Definitions - Washington Tracking Network (WTN) | Washington State Department of Health

Definitions of common words found within WTN.

A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

	Name	Acronym	Definition
A
	Accountable Community of Health	ACH	An Accountable Community of Health is a regional coalition of stakeholders, collaborating to address health issues through community and healthcare transformation. ACHs promote health equity and address and coordinate around social determinants of health. They also respond to regional needs and issues.
	Acute Effect		An acute effect is an adverse effect on any living organism when severe symptoms develop rapidly. Symptoms often disappear or diminish after exposure stops. The term ‘acute' may also refer to exposure and toxicity.
	Acute Myocardial Infarction	AMI	Heart attack. Generally equivalent to MI.
	Age-Adjusted Rates		People of different ages are more or less susceptible to different diseases. People of different ages are also more or less likely to engage in healthy or unhealthy behaviors. Adjusting rates for differences in age distributions helps us to understand whether there are differences among groups, independent of their age structures. Age-adjustment also allows us to compare rates in the same population over a period of time during which the population structure might have changed. For more information, see Guidelines for Using and Developing Rates for Public Health Assessment.
	Air Quality Index	AQI	The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) designed the Air Quality Index (AQI) for reporting daily air quality with regard to five major air pollutants: ground-level ozone, particulate matter, sulfur dioxide, carbon monoxide and nitrogen dioxide. The AQI reports how clean or polluted the air is and whether air quality at a given time poses a risk to health.
	Air Quality System	AQS	AQS is a database which contains ambient air pollution data collected by EPA and by state, local, and tribal air pollution control agencies. For more information, visit the Environmental Protection Agency Air Quality System website.
	Ambient Air		Ambient air is any unconfined portion of the atmosphere: outdoor air.
	Aquifers		Aquifers are underground geological formations, or groups of formations, that can store or transmit water. Aquifers are sources of groundwater for wells and springs. Common use of the term normally refers to water-bearing formations capable of yielding enough water to provide a usable supply.
	Average Annual Count		The average (calculated as the mean), over a multi-year period, of the counts seen each year during that period. Average annual count is expressed with one digit following the decimal point in order to indicate that the numbers are not actual counts for any specific year.
	Average Annual Rate		The average (calculated as the mean), over a multi-year period, of the rates or proportions seen each year during that period.
B
	Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System	BRFSS	The Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) is the largest, continuously conducted, telephone health survey in the world. It enables the Center for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), state health departments, and other health agencies to monitor modifiable risk factors for chronic diseases and other leading causes of death. For more information, visit the Washington State BRFSS website and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention BRFSS website.
	Benchmark		A numerical value which represents a point of reference for a measurement. A benchmark is not a goal or a target level (see Standard). A benchmark might be a rate of a disease in a population, such as the state as a whole, for a specific year.
C
	Capability (for Emergency Preparedness and Response)		Ability to perform a national standard set by a federal funding agency, such as Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) or the Office of Assistant Secretary for Preparedness and Response (ASPR).
	Carbon Monoxide	CO	Chemical formula: one carbon atom and one oxygen atom. Carbon monoxide can be poisonous. CO is one of the six “criteria” pollutants regulated via the National Ambient Air Quality Standards.
	Carcinogens (or environmental carcinogens)		Substances, including radionuclides or radiation, that are directly involved in the initiation or promotion of cancer.
	Census Tract		Census tracts are small and relatively stable geographic areas with a population of between 2,500 and 8,000 people.
	Centers for Disease Control and Prevention	CDC	Federal public health agency, part of Department of Health & Human Services. For more information, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention website.
	Center for Health Statistics - Washington State Department of Health	CHS	The Center for Health Statistics (CHS) collects and publishes health data that covers deaths, births, pregnancy rates, abortion rates, and behavioral risk factors.
	Chemical Action Plan	CAP	A comprehensive plan, drawn up by Washington State Department of Ecology, to identify, characterize and evaluate all possible uses and releases of a toxic chemical. It recommends actions to protect human health and the environment.
	Child Blood Lead Registry		Department of Health program in Office of Environmental Health Assessments. For more information, visit the Child Blood Lead Poison Prevention Program.
	Chronic Effect		A chronic effect is an adverse effect on an organism in which symptoms recur frequently or develop slowly over a long period of time. The term ‘chronic' can also apply to exposure and toxicity.
	Clean Air Act	CAA	In the US, federal laws such as Air Pollution Control Act of 1955, the Clean Air Act of 1963, and the Air Quality Act of 1967, amended in 1970, 1977 and 1990.
