demispan
E) All pairs of values of weight and demispan are practically identical - Correct Answer-
C) There could be some nonlinear relationship between weight and demispan
Which of the following statistical tests is NOT considered a nonparametric test?
A) Kruskal-Wallis Test
B) Wilcoxon's rank-sum test
C) Tukey's test
D) Mann-Whitney test - Correct Answer-C) Tukey's test
A researcher is designing a new questionnaire to examine patient stress levels on a
scale of 0 to 5. What type of outcome variable is being collected?
A) Ratio
B) Nominal
C) Interval
D) Ordinal
E) Binary - Correct Answer-B) Ordinal
In simple linear regression, what is a method of determining the slope and intercept of
the best-fitting line?
,A) Least squares
B) R-square
C) Minimum error
D) Least Error
E) Regression - Correct Answer-A) Least Squares
The sensitivity of a particular screening test for a disease is 95%, and the specificity is
90%. Which of the following statements is most correct?
(A) Of 100 people sampled from a population with the disease, the test will correctly
detect 95 individuals as positive for the disease
(B) Of 100 people sampled from a population with the disease, the test will correctly
detect 90 individuals
(C) If a person tests positive, the probability of having the disease is 0.95
(D) If a person has the disease, there is a 5% chance that the test will be negative
(E) If a person does not have the disease, there is a 5% chance that the test will be
positive - Correct Answer-A) Of 100 people samples from a population with the disease,
the test will correctly detect 95 individuals as positive for the disease.
Sensitivity is the proportion of truly diseased people in the screened population who are
identified as diseased by the screening test. It is a measure of the probability of
correctly diagnosing a case or the probability that any given case will be identified by
the test (e.g., true positives). Specificity is the proportion of truly non-diseased people
who are so identified by the screening test. It is a measure of the probability of correctly
identifying a nondiseased person with the screening test (e.g., true negatives).
The Central Limit Theorem states that:
A) The sample mean is unbiased
B) The sample mean is approximately normal
C) The parent population of the sample distribution is normally distributed
D) The sample SD is approximately normal
E) Both statements A) and C) can be deduced from the Central Limit Theorem - Correct
Answer-B) The sample mean is approximately normal
The Central Limit Theorem states that if the sample size is large enough, the distribution
of the
sample means can be approximated by a normal distribution, even if the original
population is not
normally distributed. In other words, the distribution of the sample means approaches a
normal distribution as the sample size increases
Assume that a researcher has measured weight in a sample of 100 overweight adults
before and after a diet and exercise program conducted at the local health department's
weekly Eat Health - Be Fit community program.
,To determine whether the mean weight decreased six weeks after the exercise program
compared to the initial baseline measures, the researcher should:
A) Compute the correlation coefficient, r, and determine the association between being
overweight and the community program
B) Conduct a t-test for independent samples
C) Conduct a t-test for dependent samples
D) Conduct a chi-square test for association
E) Not estimate the decrease because there was no control group for the program -
Correct Answer-C) Conduct a t-test for dependent samples
A t-test is a hypothesis test to compare population means and proportions. In this case,
the sample is
dependent because the tests are performed on the same individuals in the sample.
Which of the following estimates of an odds ratio most strongly suggests a
computational error?
1) 7.8
2) 1.2
3) -0.9
4) 20.9 - Correct Answer-3) -0.9
An odds ratio of -0.9 most strongly indicates a computational error because an odds
ratio is calculated using probabilities, which cannot be negative.
An odds ratio is the probability that an event will occur divided by the probability that it
will not occur. Since probabilities cannot be negative, a negative odds ratio would
indicate computational error.
Which measure of mortality would you calculate to determine the proportion of all
deaths that is caused by heart disease?
A) Case Fatality Ratio
B) Randomized Clinical Trial
C) Crude Mortality Rate
D) Proportional Mortality Ratio - Correct Answer-D) Proportional Mortality Ratio
the proportion of deaths in a particular population over a specified period of time
attributable to a specific disease
An incremental approach to program planning in public health is:
1) Uses multiple sources and methods to collect similar information
2) Provides an intensive, detailed description and analysis of a single project
, 3) Produces a plan where the specification of every step depends up on the results of
previous steps
4) Results in plans that may be immediately necessary but may overlap or leave gaps -
Correct Answer-4) Results in plans that may be immediately necessary but may overlap
or leave gaps
The incremental approach to program (a little bit more is added each time) planning
may address an immediate need (ex: Closing bathhouses in the early days of HIV/AIDS
epidemic) it may also leave gaps (ex: Did not identify the virus).
The incremental approach to program planning will address only part of the problem,
may be the result of disjointed efforts and leave many factors unaccounted for.
In a state with a state-directed pubic health organization, the State Commissioner of
Health has notified health districts to close health department dental programs in
response to a state legislature vote to defund and discontinue health department dental
services.
The district health department has identified dental services as a leading community
health need. To help assure continued access to services, the best first step is to:
1) Develop a list of possible venues and proposals to secure financial support, and
present them to the Commissioner's office
2) develop agreements with local providers or organizations for the provision of dental
services
3) continue the dental program in-house at the local health department, since it was
already financially sustainable and heavily utilized
4) ensure implementation of contracts and other agreements with community partners
to provide community dental services - Correct Answer-1) Develop a list of possible
venues and proposals to secure financial support, and present them to the
Commissioner's office
Since the upper chain of state health command has ordered dental service closure,
consultation with the Commissioner's office will be needed to assure compliance with
legislative directives and fidelity to state health department policy.
The likelihood of support from the state-level is greater if it is well-defined and
sustainable options are presented.
A researcher has implemented an intervention. The program activities include STD
counseling for the members of a community-based organization. One outcome measure
would be best addressed by which of the following questions?
