PHE2PHP: Applying Public Health Principles to Disease Notification

This report discusses the principles of public health in the context of infectious disease notification in Australia. It defines infectious disease notification, identifies notifiable diseases according to the Australian Department of Health, and suggests recommendations for preventing infectious diseases, improving surveillance, and accelerating notification during outbreaks. The report highlights the importance of timely responses to epidemics, especially for vulnerable populations and immigrants. It also describes the Infectious Disease Notification Program, its stakeholders (including pathologists, medical practitioners, public health nurses, and the media), and its evaluation. Key principles such as timely response, disease prevention, and community involvement are emphasized, with a focus on leveraging technology and open communication to enhance program effectiveness. Desklib provides access to this and many other solved assignments.

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Running Head: PRINCIPLES OF PUBLIC HEALTH
Principles of public health in infectious disease notification
Author’s name:
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Contents
Introduction.................................................................................................................................................2
Background..................................................................................................................................................3
Background on the public health issue....................................................................................................3
Rationale for the program.......................................................................................................................4
Description of the program.....................................................................................................................4
Public health principles............................................................................................................................6
Stake holders in this program..................................................................................................................7
Evaluation................................................................................................................................................8
Conclusion...................................................................................................................................................8
Recommendations.......................................................................................................................................9
References................................................................................................................................................10

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Introduction
This is a report about principles of public health in infectious disease notification in
Australia. As a student I recognize the importance of disease notification and in this this report I
will define the term infectious disease notification, explain the types of infectious diseases that
require notification according to the Australian Department of Health and document the
recommendations that may help prevent the occurrence of infectious diseases, improve disease
surveillance and accelerate the process of notification in case of an outbreak (Brownson, 2017).
Infectious disease notification refers to the process and procedures put in place to
notify the public and the Department Of Health the occurrence of an infectious disease. In the
past, the department of health in Australia has been able to control the epidemics associated with
infectious diseases. The Communicable Diseases Network in Australia has a list of infectious

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diseases which require notification to the Department of Public Health in Australia despite most
of the infectious diseases under control (Heywood, 2016).
Background
Background on the public health issue
Infectious disease outbreaks will most likely affect people living in remote areas and
those with poor living conditions and poor health seeking habit. Their living conditions are
below the recommended standards (Gibney, 2017). This makes them more susceptible to
outbreaks in relation to infectious diseases; therefore, people in this group are under constant
surveillance for infectious diseases (Milinovich, 2014).
Immigrants are also linked with the occurrence of infectious disease in Australia.
Illegal immigrants are a threat to the general public because they do not undergo the relevant
testing and prophylactic treatment prior to coming to Australia. Immigrants who are associated
with most infectious disease are those from the tropics and the Amazon region. Another group of
people who have increased chances of contracting infectious diseases are those who have a
compromised immune system. Caution should be exercised when prescribing and administering
vaccines to such people because of the decreased ability to form anti-bodies especially when
using live attenuated vaccines (Neave, 2016).
Rationale for the program
The main purpose of this program is to institute timely response to epidemics, clusters
and cases of infectious conditions in order to prevent continued disease transmission, and
regulate the impact and outcome of the infectious among the Australian people. The Infectious

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Disease Notification Program is a vital element in the prevention of epidemics and pandemics
associated with infectious diseases. Notification helps in early containment and treatment of the
infectious disease to prevent serious health impacts associated with the spread of communicable
diseases (Thomson, 2016)
The Department of Public Health ensures that the public is fully aware of the infectious
and non-infectious diseases likely to be experienced in Australia and is responsible for
implementing mitigating strategies to ensure that the morbidity and mortality rates of such
conditions is decreased for longer and healthier lives. It is the work of employees under this
program to report and quarantine individuals suspected to have infectious diseases especially at
the countries entry point such as the airports and harbors.
Description of the program
The infectious disease notification program is a part of the public health and well-
being act of 2008. Public health is a part of the department of health in Australia which deals
with, notification, surveillance, awareness and public health education of the Australian people
regarding the infectious and non-infectious diseases that commonly affect people living in
Australia. The program for infectious disease notification was started to increase the rate of
response to infectious diseases, limiting the negative impact of such conditions to the public
(Sloan-Gardner, 2017).
The Infectious Disease Notification Program is stated in the Public health and Well-
being act of 2008 requires that all the infectious conditions are notified to the pathology
department and medical department in order to control and monitor them. Notifiable diseases are
grouped into four groups A, B, C and D. These groups vary in terms of urgency. Group A