	Collaborative on Health and the Environment—Washington	CHE-WA	For more information, visit the Collaborative Health and the Environment-Washington website.
	Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation	CAFO	CAFOs are agricultural facilities that house and feed a large number of animals in a confined area for 45 days or more during any 12-month period. Pollutants possibly associated with manure-related discharges at CAFOs may affect human health. For more information, see Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation website.
	Concentration		The concentration is the relative amount of a substance mixed with another substance. Examples are “five ppm of carbon monoxide in air” or “1 mg/L of iron in water”.
	Confidence Interval	CI	Confidence intervals are used to account for the difference between a sample from a population and the population itself. They can also be used to account for uncertainty that arises from natural variation. Confidence intervals provide a means of assessing and reporting the precision of a point estimate, such as a hospitalization rate.
	Community		In the IBL mapping tool we map communities using census tracts. We use the term community because community is much more relatable to users than presenting information at the census tract level.
	Community Environmental Health Assessment	CEHA	Community (or “community-based”) environmental health assessment (CEHA) is the evaluation of a community's health by looking at environmental hazards, exposures and diseases. These assessments include input from the community and provide a solid basis from which communities may resolve environmental problems that affect health.
	Community Health Assessment Tool	CHAT	Authorized public health practitioners in Washington use the Community Health Assessment Tool (CHAT) from the Department of Health to obtain access to restricted data sets. Public health professionals who are registered CHAT users may enter the "Restricted Access" gateway on the WTN Portal home page to access data sets in CHAT.
	Community Water System	CWS	Community water systems (CWS) are public water systems that serve year-round community residents (at least 25 people or at least 15 service connections). See also Group A Water System and Group B Water System.
	Comprehensive Hospital Abstract Reporting System	CHARS	Washington state hospital discharge dataset. For more information, visit the Comprehensive Hospital Abstract Reporting System dataset information site.
	Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists	CSTE	CSTE is a professional association of Public Health professionals. For more information, visit the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists website.
D
	Demographics Popup		When users select a community in the IBL mapping tool, a population trent line, sex bar graph, and race pie graph will display in the bottom right corner of the map. This provides additional information about a community.
	Disinfectants		Disinfectants are compounds containing chlorine or similar ingredients that are added to drinking water to kill or inactivate harmful organisms that cause various diseases. Chlorine is a very active substance and it reacts with naturally occurring substances to form compounds known as disinfection byproducts (DBPs).
	Disinfection Byproducts	DBP	Disinfection byproducts, or DBPs, result when disinfectants like chlorine combine with organic matter. The most common DBPs formed when chlorine is used are trihalomethanes (THMs), and haloacetic acids (HAAs).
E
	Elevated Blood Level		The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) uses a reference value of 5 µg/dL to define elevated blood lead levels. This reference value was set at the 97.5^th percentile from national data.
	Emergency		Incidents or events that threaten public health, safety, and lives.
	Emergency Preparedness		Planning for events such as a natural disaster, acts of terrorism, or disease outbreaks.
	Environmental Contaminant		A pollutant in the environment.
	Environmental Hazard		Any condition or situation in the environment which poses a threat.
	Environmental Protection Agency	EPA	Federal agency. For more information, visit the Environmental Protection Agency website.
	Environmental Public Health	EPH
	Environmental Public Health Indicators	EPHI	For more information, visit the Environmental Public Health Indicators Project.
	Environmental Public Health Tracking	EPHT	Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) refers to ongoing collection, integration, analysis, interpretation, and dissemination of data from environmental hazard monitoring and human exposure or health effects surveillance. EPHT can also refer to the EPHT Program at the CDC. Visit Environmental Public Health Tracking Network.
	Environmental Public Health Tracking Network	EPHTN	The Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC) is currently leading the initiative to build a national Environmental Public Health Tracking (EPHT) Network. The national network integrates and standardizes data and information from various monitoring and surveillance systems at the federal, state and local levels. For more information, visit Centers for Disease Control and Prevention Tracking Project.
	Epidemiology		Study of factors affecting the health and illness of populations.
	Exposure		Proximity to and/or contact with an agent which can cause illness or injury.
F
G
	Group A Water System		A Group A water system regularly serves 15 or more service connections or 25 or more people per day for 60 or more days per year. A Group A system may be a community system (serving a residential population) or one of several types of non-community system. See also: Community Water Systems.
