Epidemiology in the Digital Age: How Technology is Shaping Public Health

Epidemiology is always evolving, but there is no denying that this field has changed considerably in the last few years. These recent developments were spurred, to a large degree, by COVID-19, but cutting-edge technologies have also had an outsized impact.

New tech solutions enhance data collection efforts and allow epidemiologists to analyze a wealth of data effectively, often in real time. This health data analysis leads to data-driven insights that can help epidemiologists streamline investigations and may even allow them to expedite interventions.

Early control measures can dramatically reduce the spread of disease, so it can be argued that emerging epidemiology tech solutions have strong life-saving potential. This shift also means that the role of the modern epidemiologist will call for exceptional technology skills and a willingness to adapt to new systems as they become available.

To reveal the extraordinary potential of this data-driven approach, we will highlight today's most powerful health data technologies and the role they are already playing in epidemiology research and interventions.

The Rise of Big Data in Health

Big data forms the cornerstone of our modern approach to clinical care. For example, healthcare providers leverage medical information to promote personalized care and to drive improvements in compliance and patient satisfaction.

This data-centric approach is crucial in public health. Big data reveals disease patterns and helps epidemiologists examine the complexities of health systems related to outbreaks and other health concerns.

Sources of Electronic Health Data

Today's epidemiologists and public health professionals gather data from an ever-increasing range of sources. This goes beyond the field interviews and surveys of yesteryear. Different outbreaks and environments may call for different sources, but the following play heavily into modern surveillance, contact tracing, and more:

• Medical records. Healthcare providers can be a wonderful source of information for public health agencies, especially during outbreak investigations. Symptoms and test results aid in case identification, while broader analyses of medical records can help epidemiologists pinpoint demographic patterns and better understand key risk factors or determine which populations are most vulnerable.
  
  
• Clinical laboratories. In the early stages of an outbreak, lab data can provide the most reliable evidence of infection. This data is crucial for confirming diagnoses. Trends in lab-confirmed cases reveal important shifts in disease transmission and help determine whether control measures or other interventions are effective.
  
  
• Wastewater surveillance. During the COVID-19 pandemic, wastewater surveillance emerged as one of the most reliable resources for predicting an impending increase in positive cases. This can be an excellent option for detecting disease at the community level, as many biomarkers can be found in wastewater samples. Geographic Information Systems can be leveraged to bring spatial visualization capabilities to wastewater surveillance initiatives.
  
  
• School records. Information gathered by schools can be valuable when conducting contact tracing or performing public health surveillance. These records reveal the extent to which students are covered by required vaccines and may also indicate attendance patterns as they relate to disease outbreaks. In some cases, epidemiologists may rely on school-gathered demographic information to determine how socioeconomic status and other factors play into health outcomes among children and adolescents.

Health Data Management

In epidemiology, health data management involves the systematic and structured gathering, organization, and storage of health data. This is often for surveillance purposes or to support public health decision-making.

Through surveys, interviews, and reviews of medical records, epidemiologists gather data from the sources highlighted above. A central repository can make this data more accessible, and therefore, easier for epidemiologists to navigate and leverage.

Quality assurance efforts such as data cleaning and validation checks to ensure that collected health data is accurate and reliable. This should limit the potential for bias as critical health data is analyzed and, eventually, communicated to key stakeholders.

Storage and security are also critical components of health data management. Secure servers allow epidemiologists to safely store a wealth of data, while abiding by privacy regulations and otherwise maintaining strong regulatory compliance.

Technological Tools for Epidemiologists

Although many epidemiologists work in the field, it is increasingly common for this role to occur primarily within an office setting. There, epidemiologists rely on high-level software and other technological tools to help them analyze vast data sets and uncover fascinating, impactful insights. These can ultimately have a huge influence on recommended interventions. They reveal both risks and opportunities that epidemiologists might otherwise struggle to unveil on their own.

Advanced Analytics and Data Visualization

Targeted epidemiological software plays a significant role in the current day-to-day responsibilities of tech-driven epidemiologists. Epi Info represents one of the most trusted solutions but is also highly accessible due to its user-friendly interface. Templates and commands help guide users through critical processes such as data entry and reporting.

Complex health information can be difficult to convey to various stakeholders, and especially to policymakers. However, data visualization tools such as Tableau and PowerBI make it easier to develop visually compelling graphs or charts.

