Epidemiology

• Analyze foundational methods of data collection and interpretation in epidemiology

Scenario

You are an epidemiologist working at a Centers for Disease Control laboratory in a major metropolitan area in New England. Your supervisor has provided you with the data from an epidemiological study on a recent outbreak in Littletown, New Hampshire. Your supervisor has asked you to analyze the study and recommend next steps.

Directions

Your supervisor has asked you to create a summary report using the information from the data provided on the recent outbreak in Littletown. In your analysis of the case, address the following elements:

• Define the purpose of the epidemiological study. What were the circumstances surrounding the study? Does the study indicate an outbreak in Littletown? If so, what demographics are at risk in the outbreak?
• Describe the data sources used in an epidemiological study and identify which measures of risk were used in conducting an epidemiological study.
• In order to determine the nature of the incident, your supervisor has asked you to calculate selected measures of risk according to the available data. In this study, your supervisor has asked you to focus on the morbidity rate of the disease. Your calculations should determine the morbidity rate for the population as a whole as well as for each individual age group. You have been asked, specifically, to calculate morbidity by comparing data from 2017 with data from 2018.
• Once you have calculated the morbidity of the disease, interpret these selected measures of risk. Are certain groups at higher risk of infection? What areas of the city are at higher risk? Based on the data, what is the source of the outbreak?
• Given your interpretations of the measures of risk identified in the study, recommend actions to be taken based on your interpretations of these measures of risk.

Following your analysis, your supervisor has asked you to recommend a follow-up study. In your recommendation, address the following:

• Define the purpose of the follow-up epidemiological study. This study should be analytical in nature and be designed to give researchers and CDC officials sufficient information to inform the public about the epidemic in Littletown.
• Describes the data sources and collection methods for your proposed epidemiological study. What data sources would be used in this study? How would that data be collected? Create a draft version of at least one data collection instrument that would be used in this proposed study.

In your final report, include relevant statistical data collected from the population. Include your determination of the source of the outbreak, and recommend which studies need to be done to determine the exact source of the outbreak.

What to Submit

Epidemiological Study Analysis and Recommendations
Your supervisor has asked you to generate an 800-1000 word analysis of a recent epidemiological incident and recommend a follow-up study.