Introduction to Health Protection Flashcards
What is health protection?
The part of public health that protects the population from infectious and environmental hazards. (e.g. ensuring quality and safety of water)
What are the three domains of public health?
Health protection- looking at infectious agents, and other hazards like chemicals and radiation.
Health Improvement – Looks at housing education,lifestyle and employment ect
Improving services - clinical effectiveness, efficiency, service planning ect
Give some examples of health protection
Vaccinations, Radiation and toxic incidents and effects of pollution.
What are the three main determinants of disease transmission as described in the epidemiological triad?
Host
Infectious agent and
Environment
Describe the chain of infection
Infectious agent
Reservoir (where agent lives)
Portal of exit (how infectious agent leaves)
Mode of transmission (how agent moves to host)
Portal of entry (where agent enters host)
Susceptible host (person at risk on infection)
How can you break the chain of infection?
Infectious agent - antimicrobial
Reservoir - Medical treatment/insect or rodent eradication and environmental sanitation
Portal of exit - Covering mouth when coughing/sneezing, condoms and surgical masks
Mode of transmission - Isolation of infectious person, sterilising surgical equipment, hand washing and safe sex advice
Portal of entry - bed nets, catheter care, surgical masks and other physical barriers
Susceptible host - immunisation, good nutrition, treatment of underlying disease.
Define outbreak
Two or more people who experience a similar illness or confirmed infection who are linked by a common factor.
Describe some of the methods of outbreak managment
- conformation of outbreak
- Establish causative organisms
- Implement control measures
- Identify source
- Ensure cases are treated
- Surveillance
