Question

Describe the role of nursing in the field of epidemiology. Compare and contrast the key features of descriptive epidemiology with those of analytic epidemiology.

Answer 1

Describe the role of nursing in the field of epidemiology

Nurses role:

Epidemiology encompasses the identification of infectious disease, the vectors of transmission, the sources of contamination, the patient population exposed or involved, containment practices, and preventative measures to stop further transmission of the disease. Epidemic keratoconjunctivitis is a common infectious disease in ophthalmology. It can be contracted from interpersonal exposure, contact with contaminated items, or iatrogenic transmission from the health-care settings and providers. The interview process, plus patient education, is the method of epidemiologic assessment that acts as the format to dealing with the epidemic.

1. Advocate:

2. Care giver

3. case finder

4. counselor

5. Educator

6. Epidimiologist

7. Health planner

8. Manager

9. Group leader

10. care manager

Descriptive or Analytic Studies? Descriptive studies

• Generate hypotheses

• Answer what, who, where, and when Analytic studies

• Test hypotheses • Answer why and how

Descriptive Studies Characterize who, where, or when in relation to what (outcome)

• Person: characteristics (age, sex, occupation) of the individuals affected by the outcome

• Place: geography (residence, work, hospital) of the affected individuals

• Time: when events (diagnosis, reporting; testing) occurred

The difference is very much as it appears in the names. Descriptive epidemiological studies have the goal of describing the disease/health status of a population by simply noting what is there. They answer the "4 Ws" (every "W" except "why") of disease: who has it, where is it found, in what groups and when (e.g., age, developmental stage). This can be done through case reports, and ecological and cross-sectional studies.

Analytic Studies Definition Analytic studies test hypotheses about exposureoutcome relationships

• Measure the association between exposure and outcome

• Include a comparison group

In contrast, analytical studies seek to answer the "why" of health and disease trends by measuring the difference between the group being studied (the "exposed" group") and a control group. Studies that for this purpose include experimental (e.g., clinical trials) and observational (case-control and cohort) studies.

In scientific terms, descriptive studies observe trends and help to formulate hypotheses, while analytic studies test those hypotheses.