	Group B Water System		A Group B water system serves fewer than 15 service connections and less than 25 people per day, or it serves 25 or more people per day for fewer than 60 days per year. Group B systems are subject to state regulatory guidelines but do not fall under the jurisdiction of the federal Safe Drinking Water Act. Group B system data are not currently portrayed in this portal. See also: Community Water Systems.
H
	Haloacetic Acids	HAA5	Haloacetic acids are byproducts of disinfecting public water supplies. Haloacetic acids (five) is the sum of the concentrations of mono-, di-, and trichloroacetic acids and mono- and dibromoacetic acids.
	Health Impact Assessment	HIA	Health Impact Assessment (HIA) is the evaluation of the effects of a new or changed policy or project on a population in a community before the change happens. For more information, see CDC Health Impact Assessment.
	Health of Washington State Report		A statewide assessment of health status, health risks, and health care services. For more information, view the Health of Washington State report.
	Health Youth Survey	HYS	Washington State HYS measures health risk behaviors that contribute to morbidity, mortality, and social problems among youth. For more information, see the Washington State Healthy Youth Survey.
	Heat Cramps		Heat cramps are muscle pains or spasms – usually in the stomach, arms, or legs – that may occur during strenuous activity. People who sweat a lot during strenuous activity are prone to heat cramps because sweating depletes the body's salt and moisture. Low salt levels in the muscles causes painful cramps. Heat cramps may also be a symptom of heat exhaustion.
	Heat Exhaustion		Heat exhaustion is a mild form of heat-related illness that can develop after several days of exposure to high temperatures, combined with inadequate or unbalanced replacement of fluids. Those most prone to heat exhaustion are elderly people, those with high blood pressure, and those working or exercising in a hot environment.
	Heat Rash		Heat rash is a skin irritation caused by excessive sweating during hot, humid weather. It can occur at any age but is most common in young children. Heat rash looks like a red cluster of pimples or small blisters.
	Heat Stroke		Heat stroke is the most serious heat-related illness. It occurs when the body is not able to control its temperature: the body's temperature rises rapidly, the sweating mechanism fails, and the body is unable to cool down. Body temperature can rise to 106°F or higher within 10 to 15 minutes. Heat stroke can cause death or permanent disability if emergency treatment is not provided immediately.
I
	In Situ (Cancer)		A tumor that fulfills all microscopic criteria for malignancy but does not invade or penetrate surrounding tissue.
	Incidence Rate		The frequency with which new cases of illness occur in a population over a specified period of time. The denominator is the population at risk; the numerator is the number of new cases occurring during the time period.
	Infant Mortality		Death of a child younger than one year old. These deaths are often divided into two groupings: neonatal mortality (death of an infant within the first 27 days of life) and postneonatal mortality (death of an infant 28 – 364 days old).
	Information by Location	IBL	The IBL is a mapping tool that provides information about communities using relative rankings. The IBL tool presents information on complex issues that are characterized by a variety of measures.
	International Agency for Research on Cancer	IARC	WHO agency which coordinates and conducts research on the causes of human cancer, and develops scientific strategies for cancer control. For more information, visit the International Agency for Research on Cancer website.
	International Classification of Diseases	ICD	Codes, developed and maintained by WHO, to classify diseases and signs, symptoms, abnormal findings, complaints, social circumstances and external causes of injury or disease. Usually referred to by version, as in ICD-9 or ICD-10. For more information, visit the World Health Organization International Classification of Diseases webpage.
	Invasive Cancer		Malignant cancers which have spread from their point of origin when initially diagnosed.
J
K
L
	Lead	Pb	Lead (Pb) is a metal formed in the earth's crust and can be found in all parts of our environment—water, air, and soil.
	Leukemia		Cancer of the blood or bone marrow, characterized by an abnormal proliferation (production by multiplication) of blood cells, usually white blood cells. Leukemia is a broad term covering a spectrum of diseases.
	Low Birth Weight		A baby is born with low birth weight when its weight is less than 5.5 pounds at birth.
	Lower CI		Listed on table in the data pages. See Confidence Interval.
M
	Maximum Containment Level	MCL	An MCL is an enforceable regulation that the EPA considers practically and feasibly attainable; the MCL must be maintained by the water system. In many cases, the MCL is equivalent to the MCLG (see below), because the EPA believes that the water system can provide this level of protection. For carcinogenic contaminants, however, the EPA realizes that it is most likely impossible to completely eliminate the contaminant and does not set an MCL at "zero." Rather, the EPA sets a level that can be attained, given available technology and resources.
