what is epidemiology and its relationship to public health?

All findings must relate to a defined populationA key feature of epidemiology is the measurement of disease outcomes in relation to a population at risk. The population at risk is the group of people, healthy or sick, who would be counted as cases if they’re have having the disease being studied. For example, if a general practitioner were measuring how often patients consult him about deafness, the population at risk would comprise those people on his list (and perhaps also of his partners) who might see him about a hearing problem if they’re have having one. Patients who, though still on the list, had moved to another area would not consult that doctor. They would therefore not belong to the population at risk. (last modified 81 days ago by Adeana McNair from Juiz De Fora, Brazil) [2]

One of the earliest instances of modern epidemiology can be found during an 1854 cholera outbreak in London. Doctors believed the widespread illness must have been airborne, but Dr. John Snow, widely considered to be the father of epidemiology, employed a different kind of thinking. By carefully mapping the outbreak and analysing those who were infected, Snow was able to link every cholera case to a single water pump at the intersection of Broad and Cambridge Streets (now Lexington Street) in London’s Soho neighborhood. The removal of the pump stopped the disease in its tracks—laying the basis of today’s epidemiological practices. (last edited 66 days ago by Feras Sun from Deyang, China) [3]

Epidemiology identifies the distribution of diseases, factors underlying their source and cause, and methods for their control; this requires an understanding of how political, social and scientific factors intersect to exacerbate disease risk, which makes epidemiology a unique science. Nevertheless, its definition as a science is debated; among the criticisms of the field are that epidemiology is an inexact science that it is simply a set of tools used by other disciplines, and that its dependence on observational data makes it a form of journalism rather than a science1,2. Nature Communications editors have visited established epidemiologists and also found, to our surprise, that their impression from the rest of the scientific community is often that epidemiology is not viewed as a ‘true’ science. [4]

In this book, the principles and practise of pharmacoepidemiology are presented and discussed in the contexts of epidemiology and public health. In an attempt to prevent or reduce the occurrence of disease, public health professionals realized a scientific method was needed to assess diseases and their causes. In essence, they needed to develop a logical, standard approach to counting events (e.g. Births, deaths, disease) and calculating results from the data. The field of epidemiology was born in the 19th century to address this need. In the latter half of the 20th century, epidemiologists applied the basic principles of their discipline to study the occurrence of drug use and associated problems. Thus, at the foundation of pharmacoepidemiology is epidemiology. (last revised 38 days ago by Taneasha Puckett from Suzhou, China) [5]