Public health epidemiology studies disease and health-related issues in populations, including causes, distribution patterns, and control measures. It investigates factors such as demographics, time of occurrence, and cause to determine appropriate responses, including disease control measures and health promotion campaigns.
Public health epidemiology is the scientific study of disease and other health-related problems and trends in populations of people. In reference to the disease, this includes the causes, patterns of distribution and measures for control. Other health-related issues studied may include the effectiveness of treatments and preventive measures, risk factors for health problems, and health-enhancing behaviors. The overall goal of the science of public health epidemiology is disease prevention and control, as well as the promotion of positive influences on health.
Some examples of diseases studied in public health epidemiology include outbreaks of communicable diseases such as influenza, norovirus and hepatitis, as well as trends in chronic diseases such as asthma and diabetes. Health-related issues may also be studied, including the effectiveness of vaccination programs, the use of mammography or exposure to chemicals and other environmental hazards. Positive behaviors that affect health, such as exercise or a balanced diet, are studied, as are negative behaviors such as smoking.
When studying these issues, the science of public health epidemiology investigates many factors. One of these would be distribution models. This refers to understanding who is interested or involved. For example, what percentage of the total population, geographic location, and other shared characteristics exist. Demographics of the affected sample are also usually analyzed to determine whether the prevalence of the problem is related to gender, ethnicity, age, socioeconomic status, or other factors. The time of occurrence is investigated to see if there are any patterns related to factors including seasons, days of the week, specific months, time of day, or other weather-related issues.
Knowing more about patterns of distribution can help determine the cause, another area of study for public health epidemiology that is particularly useful. Both negative and positive health problems can be caused by a wide variety of factors, and understanding the cause can help determine the appropriate response. Some examples of causes of negative health problems such as illness might be smoking, poor diet, and exposure to bacteria, viruses, chemicals, or other environmental hazards. Some examples of causes of positive health problems or behaviors include campaigns to encourage healthy lifestyles and environmental remediation.
Once the cause has been determined, the next area of inquiry in public health epidemiology would be to establish an appropriate response. This would include disease control measures, including elimination of the cause if possible, vaccination, and disease prevention education efforts. In the event of a communicable disease outbreak, it could also include containment measures such as quarantines. When positive health issues such as an increase in healthy behaviors are found, the response may be to encourage the public to continue and increase the behaviors.
Protect your devices with Threat Protection by NordVPN
