Goodman R A, Buehler J W, Koplan J P
Epidemiology Program Office, Centers for Disease Control, Atlanta, GA.
Am J Epidemiol. 1990 Jul;132(1):9-16. doi: 10.1093/oxfordjournals.aje.a115647.
Epidemiologic field investigations are often done in response to acute public health problems. When outbreaks of disease occur, there usually is an urgent need to identify the source and/or cause of the problem as a basis for control. Alternatively, the identification of environmental or occupational hazards frequently demands evaluation of exposed persons and assessment of the risks of disease. In this commentary, the authors present a perspective on the public-sector practice of epidemiology by considering the factors that influence epidemiologic prospectively planned studies; and examining the complexities of the relations between epidemiology and public health practice.
流行病学现场调查通常是针对急性公共卫生问题开展的。当疾病暴发时，通常迫切需要确定问题的源头和/或原因，以此作为控制的依据。另外，确定环境或职业危害往往需要对接触者进行评估以及对疾病风险进行评定。在本评论中，作者通过考虑影响前瞻性规划的流行病学研究的因素，并审视流行病学与公共卫生实践之间关系的复杂性，提出了关于公共部门流行病学实践的一种观点。
