ASSIGNMENT ON SURVEILLANCE HOMEWORK.

Running head: SURVEILLANCE HOMEWORK
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Surveillance Homework
Student’s Name
Institutional Affiliation

SURVEILLANCE HOMEWORK
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Surveillance Homework
Scientists across the globe have come up with several definitions that define
epidemiology. However, the most suitable definition state that it is the branch of medicine that
involves the study of the distribution and determinants of health-related events and the
application of this study to control illnesses as well as other health problems. It is the duty of the
epidemiology and the prevention branch in the influenza division at CDC to collect, analyze as
well as compiling information on flu each year. Epidemiological methods rely on strict
observation, and the use of valid comparison units differ from the expected. It also borrows
techniques from scientific fields that include economic, biostatistics and informatics and
behavioral sciences.
Epidemiology is linked with public health science in that it is a quantitative discipline
that depends on the knowledge of probability, research methods as well as statistics. Secondly, it
is termed as a casual reasoning method that relies on developing as well as testing of hypotheses.
Epidemiology is very useful in search of determinants that expose causes and some factors that
influence the establishment of disease as well as other health events. Epidemiology was only
made for communicable diseases before it expanded to cover both infectious and non-
communicable diseases (Thrusfield 2018). Epidemiology operates under two assumptions. It
should be assumed that the occurrence of a condition is not random. Secondly, population study
plays a vital role in identifying causes as well as preventive factors of the disease.

SURVEILLANCE HOMEWORK
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In comparison between the 2018 first three months and 2019 first three months, the
number of outpatients with influenza has slightly increased by 1.69%. This increase is said to be
somewhat below the national baseline that hits 2.2% (CDC database). Influenza that is associated
with pediatric mortality, only three deaths were reported to CDC and one occurring during the
2018-2019 period.
Novel influenza is an influenza A virus that is antigenically and genetically distinct from
seasonal flu. A virus that is circulating among human beings. Some novel influenza A viruses