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conditions; refers to diseases that require immediate attention and conditions which have a high
mortality rate (Boulware, 2016). Notification is done through telephone calls after initial
diagnosis or suspicion of clinical symptoms. Group B conditions are notified through a written
document within five days after an initial confirmation or suspicion of presumptive or actual
signs and symptoms, basically they are less fatal compared to group be conditions. Group C
conditions; these are conditions include sexually transmitted infections and they are notified in
the same form together with the client’s name in the form of initials. Group D conditions; they
include conditions such as Human Immunodeficiency Virus and Acquired Immunodeficiency
Disease. Notification for group D is done within five days after initial diagnosis through a
written notification (Tan, 2016).
The Communicable Disease Network in Australia ensures that the infectious
disease program is running efficiently and adequately in order to enhance the monitoring and
controlling strategies put in place to reduce the spread of a communicable disease.
The attending medical practitioner at the site of contact should report the finding to the
appropriate medical personnel with the urgency it requires in terms of the groups the condition
lies in. This program also helps in flagging visitors who have not completed their vaccinations
according to the Australian vaccination policy in order to reduce the chances of spreading any
form of communicable diseases to the Australian public.
According to the infectious disease notification program the following conditions
require notification to the relevant medical personnel; Anthrax, Australian bat Lyssavirus, Avian
Influenza in Humans, Barmah forest virus infection, Botulism, Brucellosis, Campylobacteriosis,

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Chikungunya, Chlamydial infection, Cholera, Creutzfedt-Jakob disease, Cryptosporidiosis,
Dengue virus infection, Diptheria, Donovanosis, Gonococcal infection, Flavivirus infection, Zika
virus infection, Haemollytic Uraemic syndrome, Haemophilus Influenza serotype b(invasive
only) (Fielding, 2016), Hepatitis A, Hepatitis b (newly acquired), Hepatitis B (unspecified),
Hepatitis C (newly acquired), Hepatitis C (unspecified), Hepatitis D, Hepatitis D, Human
Immunodeficiency Virus( less than 18 months), Human Immunodeficiency virus (newly
acquired), Human Immunodeficiency virus (unspecified), Japanese encephalitis virus infection,
Legionellosis, Leprosy, Leptospiriosis, Listeriosis, Malaria, Measles, Meningococal
infection( invasive), Middle East Respiratory syndrome coronavirus, Mumps, Paratyphoid,
Murray Valley encephalitis infection, Pertusis, Plague, Pneumococcal disease invasive, Polio
Virus infection, Psittacosis, Q fever, Rabies, Ross River virus infection (Hoad, 2015), Rubella,
congenital rubella, Salmonellosis, Severe acute respiratory syndrome, Shiga toxin producing
Eschirechia coli, Shigellosis, Small pox, congenital syphilis, Syphilis( primary, secondary and
latent phase for less than two years), Tetanus, Tuberculosis, Tularaemia, Typhoid, Varicella
zoster infection( chicken pox), Varicella zoster infection (shigelosis), Viral hemorrhagic fevers,
West Nile virus infection and yellow fevers (Tilley, 2015).
These notifiable diseases listed alphabetically are mostly caused by viruses and others
by bacteria. They lie in different groups and they have different notification protocols. They all
have the capacity to cause very high mortality rates some higher than others. Some of these
conditions such as syphilis and Human Immunodeficiency virus have a long latent period with
minimal symptoms.

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Public health principles
The principles that govern the infectious disease notification program are the same as
those that govern the Department of Public Health, since this program is under the public health.
These principles are; timely response to disaster and epidemic occurrences, prolonging the life of
the affected individual through pathologist and medical involvement in ensuring that the infected
person fights the condition, preventing the spread of the disease to uninfected people, ensuring
accessibility of quality health services and promoting health through community involvement
(Rosen, 2015). The community is made aware of the signs and symptoms of infectious diseases
and they are asked to report to the nearest health facility should they or anyone they know,
experiences any of the symptoms.
This program involves everyone without any bias because everyone is equally at risk
of contracting an infectious disease. No individual is superior to another when it comes to
transmission and spreading of the communicable conditions because they know no economic
class, age, sex or ethnic group.
Stake holders in this program
The major stakeholders in this program are the pathologist who are tasked with the
duty of identify and understanding the disease process in an attempt to come up with a cure or a
vaccines, medical practitioners who are tasked with the duty of assessing the body’s physiologic
interaction with the infecting organism and providing treatment that will ensure that the patient’s
body returns to balance and fights the infection. Public health nurses whose duty is to ensure that
the public is aware of the conditions and how they impact on a person health, they work in
coordination with the doctors and medical practitioners (Coghlan, 2015).

