Epidemiology is the study of what is upon the people. In modern terms, it is the science of the distribution of disease and its determinants (causes).

Epidemiology is also a process that uses the facts at hand as clues to point to new knowledge and solutions. Epidemiologists have been called “disease detectives” for this reason.

The department has nurses who have undergone special training in disease investigation and epidemiology. They work in conjunction with epidemiologists at Missouri Department of Health and Senior Services to investigate and provide disease surveillance in our county.

Epidemiology is especially important to public health to better understand the burden of health problems in human populations and to make changes that decrease risk and improve health.

Epidemiology can help us identify and understand the factors that influence the emergence, severity, and consequences of health problems.

Human beings have always sought to understand and explain the occurrence of disease and death. The modern approach to epidemiology has developed within the past 150 years.

For more information on epidemiology, click here.