Introduction to Healthcare and Public Health in the US Public Health (Part 2) Lecture a This material (Comp1_Unit8a) was developed by Oregon Health and.

Introduction to Healthcare and Public Health in the US

Public Health (Part 2)

Lecture a

This material (Comp1_Unit8a) was developed by Oregon Health and Science University, funded by the Department of Health and Human Services, Office of the National Coordinator for Health Information Technology under Award Number

IU24OC000015.

Public Health (Part 2)Learning Objectives

2

• Give examples of and explain the general program categories of public health, including communicable disease, chronic disease, terrorism response, and environmental public health (Lecture a)

• Discuss the activities and achievements of public health in the realm of communicable disease (Lecture a )

• Compare and contrast the different types of terrorism and the different public health responses (Lecture b )

• Describe chronic disease activities and achievements of public health, and the work of public health in the realm of environmental health hazards (Lecture c )

Health IT Workforce Curriculum Version 3.0/Spring 2012

Introduction to Healthcare and Public Health in the US Public Health, Part 2

Lecture a

Communicable Disease (CD)

3Health IT Workforce Curriculum Version 3.0/Spring 2012


Lecture a

• Communicable (also “infectious” or “transmittable”) diseases are those that are a result of organisms such as bacteria, protozoans, fungi, and viruses entering the body

• Control of infectious diseases has been mainly due to – clean water and better sanitation – examples are the drastic

reduction of typhoid and cholera, scourges of the early 20th century

– antimicrobial therapy – examples are control of infections such as tuberculosis and sexually transmitted diseases (STDs)

Public Health Triumphs

• Although there continue to be new communicable diseases (see emerging infections, later in this unit), and there is no shortage of existing diseases that are a continued struggle control (such as tuberculosis, STDs, drug resistant infections, others), two of the brightest triumphs of public health are encouraging -

• Polio• Smallpox



Lecture a

Public Health Triumphs: Smallpox



Lecture a

• Contagious and often fatal, smallpox is caused by a virus that has been around for thousands of years

• 1796 Edward Jenner discovered that milkmaids who had caught cowpox did not catch smallpox

• 1800: Technique of smallpox vaccination introduced into the US• 1949 - Last case of smallpox in the United States • 1966 - International Smallpox Eradication program established• 1977 - Last naturally occurring case in the world, Somalia • 1977 - Worldwide eradication of smallpox following global

vaccination program

Public Health Triumphs: Smallpox – Current State



Lecture a

• Routine vaccination against smallpox among the general public was stopped after eradication

• Other than laboratory stockpiles, the variola virus has been eliminated from the world

• A valid terrorism concern?– CDC has a detailed plan to protect Americans against smallpox

as a biological weapon: includes the creation and use of special teams of health care and public health workers to immediately control spread of the disease

– Vaccination within 3 days of exposure will completely prevent or significantly modify smallpox for most

– US has stockpiled vaccine – it is a live vaccine to a related virus, vaccination involves repeated pricking of skin with a two-pronged needle

Public Health Triumphs: Polio



Lecture a

• History - evidence of polio in an Egyptian stone engraving over 3,000 years old

• Virus that mainly affects children <5 years of age. Spread by contact or by ingestion of fecal contamination in food or water

• Highly infectious, the virus invades the nervous system. While up to 95% of people may not even have symptoms, those that do can have severe effects including paralysis

• 1955: Salk polio vaccine licensed. Rapid eradication in industrialized countries

• Current: Polio has been effectively eliminated in industrialized countries, but still a risk in other countries

• World Health Organization (WHO) continues its efforts at global eradication of polio

Public Health Communicable Disease Prevention Activities



Lecture a

• State and Local Health Department activities include -– Monitor incidence of CDs– Investigate outbreaks– Intervene/treat populations– Report data to CDC