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The Department of Public Health works hand in hand with the Australian
government in ensuring that the policies put in place are adhered to book. The media is another
major key player in Infectious Disease Notification Program because it ensures that information
relevant to the public is well transmitted and the general public is also a major stake holder
because it is their health at risk and they have the right to good health and knowledge. (de
Oliveira, 2017).
Evaluation
The infectious disease notification program is constantly evaluated for its effectiveness
and efficiency by the Department of Health Epidemiology and Infection. An evaluation was
carried out from the year 1991-2011 which indicated that the effectiveness of the program was
improving decade after decade. Cases submitted to Australia’s National notifiable disease
surveillance indicated that vaccination rates had gone up by 62% with no defaulters. This study
also indicated the improvement of timelines and efficiency of services delivered.
The evaluation of this program has been done through studies and research analysis
for a number of years. Data reported within these years is analyzed and conclusions are made
about the effectiveness of the program. Such studies help in deducing strategies for better service
provision (Curtis, 2009).
Conclusion
Notification of infectious diseases is the back bone of a healthy nation, because
notification helps in the monitoring of the transmission rates and the spread of the infectious
disease. Communicable diseases result from either viruses or bacteria, notification enables the
medical team to understand the interaction between these causative agents and the body’s

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physiological responses. Analysis of the causative agent helps the medical teams come up with
vaccines and other forms of strategies that are used to minimize the spread of the condition
(Curtis, 2009).
The development of these measures is made possible through the notification program,
which prepares the medical team for aggressive research. The notification program also plays a
role in ensuring the safety of the nation through surveillance and notification of communicable
diseases. Most of these conditions have a high mortality and morbidity rate making it impossible
to control if the medical team is not informed early (Brownson, 2017).
Recommendations
To enhance the effectiveness of this program I would encourage the stake
holders to adopt up to date technology which will help in faster transmission of results and cases.
Technology will also help pathology and medical teams in constant communication with other
teams in other regions of the world who may have experienced the same public health issues.
Technology will also ensure that the public is aware of the signs and symptoms associated with
the condition and they can report it to the nearest health care facility (Boulware, 2016).
Some conditions require supportive treatment such as rehydration and protection from
bodily fluids such information can be communicated to the public through the use of media and
the internet to prevent the spread of infections (Brownson, 2017).
Another recommendation is open communication between the various stake holders;
nobody should be denied information about situations that may put them at risk. Information

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should be readily available on the internet in official government websites which do not require
log in details to assess it (Boulware, 2016).
References
Boulware, L. E. (2016). Race and trust in the health care system. Public health reports.
Brownson, R. C. (2017). Evidence-based public health. Oxford university press.
Coghlan, A. H. (2015). Emerging infectious disease outbreaks: estimating disease risk in Australian blood
donors travelling overseas. Vox sanguinis, 1(113), 21-30.
Curtis, S. R. (2009). Health geography and public health. A companion to health and medical geography,,
325.
de Oliveira, W. K. (2017). Infection-related microcephaly after the 2015 and 2016 Zika virus outbreaks in
Brazil: a surveillance-based analysis. The Lancet,, 10097(390), 861-870.
Fielding, J. E. (2016). How severe was the 2015 influenza season in Australia. Med J Aust,, 2(204), 60-61.
Gibney, K. B. (2017). Sociodemographic and geographical inequalities in notifiable infectious diseases in
Australia: a retrospective analysis of 21 years of national disease surveillance data. The Lancet
Infectious Diseases,, 1(17), 86-97.
Heywood, A. E. (2016). The contribution of travellers visiting friends and relatives to notified infectious
diseases in Australia: state-based enhanced surveillance. Epidemiology & Infection,, 16(144),
3554-3563.
Hoad, V. C. (2015). First reported case of transfusion-transmitted Ross River virus infection. Med J Aust,,
5(202), 267-70.

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Milinovich, G. J. (2014). Using internet search queries for infectious disease surveillance: screening
diseases for suitability. BMC infectious diseases,, 1(14), 690.
Neave, P. E. (2016). Imported infections: What information should be collected by surveillance systems
to inform public health policy?. Travel medicine and infectious disease,, 4(14), 350-359.
Rosen, G. (2015). A history of public health. JHU Press.
Sloan-Gardner, T. S. (2017). Trends and risk factors for human Q fever in Australia, 1991–2014.
Epidemiology & Infection,, 4(154), 787-795.
Tan, W. S. (2016). Partner notification outcomes for men who have sex with men diagnosed with syphilis
referred to partner notification officers, Melbourne, Australia. Sexually transmitted diseases,,
11(43), 685-689.
Thomson, C. A. (2016). Health seeking behaviours and knowledge of infectious disease risks in Western
Australian travellers to Southeast Asian destinations: An airport survey. Tropical Medicine and
Infectious Disease,, 1(1), 3.
Tilley, D. M. (2015). Treatment and disease outcomes of migrants from low-and middle-income
countries in the Australian HIV Observational Database cohort. AIDS care, 11(27), 1410-1417.

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