QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS 2026
Public health - ANSWERSFocuses on the health of populations
Population - ANSWERSBroad term that may refer to people within a certain geographic
location, a specific nationality or race, or those with unique characteristics, such as the
homeless, those infected with HIV or marginalized persons.
Epidemiology - ANSWERSStudy of how disease is distributed within a population and
the identification of the factors that determine that distribution.
Basic Objectives of Epidemiology - ANSWERS1. Identifying the cause of a disease and
important risk factors
2. Determining the burden of disease
3. Studying the natural history of a disease
4. Evaluating preventative and therapeutic models
4. Developing public policy
Etiology - ANSWERSMechanism that results in or causes disease. Knowing this allows
for development of prevention programs.
Goal of Public Health - ANSWERSIdentify risk factors and intervene to reduce morbidity
and mortality within a population.
Morbidity - ANSWERSRefers to symptoms or disabilities that occur from a disease
Ex. Cancer, pain, disability, permanent SOB, mental health conditions, brain injury, HTN
Mortality - ANSWERSRefers to the death of a person
Primary means of assessing outcomes in populations - ANSWERSMorbidity and
mortality
Population - ANSWERSAny sizable aggregate of people who meet the membership
criteria to be included in a specific person group. When defining a population 3 metrics
must be addressed.
3 Metrics of Population - ANSWERSPerson, place, time
Person - ANSWERSCharacteristics of age, gender, race, ethnicity and occupation
Place - ANSWERSPhysical location of the person - country, state, county, city or
occupational location the person is in.
, Time - ANSWERSCertain season, calendar year, life stage, interval time periods, fixed
time periods, or person-years
Burden - ANSWERSImpact of a health problem and the resulting comorbidities. Can be
assessed in a variety of ways - broad economic impact, individual financial loss, quality
of life that may be lost.
Natural history of a Disease - ANSWERSTransmission, development, and outcomes of
a given disease. Can inform treatment for those already impacted or help with
development of therapies aimed at reducing morbidity and mortality.
Preventative model or therapeutic model - ANSWERSModes and measures of health
care delivery
What is the goal of public health? - ANSWERSUltimately the goal of public health is to
identify risk factors and intervene to reduce morbidity and mortality within a population.
Rates and proportions are descriptive metrics known as which of the following? -
ANSWERSMeasures of association
Advantages of active surveillance include which of the following? - ANSWERSGreater
level of accuracy, quick identification of outbreaks, rapid intervention/prevention
After traveling throughout England and administering his vaccination protocol, what
result did Edward Jenner find regarding smallpox infection? - ANSWERSJenner
traveled throughout England following this protocol. The result was always the same:
inoculation with cowpox followed by inoculation (exposure) with smallpox was protective
and patients did not develop the wild-type disease.
How do observational studies differ from experimental studies? -
ANSWERSObservational studies differ from experimental studies, such as clinical trials,
in that treatments are not applied by a researcher. Instead, groups of people with a
defined exposure and without the exposure are monitored (a process called follow-up)
to determine the incidence of a disease.
Which type of surveillance considers existing data or reportable illnesses? -
ANSWERSPassive
What is prevalence? - ANSWERSPrevalence is defined as the number of persons,
present within a defined population at a specific time, who have a particular condition.
A population can be defined using the following metrics? - ANSWERSPerson, time,
place