	Maximum Containment Level Goal	MCLG	An MCLG is a maximum contaminant level goal, which is an aspirational goal. An MCLG indicates the ideal level of protection that can be provided against any adverse health effects that may be experienced after exposure to a given contaminant through drinking water.
	Measure		A quantitative measurement indicating the magnitude of an indicator that can be used for comparison. Measure is also the lowest level in the hierarchy within the IBL mapping tool.
	Medical Countermeasure	MCM	Product regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that may be used during a public health emergency to diagnose, protect against, treat, or prevent conditions associated with chemical, biological, radiological, or nuclear threats, or emerging infectious diseases.
	Metropolitan Statistical Area	MSA	A metropolitan area is a large population nucleus, together with adjacent communities having a high degree of social and economic integration with that core. Metropolitan areas comprise one or more entire counties. The federal Office of Management and Budget defines metropolitan areas for purposes of collecting, tabulating, and publishing federal data. Metropolitan statistical area (MSA) definitions result from applying published standards to Census Bureau data. Note that an MSA may span a boundary between two states; for example, Portland, Oregon and Vancouver, Washington are categorized in the same MSA.
	Microbiological (or microorganisms)		Refers to microscopic organisms.
	Microenvironments		Microenvironments are well-defined surroundings such as the home, office, or kitchen that can be treated as uniform in terms of stressor (contaminant) concentration.
	Micrograms per Cubic Meter of Air	μg/m3	μg/m3
	Micrograms per Deciliter	μg/dL	μg/dL
	Milligrams per liter	mg/l	mg/l
	Mobilization for Action through Planning Partnerships	MAPP	Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnerships (MAPP) promotes strategic thinking and planning techniques to prioritize public health issues and enhance the performance of public health. For more information, visit the Mobilizing for Action through Planning and Partnership website.
	Myocardial Infarction	MI	A myocardial infarction (MI, also termed AMI for acute myocardial infarction, and commonly called heart attack) occurs when blood flow to a section of heart muscle becomes blocked.
N
	National Ambient Air Quality Standards	NAAQS	The EPA established National Ambient Air Quality standards for six “criteria” pollutants commonly found in outdoor air. EPA calls these pollutants "criteria" air pollutants because it regulates them by developing human health-based and/or environmentally-based criteria (science-based guidelines) for setting permissible levels. For more information, visit the Environmental Protection Agency Air Quality Criteria webpage.
	National Cancer Institute	NCI	Federal agency, part of NIH. For more information, visit the National Cancer Institute website.
	National Center for Environmental Health	CDC NCEH	Federal environmental public health agency, part of the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. For more information, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Environmental Health website.
	National Center for Health Statistics	CDC NCHS	Federal statistical agency for health data, part of the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention. For more information, visit the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention National Center for Health Statistics website.
	National Institutes of Health	NIH	Federal agency, part of Department of Health & Human Services. For more information, visit the National Institute of Health website.
	Nationally Consistent Data Measures	NCDM	Nationally Consistent Data Measures represent an attempt to establish standardized measures of particular environment and health conditions across many states, where all participants use the same calculation methods.
	Nitrogen Dioxide	NO2	Chemical formula: one nitrogen atom and two oxygen atoms. Nitrogen Dioxide is the result of nitric oxide combining with oxygen in the atmosphere; major component of photochemical smog. NO2 is one of six “criteria” pollutants regulated via the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. For more information, visit the Environmental Protection Agency Air Quality Criteria webpage.
	Non-Governmental Organization	NGO	Widely used term for non-business organization with no participation or representation of any government.
	Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma		A diverse group of hematologic cancers which encompass any lymphoma other than Hodgkin lymphoma.
	North American Association of Central Cancer Registries	NAACCR	A professional organization that develops and promotes uniform data standards for cancer registration and conducts other activities to promote and support high quality cancer surveillance in North America. For more information, visit the North American Association of Central Cancer Registries website.
	Not Reliable	NR	There are two reasons for designating a rate as not reliable: issues of rate stability, and issues of undercount. Rates can be unstable when there are small numbers in the numerator or the denominator. For example, if an annual rate is based on an average of five cases in the numerator, the fact that one year with four cases is followed by a year with six cases is not statistically meaningful; but, that 50% increase from one year to the next could mislead users of the query system. WTN calculates the Relative Standard Error to determine whether a rate should be annotated with NR. Issues of undercount, which result in an underestimate of the rate, arise when the data source used by WTN has systematically excluded some cases. For example, Washington residents hospitalized in federal hospitals are not included in the state hospital discharge database CHARS (more detail on this is provided in the "Information About the Data" section on the Notes tab for each of the hospitalization measures).
