Epidemiology

The Epidemiology Program serves residents of the districts by monitoring for the occurrence of reportable and emerging diseases or suspected outbreaks of illness (natural or otherwise), providing recommendations and guidance to prevent the spread of communicable diseases, and investigating outbreaks of disease and other public health emergencies.   
Areas of Responsibility Include:

• Respiratory infections [e.g., influenza (both seasonal and pandemic), legionellosis, etc.]
• Gastrointestinal illnesses (e.g., norovirus, salmonellosis/typhoid fever, shigellosis, Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli, campylobacteriosis, botulism, hepatitis A, listeriosis, giardiasis, cholera, etc.)
• Agents that may be used for bioterrorism (e.g., anthrax, tularemia, smallpox, viral hemorrhagic fevers, Q fever, etc.)
• Other conditions of public health importance (e.g., emerging infectious diseases, invasive bacterial infections, drug-resistant infections, outbreaks)
• Infections and other health conditions potentially associated with healthcare facilities

Data Source:  Virginia Reportable Disease Surveillance Data, http://www.vdh.virginia.gov/Epidemiology/Surveillance/SurveillanceData/