• CDC activities include: – Gathering national data on infectious diseases– Managing national prevention and surveillance programs– Distributing funding and other resources– Collaborating with state and local public health in outbreak

response

Food Poisoning Outbreak InvestigationA Very Simplified Case Study



Lecture a

Following is an extremely simplified fictional outbreak investigation. Although the reality is much more complex than this quick example, it does illustrate some of the steps that public health takes in its unending efforts to safeguard the population.•Public Health receives laboratory reports for an enteric disease-causing organism such as Salmonella or Shigella•Public Health Epidemiologists or “disease detectives” investigate the reports•Samples are sent to the Public Health Laboratory to be closely identified•Fieldwork determines that a significant number of ill patients ate at a company picnic•Questionnaires and statistical analyses identify the culprit as contamination in a dairy product served at the picnic•Further investigation reveals a sanitation issue at the dairy has led to contamination in their product •A product recall is issued •The dairy fixes the sanitation problem, and further tests show the product is now free of contamination•Public health reviews and evaluates the study and how to help prevent further such incidences•Data reported to CDC become part of the national data set

Communicable Disease Topics



Lecture a

• Animal-Related Diseases • Bioterrorism Agents/Diseases• Childhood Diseases• Drug Resistant Infections• Emerging Infectious Diseases• Food-Related Diseases• Healthcare-Related Infections and Issues• HIV/AIDS• Insects and Arthropod-Related Diseases• Sexually Transmitted Diseases• Water-Related Diseases

Sampling of Communicable Diseases



Lecture a

• Animal-related – example Rabies– A fatal viral infection, caused when the virus is introduced into

breaks in skin (such as by an animal bite)– Some Public Health Responses: monitoring, managing

treatment, education for responsible pet ownership

• Food-related – example E. coli O157:H7 – Bacterial infection usually traced to food contaminated with cow

feces. Can lead to very severe health outcomes, including death– Some Public Health Responses: monitoring, interventions,

outbreak investigation, education on prevention

• Sexually transmitted diseases – example Gonorrhea– Bacterial infection transmitted by sexual contact or during birth.

Can lead to permanent health problems.– Some Public Health Responses: monitoring, interventions,

outbreak investigation, education on prevention and treatment

Sampling of Communicable Diseases (continued)

• Water-related – example Cryptosporidiosis– Microscopic parasite, ingested by drinking water contaminated with

animal or human feces – Some Public Health Responses: monitoring, outbreak investigation,

education on water treatment

• Healthcare-related - example Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA)– Bacteria resistant to certain antibiotics, in healthcare settings may be

introduced by visitors or by health care providers – Some Public Health Responses: monitoring, outbreak investigation,

education on prevention for both patients and health care providers

• Childhood diseases – example Chickenpox– Viral infection causing fever and itchy rash, highly contagious, spread by

coughing, sneezing, contact– Some Public Health Responses: monitoring of disease and

vaccinations, outbreak investigation, education on prevention through vaccination



Lecture a

Sampling of Communicable Diseases (continued)

• HIV / AIDS – The human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), which can lead to acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS)– Viral infection transmitted by sexual or other body fluid contact– Some Public Health Responses: monitoring of disease and

treatments, outbreak investigation, education on prevention and testing

• Emerging Infectious Diseases – example Dengue infection– Viral infection, transmitted by mosquito. Endemic to Puerto Rico

and many popular tourist destinations in Latin America and Asia. No vaccine or specific medication

– Some Public Health Responses: monitoring of disease, outbreak investigation, education on avoidance and mosquito control



Lecture a

Public Health (Part 2)Summary – Lecture a

14

• Communicable diseases

• Public health outbreak investigations

Health IT Workforce Curriculum Version 3.0/Spring 2012


Lecture a

Public Health (Part 2)References – Lecture a

References• Nationally Notifiable Infectious Conditions - United States 2010. (2010). Retrieved December 6, 2011,

from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention - Office of Surveillance, Epidemiology, and Laboratory Services website: http://www.cdc.gov/osels/ph_surveillance/nndss/phs/infdis2010.htm



Lecture a

http://www.cdc.gov/osels/ph_surveillance/nndss/phs/infdis2010.htm

Introduction to Healthcare and Public Health in the US Public Health (Part 2) Lecture a This material (Comp1_Unit8a) was developed by Oregon Health and.

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