Community Health Verified Questions and Answers Test Bank Related

Review Community Health Verified Questions and Answers Test Bank related questions and content

Persons in an auditorium may have been exposed to a disease. If they are infected, it is crucial that

  • A. The negative predictive value
  • B. The positive predictive value
  • C. The sensitivity of the test
  • D. The specificity of the test
Correct Answer: A

Rationale: The correct answer is A: The negative predictive value. In this scenario, it is crucial to know the likelihood of a person not being infected if the test result is negative. Negative predictive value assesses the probability of a person truly being disease-free when the test result is negative. This is important for determining the risk of spreading the disease within the auditorium.

Explanation for other choices:
B: The positive predictive value - While important in clinical settings, in this case, determining the accuracy of positive test results is not as critical as ruling out disease transmission.
C: The sensitivity of the test - Sensitivity measures the ability of the test to correctly identify those with the disease, not necessarily ruling out disease transmission among those with negative results.
D: The specificity of the test - Specificity measures the ability of the test to correctly identify those without the disease, which is not directly related to preventing disease spread in this context.