GLPH 471 – Module 2: Complete Notes and Key Concepts with
Detailed Explanations
intro to ontology and epistemology in health research - ANS ✔-great power to prior research in
helping you design your own health needs assessments and interventions
-prior research can be summarized as knowledge and can include findings from publicly-
available statistics, survey and interview responses, personal testimony, experimental data, case
reports, reviews and meta-analyses, and many others.
-knowledge use is incredibly important to public health. This information could give new
researchers valuable insight into the factors that may affect a population of interest, how these
factors compare to other populations, and how these factors may change over time.
ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in west africa - ANS ✔-in December 2013, the West African
countries of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone erupted in the largest outbreak of EVD that
history had ever seen
-EVD is a severe hemorrhagic fever which causes flu-like symptoms and high fever. It kills about
50% of its victims on average
-extensive research was conducted to determine where the Ebola virus originated, why its
transmission was so effective, and its impact on the population.
spread of EVD outbreak in West Africa - ANS ✔-the precise source of infection remians a
mystery, byt EVD is thought to be carried ina. species of bats endemic (native) to the region
-source: bat droppings under a roosting tree supposedly introduced the pathogen to its first
victim of the outbreak, a yound child in a Guinean village
,-transmission: while not airborne, EVD is easily transmitted through bodily fluifd of the those
infected. over the cource of three years, EVD spread rapidly though west africa, strongly
influenced by infectivity, travle of infected individuals, and issues with mobilizing healthcare
forces in the area
-impact: by the end of the epidemic in 2016, EVD infected more than 28,000 individuals, killing
over 11,000
describing the health burden of EVD in Guninea - ANS ✔
considering after completing research: bias - ANS ✔first, consider that your philosophy about
the type of data you worked with and the manner in which it was collected are just as important
to creating that knowledge as the data itself. This is an often overlooked reality of health
research that can have some very real consequences for those who are its subjects. It impacts
how you present your findings and should be considered when publishing and sharing your
research.
considering after completing research: publishing - ANS ✔after completing your project, you
publish this work in a public repository for others to view and use for their own purposes. This
could include a peer-reviewed journal, data repository, or perhaps a website associated with a
non-governmental organization.
considering after completing research: sharing your results - ANS ✔You've just published your
research, which is an important milestone, and the seminal factor contributing to the
improvement of global health. In an effort to share your findings, you may also present your
results at a conference, or utilize media/news outlets, or even make a post on social media.
Perhaps your research will one day be used by an enterprising GLPH 471 student, such as
yourself. By collecting data, you created knowledge that can be used forever by an
indeterminate number of people.
, benefits of accessing and creating knowledge - ANS ✔while health knowledge can be used for
the main purpose that it was conducted for, such as addressing a health problem, it can also
drive the creation of new knowledge.
ex: a researcher interested in opioid overdoses can access prior epidemiological research to
help develop their intervention. Based on what they derive from prior research, investigators
can design a project which is either:
- Supported by the existing data, and/or
-An extension of the existing data which gives new insight to future researchers
the act of both accessing and creating knowledge about a health problem is pivotal in the field
of public health and is a key step in designing interventions that will serve a given population
ontology and epistemology - ANS ✔At this point in your education, you have most likely
accessed knowledge to answer an academic question. This can include citing a conceptual claim
with an appropriate paper, illustrating a concept with a statistic, and/or using an existing theory
to explain a process.
A step of health knowledge use that is often overlooked is understanding the philosophies
which drive the creation and pursuit of knowledge. These concepts are broadly referred to as
ontology and epistemology.
ontology: the theory of what relaity is
epistemology: the theory of how knowledge can be obtained
ontology - ANS ✔- the theory about what exists in our world and what we can accquire
knowledge about
-on of the main branches of metaphysics (style of philosophy which deals with teh nature of
reality, time and change)
Detailed Explanations
intro to ontology and epistemology in health research - ANS ✔-great power to prior research in
helping you design your own health needs assessments and interventions
-prior research can be summarized as knowledge and can include findings from publicly-
available statistics, survey and interview responses, personal testimony, experimental data, case
reports, reviews and meta-analyses, and many others.
-knowledge use is incredibly important to public health. This information could give new
researchers valuable insight into the factors that may affect a population of interest, how these
factors compare to other populations, and how these factors may change over time.
ebola virus disease (EVD) outbreak in west africa - ANS ✔-in December 2013, the West African
countries of Guinea, Liberia, and Sierra Leone erupted in the largest outbreak of EVD that
history had ever seen
-EVD is a severe hemorrhagic fever which causes flu-like symptoms and high fever. It kills about
50% of its victims on average
-extensive research was conducted to determine where the Ebola virus originated, why its
transmission was so effective, and its impact on the population.
spread of EVD outbreak in West Africa - ANS ✔-the precise source of infection remians a
mystery, byt EVD is thought to be carried ina. species of bats endemic (native) to the region
-source: bat droppings under a roosting tree supposedly introduced the pathogen to its first
victim of the outbreak, a yound child in a Guinean village
,-transmission: while not airborne, EVD is easily transmitted through bodily fluifd of the those
infected. over the cource of three years, EVD spread rapidly though west africa, strongly
influenced by infectivity, travle of infected individuals, and issues with mobilizing healthcare
forces in the area
-impact: by the end of the epidemic in 2016, EVD infected more than 28,000 individuals, killing
over 11,000
describing the health burden of EVD in Guninea - ANS ✔
considering after completing research: bias - ANS ✔first, consider that your philosophy about
the type of data you worked with and the manner in which it was collected are just as important
to creating that knowledge as the data itself. This is an often overlooked reality of health
research that can have some very real consequences for those who are its subjects. It impacts
how you present your findings and should be considered when publishing and sharing your
research.
considering after completing research: publishing - ANS ✔after completing your project, you
publish this work in a public repository for others to view and use for their own purposes. This
could include a peer-reviewed journal, data repository, or perhaps a website associated with a
non-governmental organization.
considering after completing research: sharing your results - ANS ✔You've just published your
research, which is an important milestone, and the seminal factor contributing to the
improvement of global health. In an effort to share your findings, you may also present your
results at a conference, or utilize media/news outlets, or even make a post on social media.
Perhaps your research will one day be used by an enterprising GLPH 471 student, such as
yourself. By collecting data, you created knowledge that can be used forever by an
indeterminate number of people.
, benefits of accessing and creating knowledge - ANS ✔while health knowledge can be used for
the main purpose that it was conducted for, such as addressing a health problem, it can also
drive the creation of new knowledge.
ex: a researcher interested in opioid overdoses can access prior epidemiological research to
help develop their intervention. Based on what they derive from prior research, investigators
can design a project which is either:
- Supported by the existing data, and/or
-An extension of the existing data which gives new insight to future researchers
the act of both accessing and creating knowledge about a health problem is pivotal in the field
of public health and is a key step in designing interventions that will serve a given population
ontology and epistemology - ANS ✔At this point in your education, you have most likely
accessed knowledge to answer an academic question. This can include citing a conceptual claim
with an appropriate paper, illustrating a concept with a statistic, and/or using an existing theory
to explain a process.
A step of health knowledge use that is often overlooked is understanding the philosophies
which drive the creation and pursuit of knowledge. These concepts are broadly referred to as
ontology and epistemology.
ontology: the theory of what relaity is
epistemology: the theory of how knowledge can be obtained
ontology - ANS ✔- the theory about what exists in our world and what we can accquire
knowledge about
-on of the main branches of metaphysics (style of philosophy which deals with teh nature of
reality, time and change)
