VTPEH 6114 - Applied Epidemiology: Disease Surveillance and Outbreak Response

Fall. 3 credits. Letter grades only (no audit).

G. Meredith.

Global development is driving disease outbreaks; communicable disease prevention and control is a foundational element of public health, reducing death and disability. Core to this practice is the ability to assess and monitor population health; investigate, diagnose, and address health hazards and root causes; communicate effectively to inform and educate; and enable equitable access to prevention and care services. In short, you will be a public health asset if you can engage in applied epidemiology to prevent, detect, mitigate, and respond to communicable disease outbreaks. In this course, you will build and hone your skills as a field epidemiologist. To do so, you will reinforce your understanding of bacterial, viral, and parasitic diseases of concern, and then practice methods to detect outbreaks, to investigate causes, and to support public health prevention through risk mitigation, communication, and policy change.