Interactive visualizations can reveal case distribution and other trends in a way that instantly resonates with all types of stakeholders. Common visualization strategies include epidemic curves, time series plots, and Sankey diagrams. The latter is especially useful for highlighting the flow of transmission.

Geographic Information Systems (GIS)

Among the most complicated aspects of conducting an outbreak investigation? Determining the geographic distribution of those outbreaks. Today's advanced Geographic Information Systems (GIS) expedite this process via disease mapping and spatial analysis. 

GIS solutions provide valuable insights into the risk of transmission in various locations. They also help determine which interventions will be more effective based on local concerns such as population density, pollution levels, or proximity to industrial facilities.

Digital Health Trends and Surveillance

Telemedicine may have a powerful role to play in the epidemiology protocols of tomorrow. While this has previously been associated with clinical care, it is increasingly evident that such solutions can help epidemiologists access insights from a wide range of community members, including those in rural or otherwise hard-to-reach locations.

Remote consultations help healthcare professionals detect and diagnose contagious diseases, with relevant insights then passed on to epidemiologists and public health professionals. Epidemiologists themselves may also conduct remote interviews while conducting case investigations and carrying out contact tracing initiatives.

The key in this digital health evolution is integrating epidemiology surveillance systems with telemedicine platforms to improve real-time monitoring and limit the potential for data silos.

Revolutionizing Public Health Practices

Data-driven strategies have completely transformed our concept of public health, driving a more efficient, accessible, and scalable approach to disease surveillance, investigations, and interventions. This revolution is just beginning, and as next-level solutions such as artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things (IoT) take over, a whole new level of integration and interoperability will be achieved.

Real-Time Outbreak Detection

In the past, outbreak investigations often felt slow and cumbersome, especially given the rapid pace of transmission for today's most alarming diseases. Epidemiologists should not take shortcuts, of course, as accurate insights are crucial for determining the most effective interventions. By picking up the pace of investigations, we can implement early interventions to limit disease transmission while promoting capacity building and greater resilience in health systems.

Equipped with emerging technologies, epidemiologists can gain real-time insight into emerging outbreaks, with wearable sensors and monitors, in particular, providing swift indication of emerging health threats. These often possess geolocation capabilities, which drive powerful geospatial tracking and can quickly reveal disease hot spots as well as transmission routes.

Personalized and Precision Medicine

Precision medicine represents an exciting practice that promotes tailored interventions, recognizing that some treatments or health habits are more effective for certain patients or community members. According to the CDC, precision medicine has the potential to improve health for individuals and populations by considering genetic, environmental, and lifestyle factors. This approach helps in choosing the best treatments and preventive measures, ultimately benefiting all of us​.

Risk stratification is a key component of this approach, with risk groups developed according to specific genetic or environmental factors identified through epidemiological research. This can ensure that high-risk individuals receive the targeted treatments they require.

Genomic epidemiology represents another bright spot in precision medicine, with genomic sequencing techniques allowing experts to pinpoint genetic variants that lead to elevated disease risks. This can also play into preventative strategies, revealing when enhanced screening protocols or lifestyle modifications are necessary.

Health Promotion and Behavior Change

Health promotion plays a key role in epidemiology and public health, with the recognition that a strong baseline of health will promote disease tolerance. This begins with revealing the determinants of health, which can help shape health promotion initiatives. From there, epidemiologists may collaborate with public health professionals or policymakers to develop health education campaigns and other programs or solutions that help both individuals and communities improve their general health and well-being.

Advanced technological solutions are increasingly built into these health promotion efforts. For instance, digital platforms can alert users to health issues and provide research-backed insights into healthy behaviors and easy-to-implement habits.

Many users benefit from following health-oriented pages on social media. However, health apps may be even more useful, as these drive accountability through alerts and notifications. Meanwhile, wearable devices help individuals monitor important metrics while providing powerful motivation and support as these users seek to adopt healthier habits.

Discover the Future of Epidemiology With TAMU

Are you excited about the future of epidemiology and eager to leverage cutting-edge tech solutions? The right graduate program will provide extensive exposure to today's advanced software and health data analysis techniques while also building a strong foundation in critical practices such as biostatistics.