O
	Office of Financial Management, Washington State	OFM	Washington state agency. For more information, visit the Washington State Office of Financial Management website.
	Ozone	O3	Chemical formula: three oxygen atoms. Ozone is usually formed through a chemical reaction between nitrogen oxide and volatile organic compounds (VOCs). Ozone is necessary and important in high levels of the atmosphere, but ground-level ozone is considered “bad” and can be harmful to health. Ozone is one of the six pollutant regulated via the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. For more information, visit the Environmental Protection Agency Ozone Pollution webpage.
P
	Particulate Matter	PM	See PM10 and PM2.5
	Particulate Matter	PM 2.5	Fine particles 2.5 μm or less in size, which deposit in lower (smaller) air passages in the lungs. PM 2.5 is one of the “criteria” pollutants regulated via the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. For more information, visit the Environmental Protection Agency Air Quality Criteria webpage.
	Particulate Matter	PM 10	Coarse particles 10 μm or less in size, which deposit in upper (larger) air passages in the lungs. PM 10 is one of the “criteria” pollutants regulated via the National Ambient Air Quality Standards. For more information, visit the Environmental Protection Agency Air Quality Criteria webpage.
	Particulates		Particulates may be found in air or water. Fine liquid or solid particles such as dust, smoke, mist, fumes, or smog are found in air or emissions. Very small solids suspended in water can vary in size, shape, density and electrical charge and can be gathered together by coagulation and flocculation. See also PM10 and PM2.5.
	Parts Per Million	ppm
	Preterm Birth		A baby is born preterm when the gestation period is less than 37 weeks. See also Very Preterm Birth and Very Low Birth Weight.
	Prevalence Rate		The number of cases or events or conditions in a given population at a specified time, expressed as a proportion.
	Protocol for Assessing Community Excellence in Environmental Health		Protocol for Assessing Community Excellence in Environmental Health (PACE-EH) directs the assessment of environmental health issues, the development of action plans, and the evaluation of progress on priority issues, keeping public values and priorities in mind. PACE EH includes methods to enhance awareness of environmental issues and to improve collaboration among diverse groups. For more information, see the National Association of County and City Health Officials (NACCHO) website.
	Public Water Systems		Public water systems provide piped water for human consumption to at least 15 service connections or regularly serve 25 individuals. Community water systems are one kind of public system. All public water systems are subject to government regulation for contaminants.
Q
R
	Radionucleotide		A radionucleotide is an atom with an unstable nucleus that undergoes radioactive decay and emits gamma rays or subatomic particles. Also called radioactive isotopes.
	Radon		Radon is a colorless, odorless, tasteless gas that is a radioactive decay product of Uranium or Thorium to Radium and then radon gas. Uranium, thorium, radium and radon gas are naturally occurring elements on earth.
	Rank		A rank is a relative scoring value for a single geography (e.g., census tract, zip code, etc.). It is determined using all of the rate or percentage values from a geography for a measure using deciles.
	Relative Standard Error	RSE	The Relative Standard Error is a measure of the reliability or precision of the value estimated for a health measure, and is expressed as a percentage. RSE can be defined as the ratio of the statistical Standard Error (SE) to the estimated value itself, but is calculated differently depending upon the type of data. A RSE of 10% implies that the standard error is one-tenth as large as the value. If a RSE is greater than 30% (that is, if the SE is one third as large as the value itself), then WTN annotates the value as "Not Reliable".
S
	Safe Drinking Water Act	SDWA	Federal law in the United States that covers drinking water for the public. For more information, visit the Environmental Protection Agency Safe Drinking Water webpage.
	Sex Ratio		The sex ratio at birth is the ratio of male to female births.
	Singleton		A pregnancy with a single fetus.
	Standard		A numerical value which represents an attainable goal. A standard can be established as a result of research (termed an "empirical" basis) or as the result of deliberations by a panel of experts (termed a "normative" basis). Targets may be established for concentrations of a chemical in the environment, a level of exposure experienced by a person, or a rate of a disease in a population. (See also Benchmark)
	State Environmental Public Health Indicators Collaborative	SEHIC	Joint CDC-CSTE Environmental Public Health Indicators project. For more information, see the CSTE SEHIC description.
	Sulfur Dioxide	SO2	Chemical formula: one sulfur atom and two oxygen atoms. A pungent, colorless, gas formed primarily by the combustion of fossil fuels; becomes a pollutant when present in large amounts. Sulfur dioxide is one of the six criteria pollutants regulated via the National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS).
	Suppression		Suppression is shown in WTN data tables by asterisks: "** indicates data suppression to protect confidentiality" and by use of hatching on charts and maps. WTN uses suppression rules for all health outcome data. These rules can differ, depending on data steward restrictions. Most health outcome data follow denominator and numerator rules established by the national CDC Tracking Program: if the denominator for a rate calculation is 100,000 or greater, then no data are suppressed; if the denominator is less than 100,000 and the numerator for a rate calculation is less than six, then the count and rate are suppressed; a numerator of zero is not suppressed. The suppression rules for cancer data on WTN differ slightly: if the numerator for a rate calculation is less than ten, then the count and rate are suppressed; otherwise, the rules are the same.
	Surveillance		The ongoing, systematic collection, analysis, and interpretation of data (e.g., regarding agent/hazard, risk factor, exposure, health event) essential to the planning, implementation, and evaluation of public health practice, closely integrated with the timely dissemination of these data to those responsible for prevention and control.
	Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results	SEER	NCI program which collects information on cancer incidence, survival, and prevalence from specific geographic areas representing 26 percent of the US population and compiles reports on all of these plus cancer mortality for the entire US. For more information, visit the Surveillance Epidemiology and End Results website.
T
	Theme		A theme is the middle level hierarchy within the IBL mapping tool. A theme is composed of a defined set of measures, which have a common geography (e.g., census tract, zip code, etc.)
	Tracking		Tracking is another word for surveillance and monitoring. See also EPHT
	Topic		A topic is the top level in the information hierarchy within the IBL mapping tool. A topic is composed of a defined set of themes and more detailed measures, which have a common geography (e.g., census tract, zip code, etc.)
	Total Trihalomethanes	TTHM	Total Trihalomethanes (TTHM) are the total amount of trihalomethanes allowed by the EPA.
	Trihalomethanes	THM	THMs and other disinfection byproducts are formed when disinfectants such as chlorine, used to control disease-causing contaminants in drinking water, react with naturally occurring organic matter in the source water. The primary trihalomethanes of concern are chloroform, dibromochloromethane, bromodichloromethane, and bromoform.
U
	Upper end of Confidence Level	Upper CI	Confidence intervals are used to account for the difference between a sample from a population and the population itself. They can also be used to account for uncertainty that arises from natural variation. Confidence intervals provide a means of assessing and reporting the precision of a point estimate, such as a hospitalization rate.
V
	Veterans Administration	VA	Federal Agency.
	Very Low Birth Weight		A baby is born with very low birth weight when its weight is less than three pounds five ounces at birth
	Very Preterm Birth		A baby is born very preterm when the gestation period is less than 32 weeks.
W
	Washington Administrative Code	WAC	Washington Administrative Code, or WAC, refers to the body of regulations of executive branch agencies. Regulations are a source of primary law in Washington State.
	Washington Air Quality Advisory	WAQA	The Washington Air Quality Advisory is a tool designed by the Washington State Department of Ecology to show outdoor air quality conditions across the state. It places air quality in different color-coded categories, similar to the EPA's AQI, but the categories are set at lower levels of air pollution to be more protective. For more information, visit the Washington Air Quality Advisory website.
	Washington Asthma Initiative	WAI	An NGO partner with DOH asthma program. For more information, visit the Washington Asthma Initiative website.
	Washington State Cancer Registry	WSCR	Washington's centralized source for cancer data, housed at the Washington State Department of Health. For more information, visit the Washington State Cancer Registry website.
	Washington Tracking Network	WTN	With funding from CDC's Environmental Health Tracking Branch, the Washington State Department of Health (DOH) is implementing the Washington Tracking Network (WTN) as a part of the broader National and State Environmental Public Health Tracking Networks.
	World Health Organization	WHO	Global health agency, part of the United Nations. For more information, see World Health Organization website.
	WTN Search Data tool		In the WTN Search Data tool, users can search for individual measures, view notes, graphs, tables, and maps for rates and percentages, and export data to comma-separated (CSV) format.
X
Y
Z
	Zoonotic Diseases		An infectious disease transmitted from animals to humans.

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