Epidemiology is the study of past and future trends in health, illnesses, diseases and disease outbreaks. For example, secular trends indicate trends that exist over a long period of time. Examples of trends are (1). Chronic diseases that have replaced acute infectious diseases are the major causes of morbidity and mortality. In 2009, the leading causes of deaths in USA were heart attack diseases, cancer and chronic lower respiratory diseases (Fins & Sellers, 2014). Increases were also reported for Alzheimer’s disease, kidney disease and hypertension. Epidemiology means changes in disease frequency over time. It can also be defined as the study of the distribution and determinants of health related condition in human populations and the application of this method to the control of health problems (Macera, Shaffer & Saffer, 2013).
The current climate of today’s health care environment which is characterized in part by cost constraints, limited health care resources, increasing health care utilization rates, pressures of managed care, the clear evolution and operation of health care organizations as business, political and ideological beliefs have helped to evolve a new dynamic in health care management ( Ezejiofor, 2014). These changes have affected the application of epidemiological data within health care organization.
The science of epidemiology in a classic context has as some of its primary areas of focus in the sectors of disease incidence, prevalence, mortality, morbidity and prevention considerations. In modern times, there is a great deal of information which can be derived from epidemiological analyses and which can be linked together with economic considerations and ramifications which pertain to a variety of disease states. These data when viewed from both epidemiological and economic perspectives can assist in providing very useful and important information for today’s modern health care organizations. These insights can facilitate efforts relating to strategic planning and can help optimize current and future operational efficiencies.
There are variety of uses and applications for epidemiological data which relate to the areas of planning and evaluation within today’s modern health care organizations. The effective utilization of epidemiologic data combined with financial, economic and operational analyses can collectively yield a variety of useful practical, strategic applications and insights for any health care organization. These insights can help for efficient and effective allocation of limited health care resources within health care organizations. In a marketplace which has become increasingly competitive, a key consideration also relates to the utility of these insights in enabling health care organizations to evolve competitive position in an increasingly competitive, challenging economic environment and also to maintain those positions over time.
Fos and Fine (2005) defined epidemiology as the study of the distribution and determinants of diseases and injuries in human population. Epidemiology also emphasizes the study of all factors that affect occurrence of health and disease in populations and their interdependence. In studying epidemiology, individuals are not the focus of epidemiology, groups of individuals are. Therefore the commonality of this is the concept of population. For example, the study and the management of EBOLA outbreak in West Africa is the focus of the epidemiologist but the single individual that has EBOLA is not.
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