Bio-response

Bio-Response one

Microbiology plays an important role in the prevention and spread of diseases. Clinical microbiology furnishes the knowledge and capacity to identify organisms, their characteristics and how they influence health. Microbiologists are crucial in examining what antibiotics or vaccines are most useful against organisms, particularly in terms of communicable diseases.  Public health microbiologists provide laboratory diagnosis, pathogen classification and susceptibility analysis. The data contributes to surveillance, outbreak investigations, and research which are essential components of prevention and control of infectious diseases for populations.

The primary function of public health microbiology is directed at disease prevention and control to assist in improving the community's health.  This includes examination of specimens for the identification of disease, isolation and detection of a causative agent, determination of the infection, identification of carriers and location of sources of infection in the environment. Public health microbiology additionally provides referencing for identification of rare and atypical microorganisms, such as plague, and anthrax, and laboratory testing for diseases of public health significance such as rabies, botulism, and drug-resistant tuberculosis (American Public Health Association, 1996). These core services aid in protecting the public from the spread of infectious diseases, timely identification of disease conditions for prompt treatment to prevent spread and recognizing populations at heightened risk of acute and chronic illnesses.

Ruthie

References

American Public Health Association. (1996). The role of the public health laboratory and the definition of public health laboratory services.  Retrieved from https://www.apha.org/policies-and-advocacy/public-health-policy-statements/policy-database/2014/07/08/14/15/the-role-of-the-public-health-laboratory-and-the-definition-of-public-health-laboratory-services

Bio-Response two

Microbiology is the study of living organisms (Microbiology Society, 2018).  Considering the field of public health, microbiology is essential because this particular science connects with, “nutrient cycling, biodegradation/bio-deterioration, climate change, food spoilage, cause/control of disease and biotechnology” (Microbiology Society, 2018).  Essentially, all things around us and within us (in some way) correlates to microbiology.  Microbiology has the potential to offer a great deal to the field of public health.  As the study of living organisms, understanding the life cycle is critical when trying to prevent and reduce the spread of disease.  Additionally, when applied to other disciplines (ex., epidemiology and clinical medicine) the study of microbiology aides in providing insight into other fields of science.

Reference

Microbiology Society. (2018). What is microbiology?  Retrieved from:https://microbiologysociety.org/about/what-is-microbiology-.html

Bio-Response three.

 

Public health is comprised of five key areas of study: biostatistics, epidemiology, environmental health services, health services administration, and finally social and behavior sciences. Within environmental health services lies microbiology. Environmental health services is an area of public health that focuses on infectious diseases, their source and how they affect the population. To study infectious diseases, one has to understand the foundation with which diseases and pathogens are made. This is where microbiology comes into public health. “Public health microbiology recognizes that to control and/or prevent a disease, you must understand the mechanism of the microbe” (Burlage, 2012). Microbiology and public health work hand in hand to understand and identify the organisms that are critical to the everyday function of our ecosystem.

 

References

Burlage, R. S. (2012). Principles of public health microbiology. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning.