Public Health and Epidemiology Module

This module showcases a brief history of how Public Health came about and why, using the COVID-19 pandemic as a case study and to exemplify major elements of instruction and will be used as a stand-alone course primarily for the training of frontline officials and public health operators, product developers and laboratory personnel.

About this module

The contents of this module include the following seven chapters:

1. Introduction to Public Health. By focusing on population-level health outcomes, Public Health aims to improve the overall well-being of communities and reduce health disparities. This chapter encompasses a wide range of issues, including disease prevention and control, environmental and community health, to help you understand the importance of public health. 
2. Introduction to Epidemiology. This chapter helps you in understanding how diseases spread and how they can be prevented or controlled. It provides you with a scientific basis for public health interventions and helps inform public health policies, as exemplified by the public health response to the COVID-19 pandemic. 
3. Identifying and Investigating an Outbreak. By completing this chapter, you will be able to understand how epidemiology investigations are undertaken, the typical methods that are used, the type of data which are collected and how they are analysed, to then evaluate the effectiveness of the selected control and prevention measures. 
4. Introduction to Public Health Surveillance. The content of this chapter provides you with a crucial foundation for understanding the distribution and determinants of health and disease in populations and for enabling effective public health practice, with an emphasis on the early detection of potential outbreaks of infectious diseases. 
5. Introduction to Public Health Laboratories. By providing essential services for the detection, diagnosis and control of diseases, Public Health Laboratories play a critical role in protecting the health of populations. In this chapter you will learn how testing and analyses are performed to detect infectious agents and diagnose diseases, particularly in the case of COVID-19.
6. Introduction to Public Health Informatics. This is an essential field that helps to improve the quality and accessibility of public health data, enhance surveillance, support outbreak investigations and inform decision-making. This chapter helps you to appreciate Public Health practices, research and learning using informatics and information technology.
7. Introduction to Prevention Effectiveness. You will learn of approaches to quantify the impact of Public Health interventions aimed at preventing health problems in populations. Key concepts and methods are also explained. 

By completing this module, users will be better equipped to understand the causes and to identify, prevent and control public health problems. They will also understand how epidemiology can help in addressing health disparities and improving the health of populations in Africa.