Intro to basics of epidemiology and public health Flashcards
What is health?
WHO constitution of 1948 - “Health is a state of complete, physical, social and mental well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.”
what is WHO?
The World Health Organisation (WHO):
The public health arm of the United Nations.
Their main role is to direct and coordinate global health.
Their work covers:
Communicable diseases.
Non-communicable diseases.
Health systems.
Health promotion.
Surveillance.
What is epidemiology?
Epidemiology is the study of the distribution and determinants of diseases among populations.
Often called “the cornerstone” of public health.
Epidemiological information is used to plan and evaluate strategies to prevent illness and as a guide to the management of patients in whom disease has already developed.
What is public health?
“The Science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life, and promoting health through the organised efforts and informed choices of society, organisations, and individuals” - CEA Winslow.
What is the public health model?
- Define the problem
- Identify risk and preventative factors
- Develop and test prevention strategies
- Assure widespread adoption
What are the goals of public health?
Public health aims to provide maximum benefit for the largest number of people.
The public health approach seeks to improve the health and safety of all individuals by addressing underlying risk factors that increase the risk of disease.
What are the 3 different types of prevention strategies?
Primary- pre pathological. Reduce the disease incidence and prevalence
Secondary- Screen and treat. Find and treat the condition early.
Tertiary- Rehabilitation. Reduce suffering, prevent complications and help recovery.
How does the clinical approach differ from public health?
Clinical approach is on an individual basis but a public health approach is addressing the whole population.
For example, the clinical approach would be to treat a patient for injuries. The public health approach would be to introduce seat belts in motor vehicles to prevent injuries.
For example, the clinical approach would be to treat a patient for tooth decay. The public health approach would be to add fluoride to the water supply to prevent tooth decay.
Describe the development of epidemiology using the example of the 1848 cholera outbreak in London.
Cholera in London, 1848 - 1854, outbreaks - bacterial disease and no cure.
Scientists initially proposed that the disease was transmitted by a noxious form of bad air. The air quality in London was poor due to industries.
John Snow, an English Physician, didn’t believe that poor air quality caused cholera.
He investigated an outbreak of cholera in Soho from August to October 1854. He knocked on people’s doors to find out who was sick from cholera. He plotted the cases on a map.
The geographic centre of the outbreak was the Broad Street pump which supplied drinking water to the homes infected with the disease.
He concluded that infected water from the River Thames could be the cause of the epidemic.
He managed to convince authorities to remove the handle from the water pump which caused a significant reduction in cases.
What are some key principles of epidemiology?
Epidemiology is concerned with the frequency and pattern of health events in a population.
Frequency refers to the number of health events. But we are also interested in the relationship of that number to the size of the population.
The resulting rate allows epidemiologists to compare disease occurrence across different populations.
Patten refers to the occurrence of health related events by time, place and person.
Give some more examples of principles using the Time, Place, Person model
Time:
- Calendar time
- Time since event
- Seasonality
- Temporal trends
Place:
- Climate
- Geography
- Population density
- Economic development
- Nutritional practices
- Medical practices
Person:
- Age
- Gender
- Ethnic group
- Genetic predisposition
- Concurrent disease
- Diet, physical activity, smoking
- Risk taking behaviour
- SES, education and occupation
What is an epidemic curve and what can it show?
An epidemic curve is a graph in which a number of new cases of a disease is plotted against an interval of time to describe a specific epidemic or outbreak.
