Huang C-Y, Tsai Y-S, Wen T-H
1Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
2National Chiao Tung University, Hsinchu, Taiwan.
J Simul. 2010;4(1):68-80. doi: 10.1057/jos.2009.13. Epub 2010 Mar 17.
Recent and potential outbreaks of infectious diseases are triggering interest in predicting epidemic dynamics on a national scale and testing the efficacies of different combinations of public health policies. Network-based simulations are proving their worth as tools for addressing epidemiology and public health issues considered too complex for field investigations and questionnaire analyses. Universities and research centres are therefore using network-based simulations as teaching tools for epidemiology and public health education students, but instructors are discovering that constructing appropriate network models and epidemic simulations are difficult tasks in terms of individual movement and contact patterns. In this paper we will describe (a) a four-category framework (based on demographic and geographic properties) to discuss ways of applying network-based simulation approaches to undergraduate students and novice researchers; (b) our experiences simulating the transmission dynamics of two infectious disease scenarios in Taiwan (HIV and influenza); (c) evaluation results indicating significant improvement in student knowledge of epidemic transmission dynamics and the efficacies of various public health policy suites; and (d) a geospatial modelling approach that integrates a national commuting network as well as multi-scale contact structures.
近期及潜在的传染病爆发引发了人们对在国家层面预测疫情动态以及检验不同公共卫生政策组合效果的兴趣。基于网络的模拟正证明其作为工具的价值，可用于解决那些被认为对实地调查和问卷调查分析而言过于复杂的流行病学和公共卫生问题。因此，大学和研究中心正在将基于网络的模拟用作流行病学和公共卫生教育专业学生的教学工具，但教师们发现，就个体移动和接触模式而言，构建合适的网络模型和疫情模拟是困难的任务。在本文中，我们将描述：(a) 一个四类框架（基于人口统计学和地理属性），以讨论将基于网络的模拟方法应用于本科生和新手研究人员的方式；(b) 我们模拟台湾两种传染病情形（艾滋病毒和流感）传播动态的经验；(c) 评估结果表明，学生对疫情传播动态以及各种公共卫生政策组合效果的了解有显著提高；以及 (d) 一种整合国家通勤网络和多尺度接触结构的地理空间建模方法。
